CITY COUNCIL.

Evening Star, Issue 12762, 15 March 1906, Page 7

CITY COUNCIL.

'At the ordinary meeting of the City Ooondl, hfld last night, there were present Hfe Wors&p the Mayor (Mr Braithwait'e), C» Brinsley, Scott, Lawrence, Small, Fiddi», Harrison, Wilson, Connor, Walker, London> Arkle, Gore, Shacklock, Burnett, , Cole, and Riley. Cr Rutherford telegraphed an apology. —A Protest,— Mr Breen forwarded a protest from the Trades and Labor Council against paying a salary of £7OO to the Hew electrical engineer.—'Received. —Works Committee.— Gr Wilson moved the adoption of the Works Committee's report. In reference to the clause re the indemnity for use of bridge at Woodhaugh, he understood that since the report had been made the Maori U3M Council had refused the offer to put a padlock on the bridge. The only thing they would agree to was an indemnity from the Council.—Cr Walker seconded the adoption of the report.—The Mayor said that it would be better not to discuss this matter of the bridge at present. Negotiation was now going on. He would suggest that the clause bo referred back to th© Committee for further report. GL'he matter "was partly in the hands of the Water Committee as welly—After some further discussion Cr Lawrence moved as an amendment that tho clause be referred back to the Committee, and that the report as so amended be carried.—Tins course was adopted. —Water Committee.— Cr Lawrence moved tho adoption of the Water Committee's report. There was nothing in it, eo far as he inew, calling for comment But he would take tho opportunity of answering a question. He was asked at last meeting to make a statement as to the moneys paid to different engineers on the Waitati scheme from 1899 until Mr Barr commenced the Waitati waterworks Tho amouut that Mr Barr had received'during that time was £666 9s 6d. He (Cr Lawrence) could not state what that sum was for. Presumably it was for surveys and other works before he was in the Council. Since that time, during the period Mr Barr had been prosecuting the I Waitati scheme, ho had received £444 4s for reports, extra work, and services rendered in connection with compensation claims, surveys, plans, etc. Then on the V\ aitati contract proper, for supervsmg the scheme, Mr Barr had received £835. The total received by Mr Ban- since 1899 on all works was £1,945 13s 6d. Mr Hav had received £549 6s 6d since 1899—partly for work done before he (Cr Lawrence) was in the Council—for reports, surveys, and services rendered in connection with compensation clams etc. Mr L. H. Reynolds had receded £l3l 5s since 1899 for reports, ■ *l • * otal paid to *e engineers, includ--IDS for compensation cases, etc., J" £2 > 628 ' &• That was the answer to the request made at last meeting. The ??? ,t the £ mat^ r be had t0 mention was tnat tne Committee proposed to spend £37 on are pings in Caversbam, and in connection therewith he would remark that the .Council would shortly have to face a lamer stS ° f s ° me ° f th 6 Caveisl^ul a r£J ma ? Sa l d v he thon S ht t,le time had arrived when the matter of the Waitatiirfuth extension scheme should be put more expbeitly before the Council. He found * ™ * e e*g»«enng portion of that scheme ^ an . Cver . «* \ K'St' He uld S ive the detaii * as he him right if he was on errol , He it the sum mentioned thus: the cost of this portion of the scheme was originally set down at £05,365, and certain additions had since been made amounting fco £3 360 making a total of £38,825. It was'prohowever, not to construct the re(£13,500 might be deducted, leaving the estimated cost at £25,325. According to a sum ot £33,142 had been spent on the scheme to date, showing a present excess of expenditure of £7,817. "lie scheme not being finished, they had to add the cost of the *nfiiphed portion, which he put at £3 000 5&7* P robable <*«** of expenditure of Sh n , Comm S to tho amount paid to Mr Barr by way of commission, there was a considerable dincrepancy between the amount pad to-Mr Barr and the amount of Sd f f TOm P lete the scheme. The sum paid to Mr. Ban- was £1,945, and the amount for which he offered to engineer the" scheme was £950, being an increase of £995 —so on this item alone there was an increase of over 100 per cent. Cr Loudon agreed that the Council should have a more detailed statement of the expenditure, because the legal and rng: expenses were altogether out of proporCr Scott pointed out one or two misconceptions by the previous speakers. Part ot tne expenditure was incurred before Mr Barr had a contract with the Corporation br Loudon s remark as to the feral expenses being out of proportion was "unfair, for he omitted the charges for compW tion cases and land taken. Mr Mirams's estimate for labor and material and land to be token was £65,000, and the feral _ expenses were on that proportion, not "en the work done. Further, part of thamount credited by the estimate to en<dnw*?&r Ml i m^'^had nb reference to°the Waitati scheme at aU. The greater part of Mr Hays report dealt with the reservoir at Stlyerstraun, so the expenses paid Waitati n ° " Sht t0 bG all char S €d to - Cr Gore- said he had frequently pointed out_ the-desirabdity of having their own engineering department to carry out their works, and that was emphasised now Tfc was evident that this engineering had eo<t considerably more than U ought to -have cost. Their own department ° could have done it at one-sixth of the oo.>*. They might have wanted another engineer in the r£t' * lfc ™ yuld lmve bec n cheaper The Mayor, suggested that the chairman of the Committee should bring up a clear financial statement to next mcetino- It was unfair under present conditions to criticise the position. He thousht that both Cr Loudon and Cr Small had spoken under some misconception. Cr Lawrence said he would brin* up a statement as the mayor suggested. He did not believe that there had ever been a work t»f suca magnitude done by the Corporation [.hat had cost less than this one. The bulk of the money had gone not in engineering proper. Mr Barr had received only £3?| for hia work on his actual contract His estimate of the cost, so far ae he (Cr Lawrence) was informed, was £46,891, and on that he had been paid £835. He believed that when a true statement of the facts was given it would be found that the Waitati scheme would 1 be completed at a figure that would be within the estimate. There had been a good deal of extra work authorised by the Council, and the price of labor and material had gone up. This should be remembered if the estimate was exceeded by a little. The actual amount spent on labor and material was £30,899 4s 4d, the estimate was £46,891, and Mr Barr would bo able to show extra work to the extent of £5,000 or £6,000, probably more. None of the Rose Creek work was m the estimate. The report was adopted. —OLher Reports.— The Reserves, Gas, and General ComKrittees reports were adopted without de—Tramways.— Cr Loudon moved tho adoption of the Tramways Cotnmdttee'a report, in reference to the complaint of smoke from, the powerhouse, they had instructed the en<nneers to minimise the nuisance. In tfis connection, they hoped that tho electrical power .would be ready in a very few months. He would draw attention to

the fact that for the last fortnight the receipts were about £3OO more than the corresponding period of kfet year, , : Cr Wilson referred to the recommendation that the services of Mr A. j. Eggleton be dispensed with. It was said that this,gentleman had been, doing nothing for some time. By what authority was he being paid £250 a year to do nothing? Had thris man had fair pky in this matter? The engineer now stated "that he did not possess the qualifications necessary for the position. He would move that the clause be referred to a committee of four councillors and th 6 mayor to report to the Council. _ The Tramways Committee had refused to investigate thus matter, therefore the only thing that could be done; was to set it before a- special committee. Cr Connor objected to any special oombeing set up for this purpose. The Committeo previously recommended that Mr Eggieton should get a trial. He was given a position, and it was found after trial that he was not qualified for the position, and since it had been, recommended that his services bo dispensed with. Cr Riley said that he had had letters from gentlemen with regard to Mr Eggleton's qualifications. All lie wanted was to ask for fair play. Cr Arkle said that in concerns such as they were nmning they must place confidence in the chairmen of committees. Cr Shacklock said that Mr Eggieton had not had fair play. His own opinion was that ho had not gob a chance of being trained. As far as lie could judge, Mr Eggieton would be a suitable man for traffic superintendent, and that was the position he ought to liave now. The Mayor said that the less they interfered with tho tramway matters the' better. Responsible officials must be judged by results. The electrical engineer said that there was no further need for Mr Eggleton's services. Were they going to refuse to save £250 per annum? If so, they would fare badly at the hands of the ratepayers in tho future. There should be no inquiry. Cr Fiddis said that ho liked fair plav and ho believed that Mr Eggieton had been unfairly treated. Ho held that there should be ah inquiry, and the Tramwavs Committee should be exempt from takin- rart in it. ° Cr Gore said that ho had not intended to speak, but the Committee had been directly attacked, and he would state the position. Mr Eggieton was employed by the old Tramways Company, and when the Council took over the horse service they took him over, he being employed in the car-sheds, and afterwards be succeeded Mr Taggart in buying horses and also saw that the rails were kept in repair. When the electric service came in Mr Eggleton's bilM was gone. Cr Wilson had asked who put Mr Eggieton into the tramway, service under Noyes Bro?. He (Cr Gore) would like to know that, too. So far he did not know Mr Eggieton was worthy of all consideration, for he had proVed himself to be a good servant, and he (Cr Gore) would have been pleased if Mr Eggieton could have been found some other occupation. What did happen was that Mr Eggieton was sent to Mr Goodman. Mr Goodman at first objected, but Mr Eggieton was rent to be trained to the overhead work. The last section of the wiring being about to take place, a memo, was sent to Mr Eggieton to attend and see how it was done? He did attend, but would not go near the work. That was tho statement of one of the engineers assistants. Then he hud nothing to do. He was supposed to look after the rails, and also to do the overhead work—the latter particularly. The man who did this overhead work got less salary than Mr Eggieton, and yet some councillors were really asking to displace this man and appoint one who did not know the work and lifted higher wages. Was that business? U, as some said", Mr Eggieton ought to bs traffic manager, he would have an opportunity of putting in his application. He was a painstaking man, and persuit But for the Council to set up a committee would be to disorganise the service, and if that were done the trams would never pay. Cr Harrison said that if what Cr Gore said was true, what others said must b? untrue, and there was more need for an inquiry than he (Cr Harrison) had thought. Jtt seemed to him that the Council had apl>ointed Mr Eggieton to a position that he was not allowed to fill. Cr Gore: No. Cr Harrison: Well, turn up the minute. The Mayor said he thought Cr Harrison was right, but he would have the minutes searched at once. Cr Cole said he would support the motion. Mr Goodman was manager of the trams, and if they went on dealing with these petty questions of management over Mr Goodman's head they would have every conductor and motorman coming to the Council. Retrenchment was unavoidable, for the tram account.was going back, and someone must suffer. He hoped before long the engineer would recommend that others be dispensed with. Cr Brinsley said he could not support the amendment, for it practically impeached the Tramways Committee. The fact, was that influence was brought to bear on the Council to find an opening for Mr Egrdeton. ° Cr Walker said it appeared to him that Mr Eggieton had not had justice. Why was he losing his position? Through' incompetence, he (Cr Walker) presumed. The Mayor: Mr Goodman says there is nothing fcr him. That is all. Cr Walker proceeded to road a letter from Mr Goodman of Ist June, 1905, in which Mr Goodman said he proposed to take Mr Eggieton on as maintenance inspector, and continuing, Cr Walker said that if Mr Eggieton did not do his work the Tramways Committee should not have kept him on. It was a case for inquiry. Cr Lawrence said that he did not approve of tho way in which Mr Eggieton had been put away. As the Council's servant he should have been left for the Council to deal with. Ho had heard that Mr Eggieton had stated. that he never got an opportunity of learning anything—such a rumor was afloat. But he could not support the amendment, because it was not in the right direction. Ho could not support such an amendment unk&s Mt Eggieton had made application to be heard before a conrmittec. Cr Scott voted for the report. A great deal had been said that might have °bcen left unsaid.—(Hear, hear.) His experience of Mr Eggieton had been that he was a faithful and competent servant in the days of the horse trams. At the same time they most not forget that his new duties had been different duties. He held that they must support the Committee. Because who was to know what Mr Eggieton had done if net the manager. He did not care who was manager of the he intended to support the Committee's recommendation. Cr Loudon replied. They knew it had been stated repeatedly that they could get a man of experience to carry out the duties at lens salary, and however much they might feel for Mr Eggie-ton-there were such hardships in every business. One great pity was thai they had no superannuation scheme that might apply to such cases. From the very first Mr Goodman demurred to take Mr Eggieton OA-er. As far as he knew the latter had made no application to be heard. The Mayor said, in reply to inquiries, that Mr Eggieton had been appointed inspector in 1904 by the Council at a salary of £250 a year. , ' A division was taken on tho amendment, whioh resulted in its being lost. The voting was as follows :—For : Cra Wilson,' Walker, •Shacklock, Harrison, Fiddis, and Riley. Against: The Mayor, Crs Gore, Arkle, Loudon, Connor, Cole. Small, Lawrence, Burnett, Scott, and Brinsley. The report was adopted: —-Electric Power.— Cr Brinsley moved the adoption of the Electric Power and Lighting Committee's report. Proper provision was to be made for the men *at Waipori. It was hoped that in'a few days negotiations with the Taieri County Council would end satisfactorily.—Cr Lawrence asked that a true copy of the deed signed between the late Waipori Company and the Taieri County Council and the Waipori Company anil the Dunedin Council bo laid on the table for the information of councillors. He did not believe that one out of six knew the correct meaning of that important docameniU or what a serious docunienii to

the City it was. Ootmcillors should see that deed, so that when the matter came before the Council they would /be afole to 'discuss it intelligently. He also asked itbe chairman -whether the Ccimmitteo had considered whether the substation at Mosgiel should.be built at the same time as the on© at Wakari, so that when power was available both could be used at once.—The report was adopted. —Finance.— ,

The Mayor, in moving tho adoption of the Finance Committee's report, referred to the proposed donation of £2O to the Otago League. He said that the progress made on the Lawrence-Roxburgh Railway Was largely due to the exertions of the League, who had assisted in getting a sum put oh the estimates for it.— Gr Burnett moved to delete this clause. If the League was going to live it would support itself.—Cr Cole seconded him. There were urgent works in the City that required attention, but the citizens were always told there was no money for them. —The motion to delete the donation was lost.—Cr Small moved to omit the clause with reference to Mr D. M. Spedding's deposit for the purchase of debentures.— The clause was omitted, and the report, as amended, was adopted. —General.— A second-hand dealer's license was granted to Charles Harold Austin. Five tenders for the supply of 10,000 tons of West Coast or Newcastle coal for the Gasworks for the year ending March 31, 1907, were referred to tho Gas Committee to report.