BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1833, 20 June 1874, Page 2

BOROUGH COUNCIL.

The usual meeting of the Borough Council was held in the Town Hall last night. Present— H is Worship the Mayor, Councillors Acheson, Korr, Hamilton, Glenn, Moore, and Dupre.

Two letters were read from the office of the Central Board of Health, Hokitika, calling attention to a clause in the Act vhich provides for the sending in of reports on the sanitary state of the town. They were referred to the Public Works Committee.

A letter from Mr J. M'Lean, stating that the first portion of the asphalte footpath laid down wanted re-dressing, was referred to the Public Works Committee.

The Greymouth Coal Company applied for the use of the donkey-engine, to be employed on their main shaft, as they wished to send coal to the port as Boon as possible, and it would take some time to erect their own permanent plant. — Resolved that the engine be lent at the rate of 30s per week, on condition that it is returned in good order.

Permission was granted to the proprietor of the old Shamrock Hotel to erect a verandah, subject to the usual conditions. The Town Clerk said that last Saturday night, about half-past six o'clock, he found in the box a letter from the Provincial Government, enclosing a cheque for LIOO, as subsidy to Mr Moriarty's expenses in surveying the Grey Harbor. It had been stated by Judge Harvey that this money was received the night previous to the trial, but this was quite incorrect.

Mr Acheson thought the information ought to be conveyed to the Judge in some manner that he had been laboring under a misapprehension.

The Town Clerk said the cheque was drawn in Hokitika on Friday afternoon, and as it came through the post it could not possibly be received till Saturday night. Mr Kerr agreed that it would be quite as well that his Honor should be informed that the letter was not received by any of the Councillors and carried about in his pocket until after the trial. He thought a letter should be written to him on the subject. Mr Acheson moved that the Town Clerk write to his Honor Judge Harvey to disabuse his mind as to the receipt of the cheque before the trial. The motion was carried.

A letter from Mr Anstee, with regard to the reserve upon which his house is situated, was sent to the Public Works Committee.

An account from Mr J. M'Lean for L 2 30s, for asphalting a piece of footpath, was not entertained.

A number of accounts were referred to the Finance Committee.

The following report from the Public Works Committee was received and adopted : —

"Your Committee have the honor to report having met with his Worship the Mayor, and resolved to interview and urge upon Mr Carruthers, the Colonial Engineer-in-Chief, the necessity of the Government taking the land along Richmond Quay for public purposes under the Public Works Act, and to proceed with the extension of the railway and harbor ~m7i"Ko-TT-ioliuu-fc-«lde»jr-j : 0100 to rcquoot tho Government to grant the use of the sleepers for the purpose of laying the tramway from the quarry to Richmond Quay, for the construction of the work authorised by the Council to be proceeded with for the temporary protection of the river bank from further encroachment below Johnston street ; and to state, that Mr Carruthers informed the deputation appointed by the Committee, that the extension of harbor works was a Ministerial question, and that his instruction from the Government was to report upon railway works, and that he understood the Council, with the Provincial Government, intended to carry out the work ; and that he promised to recommend the Government to obtain the land along Richmond Quay for public purposes under the Public Works Act ; also, to grant the use of the railway sleepers for laying the tramway,"

Mr Moore asked if there was anything said at the interview referred to in order to disabuse the mind of Mr Carruthers that in engaging the services of Mr Moriarty to survey the harbor, there was any intended slight shown to the Government engineers ?

The Mayor said the matter was not gone into except very slightly. It was only mentioned that the step had been taken for the purpose of endeavoring to improve the harbor. Indeed, the matter was one for the Minister of Public Works and not for Mr Carruthers. He wished to mention that the District Engineer had applied to him to allow Mr Johnston to survey the river as far up as the racecourse, and he had consented, in order that the gentleman who commenced the survey should complete it. He expected the work would be done within a week. The Town Clerk reported that the Council had been nonsuited in the case Borough Council v. Hughes and M'Carthy, and asked for instructions. As no one spoke for some time, Mr Moore said it was no use shirking the question, it had to be gone into either in Council or in Committee, after the other business was over. He moved that the latter course be adopted. This was agreed to. Mr D. Maclean presented a petition from a number of residents in Murray stieet, asking that it should be extended as far as Mount street, and they would subscribe Lll 10s towards the expense. — Received, and to lie on the table for a week. TENDERS. Before the tenders were opened for the decking of the skeleton wharf, Richmond Quay, Mr Acheson mentioned that some parties who had put in tenders had mentioned to him that they found their first calculations were wrong, and would put in a fresh tender. They wished it mentioned before the tenders were opened. Mr Hamilton objected to anything of this sort being entertained. It frequently happened that when the time for tendering had elapsed, the parties tendering had a talk together, and then a " knock-out" was attempted. The following tenders were opened for decking the wharf : — Sweetman and Brown ... £505 8 6 E. B. Garven 454 0 0 John M'Lean 443 0 0 Bell and Co. ... ... 499 10 0 Gleeson "... * ... ... 487 0 0 Rowley and Co. (first tender) 340 0 0 Do do(seoonddo) „. 430 0 0

The last tender was the one which was mentioned by Mr Acheson. Mr Dupre moved that Mr Rowley's tender be accepted. t This was not seconded. Mr Glenn moved — " That owing to the complications which had taken place regarding Mr Rowley's tender, the tender ] of John M'Lean be accepted." Mr Kerr seconded the motion, which was carried. The following tenders were opened for the construction of Thompson street : — . O'Malley and Co. ..." ...£l4B 10 0 E. Elborne 159 10 0 G-offandCo ... '. 144 0 0 T. Wright 122 10 0 Keown and party ... ... 159 12 9 James Neil ... 119 0 0 P. Sinclair 162 10 0 J. Niel's tender wa3 accepted. The Council then went into Committee to consider what steps should be taken in the matter of the case against Hughes and M'Carthy, in which they had been nonsuited. After a long discussion, it was resolved to make up a statement of accounts with regard to Mr Moriarty's expenses, and send the same in to Mr M. Kennedy, as requested by the late firm of Hughes and M'Carthy, in order to come to some arrangement.