PORTOBELLO.

Otago Witness, Issue 1584, 1 April 1882, Page 13

PORTOBELLO.

(FBOH OV& OWN COUBKSPOSDBOT.) March 27th.

Thursday last being the anniversary of the settlemnnt of Otogo, and consequently a sort of holiday, Portohollo wis visited by a number of people bent unon pleasure-seeking. The day !wos good in the E,VAnnrin but about 2 o'clock a violent storm of wind Srain'came "n, W hich tather interfered with the the holiday to a valuable ihorße belonging to the Rev. A. Greig, whereby it was »ftndered necessary to destroy the animal. It appears « at Mr Crete was visiting in Portobello, and he had Sled his horse in the stable attached to the church. Aman employed in the painting of the church happened to go into the stable, where he had his paintnfttsstowed and the animal took flight and broke the tone which tied him to the stall, and in his endeavours foeHcftDe trampled upon a kerosene tin, the sharp adse ofwhich cut his leg Just above the fetlock, comsevering tendons, muscles, and everything bot the bone. It was impossible to do anything to cure it, and it was decided to shoot it at once, to put an e"oe "on o SatX^our Eoad Board held their monthly mpetinir and a considerable amount of interest was taken in the proceeding, as it was rumoured throughout the district that the much- vexed question of Wclmr'aroad had beon settled by the commissioners appointed at the previous meeting, when the report w»s ilven in by the Choirman. A rapid cross-fire of somewhat angry question and answer took nluoo between Ur Tfoung (one of thepartios interested in iho matter) ftn4 tha commissioners, which ended in MrYounjr withdrawing all conce.-sions he had made, and bta.iog *hat luj would never agree to Hay's survey, an tho Board wero iußt laughing at him. I have no doubt the Eesilemon alluded to will remember that there is A " tune to lausrh " for the future. One oilier matter 1 cannot h»lp alluding to in this connection— viz., the mysterious allusions made to some person or persons which the commissioners Imd interviewed on tho previous day (Friday) in Duneuin. Thu si atoment made that the information watipil vate and the calling to oider ot Mr Young by the Chairman for his allusion to the interview waF, I thought, somewhat curious, as I suppose tho cormnissiunei'B interviewed tho person in question in their capacity as mombers of tho Hoad Board, which being a public body, it appears to me thoro could be no pvivAcy about, any information they received. Another thing in the matter I will allude to. I may he wrong in my impression, but I thought from the statements inailu that a compromise had been arranged between the parlies interested which was to alter HayV survey. Now if such was the case, 1 would point out to tho Board that this would not have settled the difficult), ivs any alteration made ■in the su/vey would nouetsaitate anotfur course of advertising and calling for objections similar to that gone through at fhst. It is t'ue it .would have acttled the matter perhaps between Young and Weipor's, but that was all The Board has a poculiar way of doing businessand one which I can hardly call honest. A request was made for some works in Portobello subdivision, Wbipb were only partly gx&nM on tbe plea tbafc tbe

solicitor^ account had to be paid, and that Portobello would havo to pay part of that account. The account amounted to aome £20, uwJc up mostly of two items —one being £10, solicitors/. fees for the prosecution in the case of the embezzlement about IS montha aj,'o, and another £9 oddj cost of tho conveyance of tho main Sandyinounfc road from Oannien»el. Now for the first only is Portobollo entitled lo pay a sjiaru, which at most would only bo something 1 loss than M ; but the worst of it was that at the close of tho meeting, when the accounts wero being passed, tho aoJicitovs' account was ordered to stimd over. 'Che Board appear determined not to refund any of the money thoy have expended upon district roads, and whicM was received by them for the county road. I have heard a, whisper that the sellers below the drillshed and on tbe .Native reserve are thinking of bringing the matter before tho Government before long.