THE CITY COUNCIL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 7339, 28 May 1885, Page 3

THE CITY COUNCIL.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir,—Oar common councillors of the city seem to think they have a right to purchase books with ratepayers' money to improve their intelligence, and justify their accept tance, gilded and embossed with their individual names in gold, on the plea that this latter was done to please, by an over anxious official, wde'Mr. Goldie's letter to-day. So upon their retirement from office a City Council porter will deliver said books to their private residences to be placed npon their bookshelves in memoriam, and tha over-zealous official will repeat the expenditure upon each succeeding new councillor attaining to office for all time. Yonr < own remonstrance to this small manner of fritter*' ing away city rates, deserves the ipeoial thanks of all ratepayers. Not long ago, Sir, they showed a more evil desire, by attempting to hand down to posterity their hackneyed cognomens, by attempting to have them placed upon eighteen street corners of the city; but again through the publio in« dignation raised in these columns their uogentlemanly ideas of public rights were frustrated. Surely the city should have at least one man in the Council independent enough, if not to direct rightly, to expose such a direct misappropriation of city rates. Councillor Goldie's note, if anything, makes matters worse, for although his motion was seconded by another glibe councillor, they must have known that more than half the present Council are already provided - with Badger's compilation. Ah ! but they are without the gilded name; but said motion went so far that the faithful official had ' access to > the funds, and stepped in and carried out their unexpressed desires, in this as in all other matters; then they turn on him—rather a savoury Chamber for the city to be governed from. This state of affairs, Sir, cannot continue, I'm sure, for their bungling and favouritism of oity works is getting notorious. Their incapacity to deal with the main outlet of the city—Upper Queen-street —is a sad example. Look at its position 1 And yet owners, if forced to sell, would not realise cost price, after holding on over twenty years, as the writer has done. I admit a fancy value is pat upon it, bat it cannot bo reached, while property less favourably situ* ated, by, an unfair expenditure of city revenue, is enormously enhanoed in value. While in conversation with a high city official about their tardiness in regard to Upper Queen-street, the open reply he gave was that there was not leverage enough. The meaning is obvious, and perhaps property* owners in this street deserve the reproaoh for their apathy, whether rightly applied or not.—l am, &c., J.B> May 27.