BACK-BLOCK ROADS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume I, Issue 50, 4 October 1907, Page 3

BACK-BLOCK ROADS.

MR BURD'S REPLY TO KIRITEHERE COMPLAINTS.

Some time ago the Wellington Post published in detail a remarkable letter from Mr Gregg, of Kiritehere, complaining, among other things, of the manner in which roads were made in his district. The gist of the letter appeared in the CHRONICLE. Mr T.

Burd, District Road Engineer, was called upon for a reply to the charges made, and the reply, after being considered by the Minister, was handed to the Post for publication. The matter was referred to in the last issue of the Chronicle, and we have since been requested to publish the reply as it appeared in the Post. The charges are dealt with in detail, and are answered as follows :

(1) With regard to enquiry re the way the roads have been formed in the above block, I shall be only too glad to welcome the same, as I feel confident that any engineer who has had experience in road construction in a rough country, and granted the same conditions, would have acted in exactly the same way as I have done. . (2) The Marokopa Heads is where the settlers in Kiritihere get their supplies from since the steamer commenced running there, but under existing circumstances this certainly was not the place to commence operations on the Waipaua Road (which, by the way, is out of the above block, and, therefore, block money could not be expended thereon), for the following reason:—Between the Heads and Kiritihere, on the old Maori track on the cliffs, there are two big hills to climb, and the first, near the Heads, is a mere flea-bite to the second near Kiritihere. I, therefore, started this road out of the grant £2OO at the Kiritihere end, in order that the first portion of the road, when made a certain distance, about two miles, could be connected by temporary track on the spur with the old Maori track, and thus avoid by far the worst portion of the latter, and also the rocks which, I am sure, any man with a grain of commonsense would have done when there was hot nearly enough money available to do the whole distance, and even up to the present time I have not had sufficient money to enable me to do this, consequently the portion formed cannot yet be utilised. But this is my misfortune, not my fault. (4) What Mr Gregg complains of here is the breaks in the formation on the Kiritihere Road. By direct instructions from the head office, I had to leave the formation undone where the surface of the ground was good enough to allow stock, etc., to travel, in order that as great a distance could be made available for traffic as possible for the small amount of money in hand. Again, it is impossible to drain a fiat road through bush country without having the bush cleared first, and the stumping clone," and when these works had been undertaken all the block loading was expended.

(5) The Mangakokopu Road is a a portion of'the main road between Kiritihere and the railway, and it is very important that this should be completed as well as the remaining portion of the Pomorangi Road, which will give access to the main Mahoenui to Kawhia Road, in the Mangaohae Valley, and from here stock can now be driven to Te Kuiti on, former road. (7) Mr Gregg,"'in 'sanction/nig the tragic oyer the cliffs, omitted to tell the Minister that at low water it is possible to take a pack-horse along the beach the whole way between Marokopa Heads and the Kiritihere. A certain portion is covered with stones, but still a horse can get along, as on many occasions I have taken a pack-horse there myself without unloading. His statement, too, of ten chains of formed track having cost £3OO is entirely misleading, for altogether on this road four miles and 3Q chains is available for traffic, though not drained all the way, which latter will come when sufficient money is available, and over one and a half mile| was made available for traffic out of the £3OO. (8) These men seem to imagine (why I can't say) that I have power to transfer money which has been voted by Parliament for one road,, and then expend it in some otHei- place, but, of course, you are aware that such is utterly impossible without Ministerial authority. The engineer then deals in detail

with the roads of the districts goes on to say;—A acUeme was got out for. loadihg eaeh section with its proportion of the total cost, and I commenced operations iu the centre of the main road through the block, and at each end, and also the construction of the outlet to the railway, asq just as I got in fyij swiag- and "had 'everything goihg'w-ell in connection, with tiie 1 same, the work was su.dden.ly stopped, our beautiful scheme knocked on the head, 'and* the land was put in the market with about a quarter of the loading there should have been on it, and the result is very apparent now. I venture to say that had Qurscheme been carried oy,t, the whole of the district w;ould have been in a flourishing condition to-day, and the settlers would have had roads t<3 their doors, and been satisfied - % but such was not \9, he. In conclusion, says the engineer, I am' very sorry indeed that Mr Gregg has the notion that I work against the settlers, for I think that anybody who is brought into close cpntaet with me is absolutely sure that is "n.ot the ease. ■$ trust that* you will see that these eharges that have been brought against me are entirely without foundation in any shape or form, and. I am sure that the same Inspector who is in local charge of tlie woric. : Mr Barron's long expeHen.ee under Mr Murray, pistrfet Road Engineer, Ne\v Ply-mouth, before he came here, and the conscientious and capable way in which he has always carried out his duties, are sufficient denial to any slur that might be cast upon his character.