WELLINGTON HARBOUR BOARD.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 9115, Issue 9115, 11 January 1910, Page 5

WELLINGTON HARBOUR BOARD.

A YEAR'S WORK. The annual election of members for the Wellington Harbour Board will be held on February 14. All members retire, and Mr Maurice Cohen, who has represented the large district from Kiwitea to Levin for some years', offers himself for, re-election. Mr C. E. Daniell, the Wairarapa representative, is also standing again. In' a body with such ramifications as the Wellington Harbour Board, it is not hard to see that a new member has gradually to assimilate the conditions under which the Board's affairs aro administered, and it takes some time to absorb the general position—financial and otherwise. Mr Cohen has now reached that stage, and is thoroughly conversant with its workings and the principal aims which the member for a country constituency should have in view. Together with Mr Daniels, the Wairarapa representative, Mr Cohen has always watched very keenly the interests of the primary producers, and has been successful in securing some notable advantages for them. An important departure by the Board has been the erection of largo and complete wool sale stores, the contract for which has now been let. The object is to concentrate, as far as possible local wool sales in Wellington, and to give such convenience and opportunity to oversea buyers as will make Wellington the chie? wool centre of the Dominion. The principal has further been affirmed that the Harbour Board should go out of its routine as a mere "port of entry and shipment" in catering further to the interests and convenience of butter and cheese, and a motion has now been placed on the books that in the near future cool stores under the Board's own supervision should be erected for the storage of butter and cheese awaiting shipment, thus rendering it almost unnecessary for the dairy factories to in-' dividually spend large sums of money in securing cool-store space. Mr Cohen has further been personally successful in securing an adjustment on the charges of hemp and tow; in having small reduc-. tions made on the charges in the face of the unavoidable prospect which is before the Board of the raising of charges generally. It is probably well known that the Harbour Boards' Bill was before the House during the recent session, but was held over till next session. Its object is to remove many anomalies of the several Harbour Board Acts of the Dominion, and to consolidate the method of representation. Seeing that the country has been so far inadequately represented, the country representatives, with the cooperation of other members of the Board, succeeded in having a recommendation made that the country constituencies of the Wellington Harbour Board should have two members each instead of one as is at present the case. If this becomes law, the country will have a much greater say —as it properly should—in the business of the port. The experience of the past two years, in Mr Cohen's opinion, has shown that a very great deal of unnecessary expenditure has gone on, and he considers that in the near future the revenue must be increased by a very large amount in order to meet the increased fixed charges. There are only three sources of income from which revenue can. be derived —from ships, importers, and exporters—and it will require very careful consideration to make an equitable division of the burden on the several contributing sources. The one great blunder, Mr Cohen considers, has been the dock. He has sought every opportunity of finding out some way whereby this "huge expenditure" could be obviated, but without success. In his j opinion, it is unnecessary, and must for , many years to come prove a white ele- j phant. Mr Cohen's re-election to the position he has so ably filled is. of course, assured by the expressed intention of the interested local bodies to continue their support.