WAIHEMO COUNTY COUNCIL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3197, 23 June 1915, Page 9

WAIHEMO COUNTY COUNCIL.

The ordinary meeting of the Waihcmo County Council, held on Saturday, was attended by Crs O'Neill (chairman), Muir, O'Connell, M'Lay, M'Calium, M’Ltnnan, Clark, and Pilbrow. INSPECTOR’S XREPOETS. Macraes Riding.—General surface work has been done during- the month, and watertables and metal attended to. Whore required largo rocks on the road from Dunback to Macraes have been taken out. I inspected Hartfield road, as authorised, and tind that suriace work is required, i also inspected Mr Trotter’s road, and the road to Mareburn, and recommend these roads to bo surfaced. Messrs Gilbert and Dodds arc making satisfactory progress with their metal contracts. Roads in this riding aro generally in good order. —Adopted. Green Valley Riding. —General surface work has been clone during the month, water-tables attended to, and culverts repaired where required. Fencing, as authorised, has been attended to. Grossings are in good order.—Adopted. Dunback Riding.—General surface work has been done during the month, and gravelling attended to. Pipes have been put in on the Stoneburn road where most necessary. The fence at Bluff has been repaired and a -guard fence erected on the culvert near Grange. A new culvert has been put across the road on the Dunback-Grecn Valley road. _ The works mentioned at last meeting will bo carried out during the month. I will report on Sweetwater Crock Crossing at next meeting.—Adopted. Blue Mountain Riding.— General surface work has been done during the month, and small works authorised at former meeting attended to. A slip on the Humptucker road has been attended to. A wooden culvert near Miss Steel’s house will require to be renewed shortly. The planks aro rotten, and bearers require renewing. Temporary repairs have been affected. The crossings are in good order. —Adopted. Meadowbank Riding.—General surface work has been done during the month, and spreading and attending to gravel. Gravelling on Hughes’s road has been finished, and a few loads of maintenance gravel put whore required. ,The culverts at Shirley’s and Bowkor’s have been repaired.—Adopted. Bushing Riding.—General surface work has been done during the month, and watertables, gravelling, etc., attended to. Work has been started on the Shag Point road, water-tables cleaned out, and gravel put on. Owing to heavy loads (two tons) and continual carting in all weather, this road will bo difficult to keep in order. Mr Guthrie’s application for crossing should be granted.-—Adopted. Guthrie’s crossing to be attended to. Goodwood Riding.—General surface work has been done during the month, and attention given to metal, etc. The work authorised on Bringans’s road. Pleasant River, has been completed, and satisfactory work done. Tenders have been called for grades, and breaking metal on Goodwood Settlement road, and will me laid before you at this meeting.—Adoted. HOSPITAL AND CHARITABLE AID LEVIES. The Hospital and Charitable Aid Board forwarded a statement of estimated receipts and expenditure for the current year, showing the levy on Waihemo County to be £578 Is 6d. Last year the levy was £421 ss. The list of items of expenditure was read out, and councillors took strong exception to the item for a new nurses’ home. Cr Muir described it as “ a piece of rot,” and Cr M'Lay said it was “rascally.”— The Chairman said there was no doubt that the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board was a very extravagant board, and always had been. There wore only three country members on the board as against nine town members. —Cr Clark said that the maintenance of the institutions under the board should be made a charge against the consolidated revenue. —The board’s statement was received. Circulars were received from the Mornington Town Clerk and the clerk of the Portobello Road Board, regarding the organisation of a protest against the levies of the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board.

—The clerk read a letter he had forwarded expressing the council’s emphatic protest against the increased levies, and this was approved. Cr Clark moved: “ That in the opinion of this council, the charge of maintaining hospital and charitable aid is too heavy for the ratepayers, and that as all the inhabitants of the dominion benefit by these institutions, their maintenance should be a charge against the consolidated revenue, a, copy of this resolution to be sent to the member for the district, and to all contributing bodies.” The motion was carried unanimously. CORRESPONDENCE. The clerk of the Otago Central Licensing Committee wrote enclosing certificates forthe issue of licenses to W. E. Griffin and Thomas Stanley.—Received. Mr James Guthrie, Burnbank, Shag Point, wrote asking for a culvert to be made at the old Allandale railway crossing. —Received, the inspector to attend to the request. The Secretary of the Mareburn Gold and Soheclito Mining Company wrote asking that two fords in the Mareburn stream be attended to. —Received, matter to be attended to. Mr C. M'Gregor, Park Farm, Palmerston, wrote asking permission to erect a swing gate on the roadlino between sections 65 and 67, block YI, Moeraki survey district.— Application granted. The treasurer forwarded a voucher for the sum of £23 18s, paid to the credit of the county fund account. —The clerk was instructed to write to the receiver of goldfields revenue at Naseby, to ask for the names of the mines and of their owners, from which the revenue was received. . The Secretary of the Country Queen Oarnival Committee wrote seeking to enlist the support of councillors in the effort to make the Country Queen contributions as largo as possible.—The letter was hold over pending action at a combined meeting in the afternoon. Mr 1,. Page, Palmerston, wrote asking permission to sledge the Moonlight creamery buildings along the Moonlight road.— Permission granted, subject to all damages being repaired. TENDERS. The tender of J. Watt, for grading on Ireland’s hill, Gooc'jvood Settlement road, at £ll 7s fid, was accepted. The tender of W. Lester, for quarrying and breaking 200 yards of metal at the Good-

wood Village Settlement quarry, at 5s 6d a yard, was accepted.