SIXTY YEARS

Evening Star, Issue 22630, 23 April 1937, Page 7

SIXTY YEARS

-wr WftfTAKI BOWfTY COUR6IL

PROGRESS EMLY HMTMY KYWWO FR9M THMiOH AM *MM T* MAUD HIGHWAYS Sixty years in the life of a mortal is not unduly long, but when it obtains in a county it represents a history. And it will be with a feeling of pride and ' accomplishment that the Waitaki County Council celebrates its diamond jubilee to-day, April 23, for in its existence of 60 years the council has faced successfully many ups and downs from its genesis in 1877 until the present time. It may be that the manner in which the council was born had much to do with the administrative ability to which it later attained. Iu this story of the county of Waitaki is embodied the tale of the district as a whole. From comparatively nothing there has . been evolved a flourishing county, endowed with all the amenities that civilisation has bequeathed us in addition to a prosperous farming community. • THE FIRST 6MHCIL , The history of the Waitaki County croes back many years beyond the birth of the governing body. The town ot Oamaru may be said to have begun in 1853, when a grazing run was acquired by Mr Hugh Robinson, who built a small sod hut and woolshed alongside the creek that runs through the town; but there were parts of the district inhabited even before this date. _ Settlement was slow in the beginning, the only manifestations of progress being shown in those parts now known as Hampden and in and around Moeraki. Here -whaling and fishing constituted the principal mode of livelihood until the advent of the runholder. Passing over to the valley of the Waitaki, the district • here saw little habitation before 1853, the only settlements being those of the Maoris at Waitaki South, near the mouth of the Waitaki River, and at Hakataramea- The land along the banks of the river was all river bed strewn with greywracke (grey rock), while the hills held the tussock in profusion.. According to Maori legend these hills and Waitaki Plain were once the home of the moa, which roamed in large numbers until, with the increasing- incursions of the Morioris and subsequently of the Maoris they were killed

off. Gradually, however, the lands of North Otago became settled, and small townships made their appearance. The making and maintaining of roads began, but ~tlie procedure adopted was very erratic, and up- until 1871 very little was accomplished in the way of

opening up the district for better settlement. It may be interesting to look ii 'back .on ..the Jana, .of* rural local: government which, obtained over 60 years ago —i.e., previous to the passing of the Acts abolishing the provinces and substituting the counties. As a result of this legislation many of the Provincial Government’s duties were transferred to the counties—among others the opening and maintaining of through roads and the, development of the outlying districts. Previous to-the passing of the. Otago Roads Ordinance, 1871, small districts, were gazetted as road districts, although several of them existed only on paper. On the passing of the ordinance the whole of the then settled land (or what is now the county of Waitaki) was divided into five road districts._ each of which is now practically a riding of the county. The three northern and larger ones—Kakanui, Waiareka, and Waitaki—were associated in a joint '■ office in Oamaru, with one .engineer and one clerk (Mr Robert Garrow), while the two smaller ones at the south end ■ —Oiepopo and Hampden—were worked locally. These boards did good work for about six years before the passing of. the Counties Act,’ and even for a Eeriod of about 12 years afterwards; ut as their boundaries did not exist beyond the Awamoko Creek in after years the settlers were called on to pay an additional rate to the county as well as the Road Board rates. During these years there was a wonderful continuity of policy, the Kakanui Board, with one chairman presiding during the whole of that period (the late Mr J. .C. Gilchrist, who, incidentally, was the first Mayor of Oamaru). In the Waiareka Board, except for a short period through absence from the colony, the late Mr John Reid, of Elderslie, occupied the chair, while in -the Waitaki district (now the Papakaio Biding) the late Hon. Thomas Duncan was usually to be found in the chair. These boards had only two sources of income, the local rate and the Government subsidy thereon. From the nature of the country in the Waiareka district and the heavy expenditure in widening some miles of (roads, the rate ■was the highest on which subsidy could he obtained—viz., a general rate of Is in the £ on the annual value. Later ■when the Government land tax valuation was adopted, it -was altered to , id in the £ on the capital value. This ' rate produced £1,700, and with the subsidy £3,500. The other districts had lower rates; Waitaki’s, with its large area of . level land; would be only about half that of Waiareka and Kakanui. When the Oamaru Harbour Board obtained rating powers, a large area had to pay three separate rates in addition to- the Government land tax. Some years afterwards when full subsidies of£ for £ were finally reduced, it was evident that these boards had outlived their usefulness. It was then that the movement that they should merge with the County Council was carried into effect. The election for the first council was held on December 22, 1876. and the first meeting was held on January 4, 1877. councillors elected at the first meeting were:—Hon. Robert Campbell, D. Sutherland, John Johnston, W. Sutherland, T. Y. Duncan, W. Young, J. Wheatley, W. Craig, and W. Murcott/ The Hon. R. Campbell was appointed the first chairman, and Mr J. Martin, who acted as clerk, was appointed permanently two months later. Mr J. O’Meagher was appointed, solicitor, and Mr Henry Connell valuator. Mr Barron was the first road engineer, and in 1878 Messrs Barr and Oliver were appointed engineers and surveyors at a salary of £250 and commission. The ridings were Ohau, Otematatakau. Otekaike, Awamoko, Papakaio, Waiareka, Kakanui, Otepopo. and Moeraki. In latei years Ahuriri took the . place of Ohau and Otematatakau, and the riding of Kauroo was added; this was subsequently changed to Incholrae.

CONCESSIONS TO COUNCILLORS In the early period of the council’s history members were granted free passes over the railways while travelling to and fro on the day on which the meetings were held. This was impossible in respect to some-councillors who had to travel long distances. In the case of Mr Duncan Sutherland, the minutes state that it took him over a’ week from the time he left Omarama Station until he returned from the, meetings. .The distance to-day is ap-, proximately 80 miles. On,one occasion' while travelling on the train at Puke-, nri,-he was told that he must either pay . seven shillings or get out of the carriage; and on another occasion he was given the alternative of paying' his fare or facing a magistrate. These and similar experiences by other councillors were told at the council table and forwarded in the form of a hot protest to the then general manager of railways, who, it is interesting to note, subsequently made ample apology. The concession, however, was abolished in 1879. The first offices were situated in Tyne street, and later in Thames street. The council had the use of four rooms at a rental of £l2O per annum. The two back rooms were sublet at a rental of £7O a year The council, how- 1 ever, was anxious to get into permanent quarters, and after some negotiations with the Government, acquired the section where the present offices stand. A tender was accepted for the building in 1881, from Mr Alexander Watson, the price being £1,393, and the work was completed in 1882. The Waitaki Girls’ High School came into being in 1887; and, having no building suitable for the purpose of a school, the Board of Governors prevailed on the council to give up its building to the school for a term of five years and transfer to the Customhouse in Tyne street. The Hon. B. Campbell resigned from the council in 1881, owing to pressure of parliamentary duties, and. Mr D. Sutherland was elected chairman in his stead, an office which he held successfully for a period of 25 years. SPORTING INSTINCTS It is worthy of note that in those early times members of the council were evidently imbued with sporting instincts; for, the minutes show that a vote of £SO was passed on more than one occasion for the purpose of stocking the Waitaki, Kakanui, and Waianakarua Rivers with salmon fry. Nor could one say they were unprogressive, because in 1882 they approved of a scheme in which it was proposed to lay a tramway along the eastern side of th© North road (Thames highway) for a distance of three miles and n-half. For reasons not explained this undertaking was not proceeded with. HIGH COUNTY RATE The county rate was. considerably higher in the early days, being 3d in the £ on the capital value. The council, in the first years of its existence, had a very large source of income from the Canterbury Land Fund. In June, 1877, the council received £10,150. It was revealed subsequently that an overpayment was made by the Government of £4,757, through a wrong interpretation of certain words in the clauses of the Financial Arrangement Act, 1877. The whole of this payment had been applied to legitimate and necessary works, and arrangements had

been entered into and contracts undertaken. Consequently the! matter was fought out as to repayment by the council, along with other, counties which were placed in similar. positions._ Evidently the council husbanded its resources, because for the four years till 1882 the revenue received through the Government was £30,885. The greater part of this amount came from the Canterbury Land Fund; thus it was that the council was later able to pay out a sum of £5,000 towards the cost of the upper Waitaki Bridge. The expenditure in those days was exceedingly small. In 1878 £I,OBO was expended; in 1879, £1,465; 1880, £1,595; 1881, £1,496; 1882, £1,267. As a comparison the expenditure in 1927 was £35,521 7s 7d, and last year £28,210. The amount of rates received was £1,229. The reason for such an exceedingly small amount was that in the years of 1881 and 1882 no rates were collected, but the council was able to place £IO,OOO on fixed deposit. WATER RACES AND RAILWAY VENTURES In 1895 the council, with the consent of the ratepayers, borrowed £2,000 for the purpose of constructing water races from the Waitaki River, through the lower Papakaio district. To-day there are approximately 50 miles of races serving hundreds of settlers, besides providing the freezing works at Pukeuri with a large daily consumption of water. At about this time determined efforts were being effected to have the railway run through to Nasehy via Dansey’s Pass. The preliminary survey was estimated to cost £SOO. A deputation comprising the Mayor of Oamaru (Major Steward) and representa-tives-of the local bodies of the town and countv called the Nasebv Railway Committee) urged upon the council the desirability of ing a sum towards the proposed project. The council voted £IOO, but the venture did not materialise. _ Up to this time the council had been in existence 12 years, and had during all that time been actively employed in making and maintaining roads and bridges, and m doing other work essential to the comfort and progress of the county. In carrying out its work d- ninst have expended considerably over £IOO,OOO on public works, and yet it never paid interest, was never overdrawn at its bankers, had a considerable sum to its credit besides valuable assets in the plants with which it earned on its work from vear to year, amounting to in all £3,699 13s lid. ROADS AND BRIDGES As time went on the activities of the council became more important, some of the road boards having become extinct. Mr TL Banks was appointed engineer in 1884, and various works, such as the Island Stream bridge (Mabeno) £1,408, Otematata bridge £1,480, Kakanui bridge (at Maheno) £1,907, were completed. Various amounts aggregating nearly £IO,QOO were voted for other bridges. Up to the end of 1915 269* miles of roads were formed and 270 miles gravelWl. Mr Banks resigned as engineer m IJI4, and Mr G. L. Cnthbertson, the present engineer, was appointed early in 1915. In 1886 Messrs Hislop and Creagh were appointed county solicitors, and this firm still holds the position.

DEADLY WEAPON in Walking Stick, —Mr J. Woodford, of Mornington, made an interesting discovery yesterday when he found that the ■ walkingstick that has given him good service for years is in reality a deadly weapon. Mr Woodford was idly pulling on its handle when the stick came apart, and from a perfectly-fitting sheath was drawn a finely-tempered steel rapier. Mr Woodford knows nothing of the history of the weapon, having bought the stick at a second-hand shop about 10 years ago. On one side of the blade is inscribed “.J, Coulanx and C.” (pre-sumably-the makers), and on the other the word “ Klingenthal,” which'is a town' in Saxony. The wood of the sheath is of French briar. Authorities to whom the matter was referred say that there are quite a ipimber of families with French names in Germany, the people having settled there at the time of the Reformation, It'is impossible to assess the age of the stick with any accuracy, but its design suggests that it is not very old. The photograph ■ shows the stick as it normally appears and the blade with the sheath removed.

From the period of 1915 to 1927 a large amount of work was done in forming and gravelling roads and in building bridges. It is sufficient to say that 266,000 yards of gravel and metal were spread in this time. This amount is equal to about) 250 miles of road. In 1920 the council borrowed £2,000 to acquire doctors’ residences at Kurow and Duntroon. A small rate of a fiftieth part of a penny in the £ was cast upon the ratepayers in the ridings' of Ahuriri, Awamoko, and Otekaike to provide the wherewithal to pay the interest and sinking fund charges. THE LAST DECADE

Since 1927 the council has been faced with the ever-increasing demands of modern motor traffic, and at no time in the history of this and other counties has such progress been made in road and bridge construction as during the last decade. This state of affairs could only have been maintained by the generous assistance, received from the Main Highways Board, which started to function in 1924; and as the progress of the county depended so much on that of the board 'it is interesting to note that in the first year of its operations the sum of £372,251 was expended on 5,931 miles of highways in- both construction and maintenance, whereas last year the expenditure reached the substantial sum of £2,337,558 on 12,040 miles of highways PROGRESSIVE POLICY ADVOCATED

It was in 1927 that the petrol tax was first instituted, and as money became more plentiful the counties of the South Island were urged by the board to adopt a more progressive policy as regards work on their highways. Up to that time most of the work had been done in the North Isjand, including the reconstruction in reinforced concrete of a number of large bridges, cthe most noteworthy one in the South "Island being the Selwyn bridge, which materially shortened ‘ the distance to Christchurch from the south. Moreover, very little sealing of the main roads had been carried out, the only stretches of dustless surface between Christchurch and Dunedin being about one mile and a-half north of the Pareora bridge and the length between Waitati .and Dunedin, which was done prior to the Dunedin Exhibition in 1926, and which was greatly appreciated by motorists visiting that city.

The Waitaki County Council was being urged by the Highways Board to commence similar operations, but the old system of separate riding accounts was in operation, and it was some time before a new system was adopted which overcame objections to a progressive main highways policy. In 1929 the engineer obtained permission to lay down about 60 chains of bitumen on the North road from the town boundary to Redcastle road. So satisfactory was the work that it has carried the traffic ever since until it was covered up last year with a coat of. plant-mix. Unfortunately the natural policy of carrying on the work from Oamaru, the centre, was not continued, and the next length of sealing was from the Kuri Creek, north of Hampden, to Hillgrovo, in the Moeraki Riding, this work being done in 1930. The following year the Oamaru-Pukeuri length was done, and in 1932 the Maheno-Herbert stretch was completed. For a year or two after that money was not available and operations were suspended temporarily; however, during the last three years the work has been carried on with com-

mendable speed, and at the present time 36 miles of the main highway in the Waitaki County, from Waitaki bridge to Hillgrove, has a dustless surface. Apart ' from getting rid of the unpleasant and insanitary dust nuisance, it is considered that the saving in running costs of a car.on a well-laid bitumen surface is about one penny per mile, and a proportionately greater amount in a loaded lorry, so that the argument in favour of surfaced roads must be considered a very strong one. The remaining six miles of highway between Hillgrove and Shag Point has for the last two years been.in the hands of the Highways Board, and practically the whole length of this stretch has been greatly improved as regards alignment and grades, the work including a deviation to avoid the two dangerous bends at the railway overbridges on Kartigi Beach. This is expected to be completed next summer, when the whole length of Highway 101 in Waitaki County will be sealed. In November of last year the PictonBluff and the Timaru-Queenstowu Highways were taken over by the Highways Board, with_ the object of speeding up the completion of these, highways, as some of the smaller counties were unable or unwilling to shoulder their share of the cost of such work. Now that the financial responsibility of these highways ■ is’ off the county’s hands, it is hoped to make a start with the sealing of the other highways. While ail these highway improvements have been going on, it must not be thought that . the other loads in the county have suffered or been neglected. On the contrary, a great deal of new work and maintenance has been carried out both by contract and by the county’s own plant of graders and lorries under the direct supervision of the foreman (Mr -A. Nuttall), who was appointed in 1935. An examination of the statistics be tween 1927 and 1937 reveals the extent to which the ratepayers have been relieved of local taxation. Government subsidies, including highway subsidies, in 1927 amounted to £9,544, compared with £23,025 in 1936-37. The expenditure on highways in 1926-27 was £5,702, but in 1936-37 a total of £28,210 was spent.

'ihis increase in expenditure has, of course, been due to the tremendous increase m motor traffic and greater speeds, which demand an improved type of road surface. In this connection it is interesting to note that the drivers’ licenses issued in 1927 were only 1,461. compared with 2,388 last year. The amount of rates levied last year was £15.382, compared with £22,858 in 1927. _ The total expenditure for the year just concluded was £62,005, com-

pared with £37,871 10 years ago—an increase of £24,134. This increase in expenditure has meant a large increase in administrative responsibUity, combined with increasing duties in other directions, so that it was found necessary to increase the office staff. Unemployment has involved much work, the amount passing through the council’s accounts since 1931 being £27,115. The progress during the past 10 years has been achieved" with very little increase in the public debt. This to-day is £l4 360, compared with £11,378 10 years ago. In this respect the Waitaki Council has every reason to be proud of its record. It is one of the largest counties in the Dominion; yet it has been able to carry out its work with practically no jmblic debt. In 1935 a loan of £6,000 was raised to assist in financing the council’s tar-sealing programme, and £IOOO of this loan lias since been repaid. The balance will be extinguished at the rate of £I,OOO per annum. 3)o-day the Waitaki County Council has 36 miles of tar-sealed roads and 586 miles of metalled roads, compared with 499 miles of metalled roads in 1927. OFFICE-BEARERS The following have officiated as chair man :—Hon. Robert Campbell, resigned in February, 1881; Duncan Sutherland, 1881 to 1906, and from 1908 until 1911; Donald Borrie, 1906 to 1908; William Wylie, 1911 to 1912; George Livingstone, 1912 to 1919; Thos. A. Munro, 1919 to 1923; William Nicolson, 1923 to 1925; William Gardiner, 1925 to 1931; Arch. MTunes, 1931 to 1935; James Rodman, 1935 to date. Councillors: —Joseph Williams joined the council in 1896, Win. Nicolson 1896, Wm. Gardiner 1911, T. A. Munro 1911, G. Livingstone 1902, James Newiands 1911 (retired 1914, re-elected 1923), J. A. Macpherson 1914, Alex. Forbes 1914, W. Kininmont 1914, A. MTnnes 1914, Peter M’Fadgen 1917, David Clark 1920, James M. Smith 1920, James Rodman 1926, R. Bruce Meek 1926, D. J. Ross 1927, J. D. Rutherford 1929, R. Dick 1931, E. S. Brewster 1931, W. M. Cooper 1932, W. K. Aubrey 1932, S. M. Taylor 1935, D. Rodger 1935, J. S Adams 1935. Mr J. M'Laren resigned the position of clerk in 1930, and Mr R, N. Gardiner was appointed clerk, and occupies that position to-aay. The present council iss—James Rodman (chairman), J. S. Adams, J. D. Rutherford. W. E. Aubrey, E. S. Brewster, R B. Meek, D. Rodger, S. M. Taylor; D. J. Ross. Mr G. L Cuthbertson, the present engineer, has enjoyed this position with the, Waitaki County since 1915—a unique record.