TOPICS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4473, 28 September 1901, Page 4

TOPICS OF THE DAY

FOOLING THE PUBLK?. It is made clear by the motions,_puk. lishea in anotner column, which Councillor Nathan has given notice to move at the nest City council meeting, that the speeches made by Councillors wneu discussing the condition of the Lambton quay footpaths on Thursday nigut were, so much eloquent fooling calculated to divert Councillors who were m tne snow and to throw dust in the eyes oi those ratepayers 1 who might ~ be inclined • .to take tne proceedings of the City Council seriously. From the wording of' Councillor Nathan's resolutions, it is m>ds clear'that on the August, sitting in camera, the Wellington City Council passed a-'resolution authorising tbe taking of a poll of ratepayers ou the. City Engineer’s proposal to piaoe the whole of .the Wellington roads and footpaths in a proper condition of repair at a cost of £60,000. This explains the otherwise inexplicable position which Councillors took up on Thursday night, when speaker after speaker got up and vehemently urged tha necessity of some, thing being dene, and yet studiously refrained from proposing any .definite course. It seems now that there was not a Council]or sitting round the table woo. had not voted in favour of the £uil>OOU loan when the taking of a poll' was decided upon in private, and it is equally certain that every epe of .them was convinced in his own mind that until that loan was secured not a penny* piece would be expended on Lunbton quay. The' speeches in favour of immediate action, and the threats to block business until an assurance was given that immediate repairs would' be made to Lambton quay, must, therefore, be assumed to have been so much, "muff” and rhoilomontade. The question arises: Why—if the... city representatives on tho 22nd August decided that an expenditure of £6U,000 for street works wquld be necessary—was not the Council’s resolution made public P In locking for moii.c, the, burgesses have not far to seek* It seems quite plain that the reason for secrecy and delay in regard tt, the undertaking of an essential work was the desire to have the city committed to tho Miramar scheme first, and, to afterwards force on the ratepayers acceptance of the streets improvement scheme under threat that if the-amount waa not. voted, roads , and footpaths would’ go from .bad to worse. Underhand (acticg guch as those of Thursday night were the natural corollary of so devious a scheme. Plainly a deliberate attempt is being made to blindfold the ratepayers ag a cover to the iniquitous Miramar-purchase proposal. Councillor Nathan is to be thanked for taking the only means-open of exposing the plot to the light of day. It remains for the ratepayers to maintain a watchful attitude in regard -to the operations of their • " slim7’ representatives on the City Council, so that they may he prepared to call them sharply to account at the earliest moment. ■ I,AND BOARD AND SETTLER. Probably one of the most troublesame and difficult cases that has ever come before a Land Board is that of the two ■ Andersens. ..of Horowhenua Tillage Settlement, Levin. The trouble began between two and three year* ago, when one'wr two commission agents promoted -the sale of sections- A scramble on a small scale began over a twenty-five acre lot—No. 53. Amongst the claimants was an old bachelor named Anderson, who, denouncing his rivals as a Jot of speculators and protesting' strongly against No. 53 being disposed of to the owner of the adjacent property, because it would mcau amalgamation, succeeded Ui inducing the Wellington Land Board to allow the transfer. For a time the victorious Anderson rusticated, grab-

bing two acres and building a wbare. A second Anderson, Peter by name, with a family of eight, secured the section adjoining and then the trouble began. The original Anderson grew - ill and wanted to sell out. The second Ander-

son required his namesake’s section to make a payable dairy farm and prevent his family from scattering. Applications to transfer ensued, and the services of the Crown Lauds Ranger were called into requisition. He reported that although fifty acres would not bo too much tor a dairy farm, and the purchasing Anderson was a good and deserving settler, there wore lots of landless people knocking about who would like to get a twenty-five acre homestead. The Board refused to transfer the section, despite medioH certificates and frantic appeals that if not relieved of Ids homestead the original Anderson would perish at his post. The ■ Board was, interviewed, the Board was besieged, - memorials ensued, political aid was invoked, and the Laud Commissioners wore adjured, upbraided; coaxed and denounced. _ From appealing to the Board the disappointed one —who it wa* ritated was about to get £4OO for a property for which he had paid £l5O two years previously—applied for the assistance of the members for Waipawa, Pahiatua and Otaki. But the Land Board - remained obdurate^

Then he sought the aid of the Minister ' of Lands and the strong heart of the Cabinet melted. The Minister asked the Land .Board to reconsider the application, and the members did so with the result that only the Commissioner (Mr Marchant) relented. .But the pertinacious applicant was not to, be refused. At the meeting of the Land < Board this week a pathetic letter wag read from the' patriarchal and paternal Anderson, and this time one of the members, Mr Reese, showed symptoms of yielding. Finally it was resolved to

bling the whole of the circumstances under tho attention of tho Minister, and. a general conference ensued yesterday afternoon. 'Fully two hours were occu- . pied, with the result that after a vpry - prolonged skirmish j tho Andersons ’ will probably come\ out on top.

'THE WAIM AWN O UOUNTBX. Mr Marchaat, Commissioner of Crown Lands, who has recently visited .the Waimarine Country, gives a most interesting" sketch of tne possibilities of settlement in that part of the '"North Island. Along the course of the northern' think dine, between the Waimarinci

and; Taumaranui, although some: of the forest laid is of fairly good quality, a good deal of it is somewhat, poor. - aho crop now carried is, in his opinion, the most valuable tnat would ever .be obtained from it. Besides-a splendid to. tara forest—the largest in toe colony—there is a large area containing timber that would be valuable for various purposes. When it'is cleared away by tho sawmillers, the land might be grassed' and improved with but little trouble. At the foot of the great incline - below ths extensive table lands, there is an , extensive tract covered with mixed bush | • comprising to tara, rimu, matai and a kind of white silver pine, which Mr Marchant believes would be greatly prised , , in ..Great Britain for certain purpose a The district would-employ a large sum. her of sawmillers for years.. and ought to be a-hive of industry. In one part there is-a tract covered by tree terns that would prove good gracing country. > At Taumaranui be was astonished to find quite a prosperous little townsuip. Very fine railway bqildingt are going up, there is a comfortable accommodation house, several neat cottages, and a schoolhouse and a church are being built. In the course of three.months or sc tho residents, who have now a telephone office, will have railway communication with Auckland, The Commissioner said he considered the timber trade would bo principally with Wellington and the •rath, Auckland being well supplied with kauri. Mr Hogg suggested at yesterday’s meeting'of the Land Board that the timber should not he' disposed of until railway communication from the south, as well as the north, is established. The Commissioner replied ihafc there need' be no hurry about the disposal‘of the timber. In the meantime, the work of surveying and making subdivisienal lines would bo prosecuted.