THE TAR ON THE FOOTPATHS.

Evening Star, Issue 11626, 10 July 1902, Page 8

THE TAR ON THE FOOTPATHS.

CR LAWRENCE v. THE CITY ENGINEER. A COUNCILLOR'S"INSINUATIONS; A lengthy and somewhat personal discussion took place at the City Council last evening on a report furnished by the city engineer (Mr Rogers) on the cost of a tar boiling plant. The report read as follows :—“Re Tar Boiling Plant.—The statement showing cost of plant as being £ll 8s was incomplete, several items being overlooked in writing the report, owing to the pressure of work on the staff and myself. I called my clerk to furnish amounts of two vouchers giving the above amount, whereas there were numerous other vouchers of smaller amounts. Of course, if detailed statements of all expenditure were kept, the error or omission could not have occurred. The statement herewith prepared by the town clerk is accepted as correct, with the addition of £5 6s 4d. The statement hereto attached represents detailed statement of expenditure in connection with the repairing of asphalt footpaths, m connection with which I have to point out that an amount of £2 8s 9d has been expended on fuel which has been used on city works, including fuel for steam roller. A proportion is therefore really chargeable to the cost of the various asphalting works carried out under the boiling tar process.” The Chairman explained that the report had been prepared at the request of the Works Committee, as there appeared to be a disparity in the prices referred to in a previous report.” Cr Maitland moved—“ That the report be sent to the Works Committee for their report.” Cr Braithwaite seconded the motion. Cr Lawrence considered it utter nonsense to keep on referring the matter to the Committee and back to the Council. This, so fur as he understood it, must be the final act in this asphalt business. Their city engineer was asked to furnish a report to the Council, not to the Committee, and it was for the Council now to consider it and he done with it. With reference to the boiling apparatus referred to in the report, he (Cr Lawrence) said that when a report was asked for it should come in correctly. It was not right for any man in their empjoy to tell'them that his subordinates had made a mistake. It was his business to see that these mistakes were not made.

Cr Muir rose to ask that the Council go into committee in » matter of this kind. He thought that Cr Lawrence was just gomg beyond the bounds in criticising one of the Council’s responsible officers. Cr Lawrence, proceeding, remarked that Cr Muir was continually interrupting him. If ho was afraid to listen to what he (Cr Lawrence) was going to say he should retire. If Cr Muir was prepared to sit at the Council table and allow incorrect reports to be brought in, he (the speaker) lor one was not going to do so. The report stated that the tar apparatus would cost £ll Bs. When it was found out that ibis was incorrect a correction was made, hut apparently not, until it was found that a mistake had been made. Now there was more in it. They had been told, when lie was on the Works Committee, that some of their works were costing 75 per cent, more than they should. Well, then, it was only right that they as a Council should expect their works to be conducted in a more economic manner. The apparatus was reported to cost £ll Bs. and now it was found to cost £26 11s lOd. Out of this amount there was an account for building 2,000 bricks. He could assure the Council that instead of the works costing 75 per cent, more than they should at that time, they now cost 100 ‘per cent, more than they ought to cost. If all their works were going to.he conducted on these lines, where would they get to in time? These 2,000 bricks had cost £6 18s to, lay. Well, they should not have cost more than £5, or £3 10s at the. very outside. and he knew something about the work. The labor of building this appanttus had cost 14s more than the material —a thing which should never take place. Then, again, to couple the two tanks cost £1 15s 7d. The pipe learding from the tanks to the outside of the brickwork, and the two taps that were connecting the / tank-, cost no less than £5 ss. He said that it was utterly scandalous. With inference to this tar, it was stated in the report that it only cost o£d per yard. He had stated when this system of asphalting was inaugurated that he knew that it would not stand, and that it would be costly. It had cost over 5d or 6d a yard. The statement was made in committee that it would not, cost more than sjd. lie had gone very carefully into this. He found that to put that asphaltdown an inch thick, which rolled into |ths of an inch, it cost no less than £1 4s 8d per cubic yard, which meant B£d per superficial yard. He had submitted Ins figures to men who put down asphalt every clay, and rhey agreed that the figures were well within the mark, and that they could not possibly do it for the money. The Committee would remember that the piece he complained about, was from the Octagon to Rattray street. He had said that it would cost 6d or 6d at the lowest, ; and he found by the statement now before the Council that it had cost Thus, what he had said was now borne out. The portion that was stated to cost 3£d was a portion he never referred to at all—that from Rattray street to Brown, Ewing’s corner He was prepared to say that if it was properly measured and calculated it would be round to cost far more than yes stated. He could not criticise it in i(s present form—so many loads of screenings, gallons of tar, hours of labor, cartage. and so on. But he knew very well that at half an inch thick it could not possibly be done at less than per yard. Then they had this to remember: that a large portion of the asphalt had been put down and taken up again.- He ventured to say that every particle that had been put down had cost not only 3£d per yard, but he would guarantee it had cost Is 3£d per yard. If these things were not to be criticised in the Council, how werp they to be remedied? They were criticised in committee, and nothing was done. During 1901 there was £230 17s 4d spent in asphalting and tarring. , During 1902 the amount was £239 3s Sd—almost an equal sum; but what had they got for it? In 1901 they had all the footpaths tarred and sanded; in 1902 thev had scarcely anything for it. ‘

Cr Muir sail that the engineer had laid a perfectly candid statement before the Council, and where it was incorrect he had ex-, plained that he was dependent upon the departmental officers for the figures, and the explanation should be accepted in good faith. With regard to the asphalting, he (Cr Muir) had nothing to say, but he was pleased to sec that Cr Lawrence was devoting so much time to the engineer and his department. Ho (Cr.Muir) would like Cr Lawrence to diiect his attention to another matter of great importance to the community • that was the fact that building contractors who entered upon building work built in this City without asking pei> mission, and used the Corporation’s water without having a permit, and used. the Council’s footpaths without ' Or Lawrence: I call Cr Muir to order. He is not speaking to the report at all. Cr Muir: I thought yon would hear something you would not like to hear. Cr Lawrence: You can say whatever 3. 0n like at the right time. Cr Muir: Weil, I would like to say that Cr Lawrence should devote a little of Iv.s attention to these matters, and I would like him to ascertain if there are any councillors sitting at this table who are in the building trade and who have performed such acts. That is the point I want to bring out. L don t like the principle of gagging’a man, tying his hands, and then kicking him. It is exactly the position Cr is taking up with regard to the engineer. Cr Lawrence; Cannot 1 discuss the way things are conducted without bringing in the engineer’s name? Cr Scott said he did not know whether Cr Lawrence was right or not, hut he preferred such a matter being brought up in committee. He (Cr ’ Scott) thought Cr Lawrence had a certain amount of jnstafica.tignJor the statements he had made,, In. a

report by the (engineer dated Ju'y 8, 19G1, they would find the following;—“ The workmen employed by the Council appear to go about their work ih a very easy-going and indifferent manner, and apparently careless of consequences, tending to show a want of supervision and disregard of their immediate overseers. This condition may be one to the inspectors themselves and other causes. However, it wifi be my duty to insist on the Council securing full value in workmanship for the wages received by the workmen, and trust to receive the Council’s support and assistance. While on this point I would remark that in the interest of the Council it is of importance and absolutely essential I should have full control of inspectors and workmen, the inspectors reporting on all .matters direct to myself, and I will report to the respective committees. At the present time I am in a position to prove that work carried on by the Council’s laborers is costing from 75 per cent, to 100 per cent, 100 much.” Those were the words of the engineer. Had that been carried out, and had there been any improvement at ell while he had had full control! He said No.

Cr Tapper said there was no doubt that the mention of the engineer was to Cr Lawrence like a red rag to a bull. He was surprised that Cr Lawrence should mention tar again, became he had said that tar should not be boiled. Ask any engineer, and he would laugh at the idea of tar not being boiled. There was one thing they had to be very particular .about, and that was that if good men found their reputations brought continually np in open council and criticised by people who did not know better,, they would never get a good man to take a position. They might get rid of their present engineer, but when they tried for another man they would find no one coming forward, because they would say: “I know how my reputation would suffer.” Or Braithwaite said that Cr Lawrence had a perfect right to bring matter before the Council in some way or other, seeing that apparently the Committee took r.o notice of what he had said. He (Cr BraitLwnite) said that as a practical man C,T Lawrence had thoroughly demonstrated h:s position and proved bis case. He (Cr Braithwaite) deprecated the position taken up by one councillor,at the table. He thought it was wrong to introduce personal matters into a debate of this kind. He would have preferred that the matter should have been taken in committee. Cr Maitland was very sorry indeed that this matter had been brought up in open council. It would have been better if the report of Mr Rogers had b"sn sent to the Committee and the Committee had been aLowed to deal with it in the proper wav. It was a very bad precedent that they had followed that evening whsn they had allowed any officer of the Corporation to be openly attacked on an important statement. He thought it was a wrong principle. He had no sympathy with the insinuations of Cr Muir. Cr Muir: They are perfectly true, at all events. Cr Lawrence said that Cr Muir had thrown out an insinuation regarding himself (Cr Lawrence). Sometimes he (Cr Lawrence) might have occasion to put in foundations before _ getting a permit, but there was no one in the Council who could ever say that he did not pay for all he got—water, building license, and everything else. Cr Muir: Have you got a license for the building you are putting np now! Cr Lawrence ; Never mind; that is what I say. I never do anything unless I pay for it. I never erect a building without I get permission to do so, and I am not erecting a building now without permission. I am certainly starting to put down the foundation.

Cr Muir said that the reason he had spoken as he had was because the chairman of the Works Committee was absent. With regard to Cr Braithwaite’s statement that the Works Committee had done nothing in the matter, it was well known that they had had it continually before them, and ■the Council would not have had that report before them if it had not been for the Works Committee.

Cr M Donald said that the late Works Committee had taken exception to the boiling of the tar, and had instructed the engineer to use it raw, so that they were responsible for its use. Boiled tar was the ii, ost successful that could be used for asphalting purposes, and though the late Works Committee had instructed the engineer to use it raw, he had to take the whole blame of having done so, besides being blamed for the disgusting state of the fooL paths. The Works Committee were responsible for the whole of the top-dressing of the footpaths, which had been in such a disgusting state throughout the whole of the°lato bad weather. What right had the previous Works Committee to be both Works Committee and engineer of the City? He hoped that after this matter was done with any future would be done in a more satisfactory manner. The engineer was not in a position to defend himself. He was not permitted to write a letter to the newspapers, and he was not able to appear before the Council. Cr M'Donlad repeated that the late Works Committee were responsible for the state of the footpaths in having instructed the engineer to use raw tar. Cr Scott: What Cr M'Donald says is not correct. From here to Brown,‘Ewin -’s corner was put down with boiled tar. Cr M'Donald: I say that from WardelT* corner to the Bank of New Zealand has been put down in raw tar, by the instructions of the Works Committee. Or Scott: As a member of the old Works Committee I take exception to those remarks. The Committee never interfered with the engineer. 'The Chairman said that the extra expense might appear small, but every councillor had a right to question any extra expense. It would be a bad thing if any councillor was sat upon ” for doing so. Cr Tapper: I move that the report be received and referred to the Works Committee. Cr Braithwaite: I should like it to be made plain whether the late Works Committee or Mr Rogers is to blame. The Chairman said that was the question and each councillor had a different opinion upon it. They liad been asphalting for thirteen years, and they had never°used boiled tar. It was quite a new idea, and he never knew any other contractors use it. He would suggest that the report be rethat no further action be taken , This was agreed to.