WAITAKI COUNTY COUNCIL.

North Otago Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 6577, 23 February 1888, Page 2

WAITAKI COUNTY COUNCIL.

The monthly meeting of the abore Counoil took plaoe yeiterday, when there were protest Memo Sutherland (chairman), Borrlo, Ldale, Shaw and Hodge. The minutes of iait meeting were read •nd confirmed, and tbo outwaad oorrea* pondence read and approred. The Treaiury Department Intimated that the iura of L3 lie 3d, second pro* grew payment in aid of prospeotiog, bad been forwarded to the Colonial Back, Tiie Department atated that it vu not propoied to contiuua the payment of aubaidy ou the N»ieby to Llrlngetone track, as the pre? ioui payment of L20 IGi irai final. The Manager of the Bank of New South Wales wrote atating that betw«en the 19th of Aagoat, 1887, aod the 10th of February, 1888, be had purchased iQOoz 2dwta 5<rt of sold. Tue Clerk to the Waimate County Oouocii wrote atatlog that, fa reply to the W*it»kl Oouoty Cou.ooU'b letter of the tHh ! iaitiat, blf Couocil had applied to the

Government to huve ibo Upper Wailnkl Ferry tested in tbo Chairman of Uk Waimate County Oounoil, and a rei-Jr bid been rsoeivfd from the Mlniitor promising tbut the matter would bf enquired Into. MrTbomM Brydon© wrote on bnbnlf of the New Zealand and Austrian Lour Company, atafinpr the oompany h»d no objection to thf deviation of rond in section 56, Week 9, Oan atu Diatrlot. It «*a dfcidtd that tbe nfoe»«nry utrps be token to complete tlii dilution of the ro»d, and it wif ordered that lendtra be cnited for pHttlng In a crosilng. Captain M'WilHam, of th« Hampden Rifles, applied under seotlon 296 of tlie Oountlea Act for tho »ui*» of L5 for the removal and rrereotton of a target and tbo construction of bnttii. It wm moved by Mr Hcdgo, and Mieonded by Mr Shan, that the letter In received, -—Carried. Tbo Clerk to tho Wallsoe County Council forwarded tho following rnoluUcD passed by blfl Council, and asked the en-operation of the Waitakl Council, "That this Council respectfully «k th# Government tointroduoo a olause into the Counties Act) ci*tof? power to the Coumy CouooIIb to eu»T)orl«ie tho erection «f gates on county road lines, and that the varlou» OonDiy Ciuneils be aiked to mpport tho recommendation." Mr Borrie tbonght It would bo a good thing for the Ooutioll to have the power to erect gates, even if they did not put the power in force, Mr Iidale expreiotd the earue vieir. It was decide'* to support the resolution of tbe W«ll«ce Ooun y Oounoil. Thii queitloa of the damage done to Mr Ore l«nd at OtUko, by flood w»»er, was brought up by tho chairman, who stated that Mr Hislop would be in Osmaru in a few dsys, and he might b* Interviewed CO the mbjeot. Mr Borrie thoaght Mr Newton, who wa«' aoMng for Mr Orr, ihould be informed that 'lie Counoil did not acoopt iiny reiponeibllity iu regard to tho damage, H« moved to tho aVove effect, nnd thin was looonded by Me Hodge, and carried. It was decided to take no further "action till Mr Orr »evod in the matter, The following letter, signed by U ratepayer! in the Waiareka diitriot, wai read : We, the underdgnel, t» fw d *V»« r*to' payera and othor* in the Waiarek* tiding, who renturad humbly to Approach yon by petition at your hit raeitiog, praying you to take over list Coal-pit road, respeotfally beg to reproient to yoa that io our opinion, formed from the rtport of the ooanty moot* Jog in tho local pr«*i, tho ttatementi made to you by a depuUtlon that waited upo you wore of a misleading naturo, in so far at) these •tatoment« referred to tho importance of the Co*l Pit ro«d to tbo lettlora in the Waiareka riding, We alio oaonot refr»in from exprasMng our attonlihment and regret at the position taken cp by tomo roembnti of tho Count)!, that yonr petitioner! ibould only approach you thrcngh tho Road Bo»rd. ab wo have yet to loam that tbe right < t Britiih iubj<ot» dlrootly to appronoh their repreientativea by petition for tbe redreoi of any grievance h«i paiMd away, And we alto wiih dlatiootly to ttato that in addreuing our petition to you no diireipeot te the Waiareka Koad Board wa» either rhown or impttod, Thio is ttiort espeohlly appureit when it U tnkon Into ooniideratlou that tbo Waiartka Koad Board bat on more than odo oooailon requetted tba Connoil by letter to take ovor this tamo road, and your petitioner! were, therefore, urging the rery requett formerly mado to you by the Road Board itself. Under theio oiroumitinooa we beg roipeotfuJly that you will reoomider tbo ■tatter of taking OTor tbo Toal Pit road la Iti entlrtty. Referring baok to tho correspondence of the Wahvreka Road Board on tbe subject, and to tbe petition* whioti havo been preiented to you on dlfforont ocosbIodb by the ratoptyera itatiog their grlovaooe, aod praying you to take over this road, we fee) satisfied that you will find rery euffisicnfc, grounds to justify yon in aooodlng to tbo reiterated request of tbe Waiaroka Bond Board, and tho repoatod potitlou of tbe great majority of the ratepayers of tho rid* Ing. And furthermore, by oontlcUring la lt« entirety tho matter laid beforo tho Counoil from tine to time oonoernirg the taking over of tko Coal PI* road, tbe C«unoil will be In a position to decide, of its own knowledge, what it bent for the intercut of the ratepayers and tho general pobllo; and the ratepayer* will feel that the Counoil is not allowing itself to be mloiod aod tbo welfare of the riding atorlficed by the obotrucMon and opposition of one or two intoreotod in< dlvidnals. We therefore roipeotfully urge the Coun* oil, In justice to itself and with « due regard to pnblio interest, to fully ro<cons!der tbe applications of the Waiaroka Koad Board and tho petitions of tbo ratepayer* to take over this road, And your memorialists will ever pray. Mr Iidale fluid that the sufcjaot had boon dlicuised over and over again, and it was Uielesi contiuuiog it. Tho taking ovor of the road by tbe Counoil would serve no good purpose, The ratepayers would nave nothing by taking over the road. Mr Borrie said it wis au unusual thing for a petition to bo Bent in to tho Counoil asking for a road to be taken over that wa« under tbe jurisdiction of a Road Board, Mr Iidsle laid the Road Board did not wiib the Counoil to take over the Coal Pit road. The Chairman said h'c thought the Conncit might deoldo to take ovor tbe road iix months banoe, as they had beon 10 often »iked to deal with this road. On the motion of Mr Isdalo, seconded by Mr Sbaw, it wau decided that the Joticr bo received. Mr J. Hodgson wrote aa follows *. 1( Mr J, Findlsy »nd myself failod to aeree re domape of ray land at contract 314. I trust the Counoil will oonoidor the matter with a view to an early settlement. I may mention my tcrtro oro L10 f'»i land tskon and otherwise destroyed and made yaloeleBB by said oontraet. I may state for the information of tho Council that there has been only one drny gone over that pirt of the road during the past six months, ond it only contained a stray? mattrcBi, It will bo loog before there is Another," The clerk said the engineer bad inspected thedaratge done by the spreading of the road Una, and had 4ioortaii>od that cue-twentieth part of an aoro bad been covered, »nd this, at the property tax valuation for tbe land (L3 per aore) weuld amount to about 3i. Mr Borrie suggested that the details be forwarded to Mr M'Kerrow to report at nrxt meeting, It was deolded tbat thin should bo done. Tbe followleg petition waa read : ft We, tbe undersigned, owners and oecupUro of land in tho disputed eneroaobrnent on the Bfeikncok road, rupee fully submit that to leave the dispute as it 1b at present neither contributes to the dignity of your Counoil, nor tba satisfaction of any one at all lot ©rented in the road. Wo therefore reipeotfullj or a ve you will cause measures to be adopted aa will determine tbe matter in dispute, bo that tbe road may be properly formed at that particular point. Signed: J, T, Donaldson, W. Donaldson, A. M 'Donald, G, Donald/son, W. Framo and F. % El*y." Tbe letter wad received, Tbe question of depasturing stock on thf wining reserve at LIvlngBtono was men tiooed, and tbo Clerk said tbe new regulations weregssMtfced, and oould be. put i» lotto' (> . ,. t '

Mr B>rrU said It would bo betttr to drop the whole thing. Mr Hodgo fluid it was difficult for th« Council *o do bo, The Clerk read a utatement or the reoolptt and expenditure during the pail two yearn, which ehowrd that the rcoolpu bnd bfitn very little over the rxpondituro. Mr Iidnle thought they ehnuld take o Irgal opinion an to the necessity of the Council holding the responsibility of dealing with tho reserve , It w»s decided to adopt Mr ladale'a suggestion. Mr James Rooney a*ked for an oitennion of nix weeks for the completion <f hie eontraot (No. 336, gravelling at Ngspara). Tho oxteniion wbb grunted, but the applicant was to bo urgod to push on the Mr H, Wlns'ey'a tender of L19 5s was ocoopted for pnfctloj? in a culvort at Fir street crossing, Tho Chairman mid that while the Minister for Lands was at Ohau, tbf qu«aiion of a bridge soross tho rlt or wn» ttlsouwed. Ho might say that dnrtae ; the last few montho three horses had beon drowned and many acolde'il» had oo currod. Thor« was a good deal of trnlBo between tho Vincent and Mount Cook Counties, and tht faot '.hot there ww no bridge interfered with the »»ffio from the Waftaki County. The cost would be Tory little. The danger of crowing by the wire rope wos very great, and steps would havo 'o be taken sooner or lator, TonristB often hod to turn back at Kurow owing to tho want of a -bridge. It was deoided that <ho county enpineer meet the engineer of the Mount Cook County and inspect the eito of the bridge and report on the estimate ©f eost. The following letter froro Mr Gemmell was read : " I judge from tho report of your lait meeting that you wish to test tho case ib to whether It is the duty or not of persons allowing gorse to apread on road lines to cut the same. That, I <lo not dispute, and if it is not law it ought to be. Whnt I dispute is tbe right of the Council to flourish their brooms ouhjid« and raise dust nhtlo it has so much dirt within its own door. And from the clause in the Aor under noxious weeds and plants which I hare drawn your Attention to, you will seo that the Council is suppoood to start n,t home. I think it toy duty to your 0 unoll, tbe ratrpayera, and myself here, to give you a little in. formation with regard to your authority over certain roads whioh you have given tbe adjoining proprietors notice to ol«ar, aa by doing so you will better understand me and possibly be tho roenna of saving you law expenses. In the firat place, let me toll you that the land for the rond be'ween seotlou»7 and 8, block 10, wa* Kivon by me (with gorao growing thorcon) in oxebanire for other land, to tho late K k*nui Road Board some yo*rs ago. Tho portion through tho lower end of section 8 waa takon from -the proprietor without bid consent, and the Korea fences cut through to the width of about 12 toot. Tbe goree h»s sine* boon dosing in nod continuing to spread, Your Council Iisb as yet no titlo to the land though you have been using it. And now you atk the owner of that section to clear tht gors». This is tbe portion of road most complained of, aad judging from my paet experience of the Council I have no doubt but that (unless it is degenerating) it will see jtwtioe and show a Rood example by clearing its own first. With regard to tho notloa I hare received from you to o'ear tbe broom and gorse on liver bod, I may as well now tell yow auoh I Am not going to do until yon are prepared to clear your own, whloh I hope for tho benefit o1 all concerned you will do without delay. I may alao state for your information that, with tho exoep* Ion of tho road I bavo alroady referred to, the partios from whose lenoos the gone- is spreading have boon in the ballt in the past of cutting the BMno before it bcoime a hindrance to traffio, ond I have no doubt such will be continued. At tbo same time I cannot help expressing my opinion that it lo rather officious of your Council in trying to fore© peopU to do euoh wnrkat tbis time of tho year. Mr Hod^e thought MrGemmcli should got a month's notice to clear tho road. Mr Shaw said if the goraa waa not oleared off tho road soon it would be inv poesiblo for traffic to be carried on, Tho road waa almost blooke). It was decided, on tho motion of Mr Shuw, seconded by Mr Borrlo, to give Mtsttfl Elder, Gsramoll, SfevMieon, Donaldion, E. Duncan, and tho N.Z. and A.L, Company notioo to oloar the goroe off the road lines opposite their respective properties. The engineer's report wno read as follows : With reference to Mr Nlohol's requoit that the road through sections 4 and 8, blook 7, and section 1, block 6, Otepopo, be formed no »s to give aooais to run station during floods, I find that he proposo« to deviate the road from the point where it oroiBfS the Island Stream north of sect! ml, and take it Along the south side of the laland Stroim to tho road between aeotlons 2 and 10, blook 0, thus avoiding all fords. A good road can bo got on the lino proposed. The surfaceman's house at Awamobo lo at present 20ft x 12ft, divided Into two apartments. There was originally only ono door, but the last snrfftoeman added a canvas lean-to, and put lo a door to oommunioate with lt< As the doors aro opposite one another, and only 12 foot apart, they mast o»ane a afcrong draught. I would rooommend that a tlmbnt lonn-to be added* About 500 oubio yards of m»ln*onanoo gr»vel »re roquirod for m»la ro*d between Wahn*karn» Rivor and tho Kaka Creok, The gravel Is very tbln for tho wbolo distance, and at plaoen out through. I wonld reoommend that teadors ba In vltod for about 600 oublo yards maintonanoo gravel for looholmo road, botween the Ioland Str«»rn bridge and tho northom bouodary of blooi. 8, Oamiraj I would rooommend tb*t tendon be Invited for about 800 oablo yard* maintoaunco gravel for twin road botween Peebles and th« Waikaura Oreo'<. It was deoided to call for tondero for all (ho worka mentioned in the erjg'neor's report. Acooonts amountfns; to L452 7« lid were passed for payment. On tho motion of Mr Itdala It was decided that the Railway ©rfpartmont be written to, drawing their attention to a ditch they havo made across the road nrar lolond Cliff on tho Windsor railway, which obstructs tho roadj and aikicg them to put in a crooning. Mr Hodge moved that tenders bo nailed fur formation and gravelling on aec'lons 3 to 5, block 2, Kurow,— Carried. This wai all the business, and tbo Council, with a vote of thanks to tbo chairman, rose.

Mr Lawrence, M P. for the Stamford DirUion of Llucolushlro, epeaklnc at the •nnuil dinner in connexion with the Uotrno F»t Stock Show, said that In looking forward to Protcotion farmere were anticipating •omething they would never obtain. There waa do probability of Ehgland ever adopting a Protection policy. That wag not » plessaat thing 'O aay to gentlemen whono minds were net io ltd favor. If they examined the oauui j B of tho growing popularity of thio r«trodrade movement they would fiqd > hat oaoh deiired ouly hia own particular intereut proteoted. , - Abutoher w«« twzm to death on the moon near feheflUld,