The New Zealand Herald. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1870.

New Zealand Herald, Volume VII, Issue 1900, 17 February 1870, Page 4

The New Zealand Herald.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1870.

SI'KiJTK.UUit AGENDO. " «ive avery nmn thine ear, but few thy voice; Take each man's censure, but reserve thy Judgment Tills above all, —To thine own self be true Ainl it must follow, as the night the day, Thou cans't not then lie false to any man.''

The Provincial Council has agreed to defer the further consideration of the proposed new Highway Act until the next session. This delay, though to be regretted on many grounds, will doubtless have some compensating advantages, in enabling the newly proposed Highways Bill to be circulated throughout the province, and so give settlers an opportunity of thoroughly considering its clauses, discussing them, and making known their opinions to their representatives. By this means it is to be hoped that a thoroughly comprehensive and practical measure may , be passed during the next session of the Council. The Committee, in tlieir report, state the principal alterations which they have recommended in any existing law. It would be advisable to have a number of copies of the report and of the proposed Highways Bill printed, so that these might be distributed among the ;Various.Highway Boards of the province. The cosi would not be great, and tlie thorough ventilation of the subject which this would reveal, by enabling the ratepayers of each Highway District.to fully discuss the proposed bill, would be of very greatvaiue. Sush a proceeding would enable every Highway Board'in the province to-calmly and carefully, consider the mattkr,''arid the result of their deliberations might be sent . to' (he Government; who would thus have, before the commencement of next session, the very best practical opinions available on this "important subject.' The resiilt ought to be a billp which, so far as the powers , of the ar® concerned; will be fld -perfeci '/as. it -can •to' circumstances of ' '• '•• ' . Highways Act forms the basis, indeed the; greater portion of the proposed Act. , But the Committee state, however, that they have in ' some respects, reverted more closely to the Act of 1562, introducing; in their proposed Act several alterations.which have been suggested by' • experience. The Comiiiittee| "briefly state' past: legislation '011. the" ''guestion, whether the assessment should bp upon the value to sell, or based upon acreage. The Act of 1862 left this optional, with a majority of ratepayers ; that, of 1666 took away that option within a given area— -value to sell only being-.considered in making a rate ; in the Rural Districts Act, 1869, disallowed by the , Governor, the acreage rate waa done | away with throughout the province. The Committee recommend that the option should be retained, as in the i Act of 1867. This' will enable the ratepayers of each district to I adopt the plan which may be best adapted to it, and will be found, no doubt, to give very general satisfaction, when the whole surrounding eircumstances are carefully and dispassionately considered. Situated as the province is, with districts varying so much in their wants, population, and means, a strict line is not generally applicable. What may suit a thinly populated bush district may be quite inapplicable to the neighbourhood of Auckland; and leaving each district to decide for itself which plan of rating it will adopt, will practically secure the greatest amount of real local self-government, and ought to secure the greatest amount of justice and efficiency. Upon the question of the recovery of rates, the Committee state that they have endeavoured to afford greater facility than at present i exists lor the recovery of unpaid rates, land they leave to the ( ouncil the question whether rates ought or ought not to be recoverable as an ordinary debt. One of the greatest causes of complaint in respect to the present Act is the difficulty of collecting rates from defaulters, whether resident or absentees. It does appear consonant wifh prudence and common sense that a highway rate should be levied and recovered in the simplest and easiest manner possible. A district meets and appoints trustees ; a rate is decided upon; the wants of the district can only be very imperfectly met by the highest rate which the ratepayers can afford to pay ; every penny is required for roadmaking and bridge-building, and required during the year when the rate is due. It is clear, therefore, that 110 careless or fractious ratepayer should be permitted to retard the work ot the r trustees —that is, the public works of the district—by non-payment of his fair quota of rates. Ihe trustees should be put to the least possible trouble and expense in collecting rates, and they ought, as a natural consequence, to have ample powers to proceed as quickly and. as inexpensively as possible against defaulters. It

seems to follow, therefore, that rates ought to be recoverable as an ordinary debt. It is not a pm-sonal matter with the trustees —it is the good of the district which is concerned, and no hiudrance should be permitted to exist which cart fairly be removed. The trustees give up their time to the public, and that is another reason why those duties they gratuitously perform should be made, not as difficult and troublesome, but as easy as possible.

The Committee propose an important alteration as to the date of election of trustees. They recommend that this should be April, instead of October; and that rates should be payable on the Ist August. This will enable the rate to be collected before the fine weather sets in, and the Highway Boards may mature their plans for work to be done in their district, and theu have them carried out during the summer—a very important matter, in this province They further recommend that power should be given to levy an emergency rate, if required, as well as aa annual rate. The great inconvenience caused by the want of such a clause is always felt when any sudden floods destroy, as is sometimes the case, bridges and other works along a line of road.

At present a district can do nothing in an emergency of this kind but appeal to the Superintendent, who may be totally unable to assist the inhabitants. Under the proposed Act, the Chairman of a Highway Board would have power to convene a meetof ratepayers to consider any such emergency, and, if thought advisable, to levy a special rate to meet the special damage caused. Another recommendation is, that the rates shall be paid in to a collector appointed by the trustees, at any convenient place appointed by them, one month's notice of such appointment having been given in the Provincial Gazette. It is believed that this provision will lead to a considerable saving, and every step in that direction is, of course, a very desirable one. It appears from the I evidence and letters appended thereto, that various highway authorities have pressed this question on the Superintendent. It will be very little trouble for any individual' ratepayer to call at the appointed place at the appointed time and pay the rate. The amount he can always know, for a copy of the assessment list is to be deposited in some placc where lie can see it, and not merely nailed up for a time at. any particular spot in the district.- There arc two other recommendations in connection with the rate part of the Act, ;viz , one that the. vote for the annual rale should precede the vote for the eleotion of trustees, and the other that th.6 Superintendent's recommendation to relieve the Highway Boards from the expense' of, publication of the assessment lists'*,!!!: tj.. Vrovhwial Government Gazette;*-■

We have thus inferred to a portion 'of'''€lib.7's in the Hichvvays..Acfc.liind,JKrill refer to other recommendations of the Committee on another occasion. The subject is a very important one. The Committee was composed iof members of the Council from"every part of the country districts of the province, and they ought to be thoroughly acquainted with the wants of their respective districts and with' the past working 't>f Highway Acts. ; Their Opinion should therefore be entitled to consideration, representing, as they do, every part of the province. The interval during the present session of the Council, and the opening of the next, will give ample time to thoroughly discuss every clause of the proposed new Act. We would again suggest that the proposal of Mr. Revburn that copies of the Act and of the report of the Committee should be struck off and sent to the various Highway Boards, should be carried out. : Th 6 cost of thus sending half-a-dozen copies to each Highway Board would be trifling, and the gain would be very considerable.