The Harbour Board Endowments.

Evening Post, Volume XXVI, Issue 101, 26 October 1883, Page 2

The Harbour Board Endowments.

? A warm discussion took plaoe at thomeoting of tho Harbour Board yesterday consequent on tho receipt of a notice from, the Publio Works Department that it was the intention of the Government to resume oooupation of the pieoe of land opposite thoGovernment Printing Office. A letter was read from Messrs. Bullor and Gully, the Board's solicitors, eiproisinr "i their opinion that the Government possessed power to resume possession of any land held on such a tenure , provided compensation wore given for any improvements effected. The Chairman said members would perceive that the letter from the Publio Works Department put a comploto extinguisher on the sain of leases advertised for tho following day. Mr. Lancaster regretted that the Board had not decided to lease the land twelve months ago, when the Government had no intention to use the land in question as 9. site fofi a new printing office. The Chairman thought that if the \ ft nd had been leased a year asro the Government would have cancelled the leases and resumed possession. to be no likelihood of the Board receiving any compensation. The Chairman mentioned that 1 he had arranged for an interview between tho Board and tho Minister of Public Works in reference to this and another matter. Mr. Nathan was of opinion that tho Board should confer with the fountain head on this important matter. The Board had borrowed money on this and other seouritirs, and they were now about to raise a further sum in the same manner. The piece of land on which it was proposed to erect the printing offioe was the only piece of freehold whioh the Board possessed, and it seemed to him that it was a most unjust thing for Government to take it away. The Board ought not. to take this action of the Government veryquietly. If it waa the intention of th» Government to offer reasonable compensation, the Board would be satisfied ; but if this, was not done, then a noise should be made* on the subject. In his opinion there was< plenty of land suitable as & site in othor parts of the town, and he couidered that bytaking away the endowment in question great discourtesy was being shown to the. Board. The Mayor asked to what influence did tboBoard trust to obtain a restitution of itsrights P If it was to the deputation whioh it. was proposed should wait upon the Ministerof Public Works, all he could say was that he had no faith whatever in such a thing. There were some members of the Board who> were of opinion that the Government werei open to the influence and arguments of personswho waited upon them for tho purpose of.' pointing out injustices, but he (Mr. FisherS was not one of them. In. March last one of

the most influential' deputations ho hid over soon in Wellington waited upon MinUtorH. The justice of tho mattor introduced by tho dopntation conld not be questioned, and tho mannor in whioh tho various arguments wore enforced was vory ablo; but whore was the fruit? .Where was tho result pf that inter- j viow ? Although several months had elapsed sinoo the deputation waited upon the Govornmont, nothing had been heard from the lattor on the subject, and ho (the speaker) I thought this might bo quoted as a test of the value of deputations. So far as ho was concorned, he would never wait upon Government aa a member of another deputation. He did not care to import politics into this question, but ho could not rofrain from oxpressing hia opinion that tho City of Wellington had boon vory severely punched by the Government of tho colony. It was in this anomalous position: It possessed three moinbcra of Parliament who wero supporting tho pooplo who did this sort of thing, and it was only right that the viown of tho Board should be transmitted to Govornment through thoso gentlomen roforred to. If the members of tho House for tho Wellington district could not obtain satisfaction, the electors should know on whom to confer their votes at future elections. He was sorry to introduce this aspect of tho matter into tho discussion, but he conld not help doing go because he felt that all hopo of getting anything from the Government was gono for ever. Tho question of discourtesy alluded to by Mr. Nathan was a minor matter, but still it was sufficient to engage the attention of tho Board. It would be recollected that after tho donutation waited upon tho Ministry, the Chairman was requested to put his views into writing. This had been dono, but no roply had yet arrived, although several months had olapsed. Parliament had oorao and Parliament had gono, and yet the Government had not moved in the matter. The Govornment mighfi say what they liked about their right to resume occupation of the land opposite the Government Printing Office, but he could not help asserting that they were committing a robbery of the property of tho oity. Mr. Erull said that, like the Mayor, ho folt vory strongly on tho subject, but ho did not ajfroe withhia Worship that they should not wait upon tho Government. If they conld not get justiae from that sonrco, thoy should then cull n, monster mooting of the ratopnyorft to protest against the injustioe done tho Board. Mr. Lancaster oonourrod in the views of tho Mayor. Tho Board woro not being proporly treatod by tho Government, and it was I about tirao that something was done in the way of assorting thoir rights. Wellington v/m far behind all the other ports in the mutter of endowments, and becauno the local Board desired to obtain a little monoy by leaning their allotments, the Government' stepped in and prevented thorn from doing bo. Tho Govornment were plundering tho Board, and it was high timo they deolined to bo trampled upon any more. The Chairman thought it only right to say that in the early part of tho year he was informed by Ministers that thoy intended to rosumo oooupation of the piooe of land in qnoHtion. Ho, howover, thought tho matter had droppod. Captain Williams nrgod that tho deputation should wait upon tho Promier instead of tho Minister for Publio Works. Mr. Krull — Wo have seen one Premior. That was Mr. "Whitakor. He suubbed us ; now lot us soe what our own townsman will do. Aftor furthor discussion, it was decided that tho Board should wait npon the Hon. W. Johnston at 11 o'olook this morning.