WAIKOUAITI COUNTY COUNCIL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2284, 9 December 1897, Page 9

WAIKOUAITI COUNTY COUNCIL.

The adjourned statutory annual meeting was held in the County Council Chambsrs,- Hawksbury, on Tuesday, 30tb, at which there were present— Crs C. Duke, J. Foote, 'A. Graham, A. S. Orbell, J Porteous, and W. Souter. The Clerk presided, and intimated that, there

being no quorum present oa the date Bred for the annual election of chairman under the County Act, he had adjourned the meeting from day to day until the present date. He then called for nominations for the office of chairman for the ensuing year, when

Cr Foote said he would propose their late chairman for another term. He did so because

he contidered it due to him, chiefly on account of thet-xtra trouble and time he had devoted to'

the business of the council in consequence of the death of their late clerk and the initiation of

the new clerk into his ' duties. Further, Cr Orbell had obtained a good grasp" of the business coming before the council, and therefore he had much pleasure in proposing him as chairman for the ensuing year. Cr Duke remarked that, al.hough one of tbe youngest members of the council, he rose with great pleasure to second the proposition of Cr Foote, and, while a young member, he had been long enough in the council to see-that in Cr

.OrbelLwas a young 1 man who was well qualified to perform 'duties of the^office, aud brought ' -energy, vigour, arid 'i"h'3foflfchness into bis wb'ck. JjeThad noticed also that CrGrbeli Had' treated the other members with a; deference and r&pccb ..which he (CcJD^ke^"waS"|Jleased'lEo sec in him, and'wbich was onß'Oi-£hoseffavoura.blc trai-s in Sl. ypuag man that carrifd. -with it ,a. strcng recommendatioti. - Trie office of chairman was surrounded with difficulties and re*po"jsibititie c ,

and he was pleased to find that Gv Orbeil had

risen equ^l to the occasion and that he h\d dis- ■ charged the duties of the tffijs during the past year with ability and evident satisfaction to all He considered it would be to the iutcrests of the ratepayers and the county that their late chairmen should occupy the fame position for ' another year. He (Cr Duku) had every confidence thab Cr Orbell would c x-erciss the sanvj energy and attention and give the same satisfaction in the chair during the ensuing year ai he had ia the p\st. He, therefore, had very great pleasuro in seconding Cr Orbeli's nomination for re-election.

Cr Porteous desired to bsar te«tim my to the sa f isfj.c!ory manner ia which Cr Orbell had discharged the duties of chairman duiiag the past year, aud he felt equally I 'certain trwt he would continue t.> do so during the ensuing year. C - Orbell had got a good grasp 'of tbe business coming before the ciuucil arid of tbe duties of chairman, which he (Cr Porleoas)"'considered it required a year to ma6ter ai<d another year in the chair to become in a sense sn udept. He had every confidence that Cr Orboll would carry out the duties of chairman to the ent re sst'sfßction of the council aud tho3e having business with them, Aiid ou those grounds he BU,ppprted^with_plea« ure..the .motion. - Cr Otbcll being th'i only candidate nominated the Clerk him -duly elected chairman for tbe ensuing.yia>. .* »\ - iV , ■ J Gr Okbkle then look th'e'chair, and in doing no said, he ou'd not adequately convey to'tho council his" thank's for the JiWaur oo«f<Jrred upon .him iv again electing' iiiin chairman, or for the comjalimentary manner' in wbich 'reference had been m&de.to the discharge of theduties during the'pa^t year — ino-e especially to the remarks of the propofer and seconder of the molion. He feared the remarks were almost 100 flittering find that he did nob deserve them. However, he had performed the dutits of chairman to the best of his ability, snd it was gratifying to him to liad that these dut : c* had ho-n carried outja a manner tj nftt OJly m^rit the approbation ot councillors, but to entitle him in their opinion to a renewal of that confidence repised in him last year. He cauld assure them that

nothing would be wanting on hi; part to retain that confidence and the approbation "of the members of the council. He and the conocil i had worked well together during the pa«t year ; they had, ia fact, got on first rate together, and : he could assure them that-it would be his endeavour to maintain Ihe^e ple&faot and ngree- ; able relations. He took that opportunity, and he desired it to go forth to the public, that the financial position of Ihe council was not in scch a satisfactory condition as it had hitherto been, and this state of thing* — not a pieasant one to admit — had been brought abjnt mainly through the expenditure incurred io conm c ion with tbe Waikouaiti bridge and the rebuilding of the council chambers — items which ha<l unavoidably crippled their finances and enforced a policy of tcoaomy to ba initiated for sometime to come. I<; would be as well, Chfcre r ore, thtt ratepayers should understand that the council could for soma time only bo enabled ti carry out really urgent works, and those of limited magnitude on'y. He might state, however, that the Waikou&iti bridge a«d s the work connected wish it \v&s a credit to them and the colony, and th«it it would last for many years, to corns' .• T&e expenditure connected #ith tlie'bridgc and the oburity ouiWing wes, oi,coarsp, not, a recurring, one, aod by carefaliy'h'usbandiug. the. finsn es of th.e / couuty.,a gradual recovery of the unusuaJ outlay thus incurred .vsould he made. . He again thanked the council for the -honour conferred upon him, and assured them that nothing would ba wantiog on his part to deserve the confidence repo.ed in him a second time.