THE WELLINGTON FIRE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14088, 17 December 1907, Page 5

THE WELLINGTON FIRE

TEMPORARY PROVISION TO BE MADE.

DURATION OF NEXT SESSION.

(Pin Usitib Prshs Association.) c. • WELLINGTON. December 16. Cabinet held a long meeting to day to ductus tho situation which has arisen in consequence of tho destruction of Parliament liuildings by fire. The Prime Minister stated that tho next s»sion of Parliament would be hold in temporary premises to bo provided at the fiito of the old building. Details of tho fieltcme had not yet been dccidod on, but arrangements will lw completed by tho time the session i« to cominenoo.

''We will go about the whole maltor of robuildiitjf very oaroiully," Sir Joseph continued. "There will bo no attempt to provide a palatial structure, but without in any way being extravagant it will b« necce-sary to rebuild in a, substantial manner. I think tho matter ono of suflicicnt iinportauce to consult Parliament about when next wo meet. There is no occasion to call members togctfio'r at this stage. Under any circumstances, i( it were dccidod to rebuild tho building, tho work could not be completed in under 13 months. The necessary appropriations would also require to he made. Wo cyi easily provide temporary premises where accommodation will be of a reasonable kind."

Asked if the session would be a short one. Sir Joseph said it would not have been so long as tho Jast oven if tho building had not been destroyed. llis impression waj that Parliament would ait for about, the usual time in tlio case of a session preceding tho general election. TIIE UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS. (Pbk United Phess Association.) AUCKLAND, Decern bo r 16. Sir Robert Stout staled that tho esaminat ion for matriculation applies to tho Wellington candidates only, Tho scholarship examinations, which ooticnrn about 100 candidates, must bo rebeld all over the Dominion, as all the candidatca must liave the same [wipers sot them. Tho faot that the examiners and the candidates aro in all parts of the Donjinion, added to tho time required for preparing tho papers, etc., rendora it practically itniiossihjo to hold tho examinations before Christinas tiiiN. The necessity of preparing a secoml matriculation examination for tho Wellington candidate* would likewise provont it being held till after Christmas.

The following telegram l.as been received from the Hon. J. A. Millar re tho junior fcholirship examinations:—"lhavo received tflo following information from tho Hon. the Minister of Education in reply to my wire re scholarship examinations. • The chancollor of the University is out of town, but tho registrar has beau consulted, and from the information afforded by him the Minister of Education. regrets it is impossible to hold tlio examinations at an earlier dato, at anyratfl this year, as all arrangement l ) hftvo boon completed. 1 am therefore v«ry sorry that it ca.nnot be arranged, as was desirod, so that tho candidate alleoted oould enjoy their holidays without interruption."

A tolotrram privately received from Mr Joynt slates that tho examinations wi)l probably be held <m January 23 and 24. THE PIUMK MINISTER'S VIEWS. WHAT THE PUBLIC THINK. (From Our Own* Corvksfondbot.) WELLINGTON, December 16. Sir Joseph Ward informs me that it has been decided to cffect temporary repairs to what remains of the jmwont l'arliiimontary Buildings, with a view to holding the session there i\.s usual. This idea of building a permanent Hquso of Parliament on the Government. House siU> is only conditional upon selling or lousing the silo on which tho present departmental buildings fiUtnd. Tho schcmo would involve tho demolition of Government House and tlio present departmental buildings, or in other words Ihe crection of three lurgo now buildings, viz., Parliament House, (iovornment House, and departmental buildings, at a cost of about a quarter of a million sterling. Moreover, all Throe buildings would have to bo gono on with at tlio samo time. It is considered doubtful if Parliament would ratify each a big building schemo. No doubt it would bo a splendid thiuft for Wellington, but even Wellington pooplo have no desire, to benefit unduly when railways and reads and brklgas are still wanted for the back-blook settlors.

On this point his Worship the Mayor, ' tlio Hon. T. \V. Hielop, may bo token us voicing tho opinion o[ Iho people. Mr Hislop considered tho present isito an ideal oho. So far it had not Itccn shown- that it would lio advantageous to mal-o tho clmngo suggested. Tho undamaged portion o£ tho old Parliamentary Ikiilding was a pormanont structure, mid ho did not know to what other purpose it could be put, unices it wore presented to tho city as the nucleus of the proposed new public library. lie was not aware that tho Parliajnontary Building site was required for any other purpose, and as far as ho know" it had "ever suggested that tho buildings would have been bettor located on tho proposed site or on any othor stle, In the event of the proposal boing adopted, fjovornment House, whioh was an ok) building, woidd have to bo demolished. He could not think of any other site for (loverjimonfc House in or within reasonable distance of the city. "Tn my opinion," the .Mayor continued, "it is proposed to spend far too much moncv in rebuilding Parliament llouso. Only the probable requirements of, say, tho next 30 or 40 yearn should bo provitled for. Tho new buitdingß should be built in brick or othor firo-resieting material, and equipped with tho latest fire prevention eyßtem." Bio old building would have been largo cnouffii for a groat many years. Nowadays tlio tendency is to bo too exacting. Seeing that money |b so badly needed to provide roadfl, etc., in tlie bacjc-blocka, it would, I consider, not be right to o.tpend anything liko as much monjiy u* ban beon atic' goste.d on the new buildings." All things considered, Sir Joseph Ward's idea that tho present building should 1>» repaired for noxt .sct;siou w no doubt the befit one, ami will meet with the ceneral approval of members. Bellamys can'bo repaired at moderate cost: and even the main I'Ollfoy, if it is roofe<l in and painted and deeoratod, can bo made available. Several of tlio connnitton rooms con also bo made habitable.

The fact that the nightwatefcman (who is 73 yearn of age) did not givo tbo alarm U) tiie fii'o brivade, and that the Parliament House alarm, are pot connected with the firo brigado station, have been a good deal commented upon horn, and it io urgeil I Hat the late catastrophe should be a lesson to install the May-Oatway or eome equally efficient, automatic alarm in all tho Government buildings and in the new Parliament Iloiwe. Had such a .system beon in use, no doubt the fire would havo boon suppressed. A departmental officer who know* tlio facts informs mo that some few yearn ago an offer was made to tho Government unon exceptionally favourable terms to in. stall tho May-Oatway system, bat that is was refused on tho ground that tho appliances already in the buildings were. suflv oient to cope with any fire that might breal' out.