ROADS AND MEN.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 14283, 27 April 1917, Page 4

ROADS AND MEN.

SHORTAGE. OF WORKERS

"Many of the county roads are breaking up fast, and without assistance it ■riJi be impossible for the surfacemen to [ keep the length of road under their care m anything like fair order," remarked Mr J. J. Keane, county overseer, at tolay 's^ meeting of the Cook-. County Council. The- dverseer added that "a number >i pei'manent hands had 1 gone into camp nd others weise. following, and -he was iiaving. , grreafc difficulty m filling their Ct. Matthews brought up the question of appealing, on behalf, of certain of the Council's permanent surfacemen, and suggested moving that the Appeal Board should' be \ asked to hold over these appeals' until the Efficiency Board had, dealt with t?he same. He chought this might ' apply to certain' "'picked" men^Cr. Witters asked .vhether there were, "picked", jnen. —^The overseer said, that there were severaJ .men .he wtmld'be very sprrj' to lose. He had lost his best bridge carpenter. — Ci\ Witters paid; rhe. disliked .interfering m the matter at all. — Cr. Jex jjjiakej urged that a list of men, who were; invaluable should be picked, out and .hantledv in> there, being some men. who absoluteT ly essential and were worth half adozen ot|iers,r-rThe chairman: Do = vq^v <knay\* uhe Efficiency Board has already. siu?«eaiU ed! the, Council employing .female labor? —pp. ;\yittsrs. saiu he. „ thought '„ they, might." hold. „back until, the, second division .was;, reached, -r-Ci% Tqmblesqii, said ha hoj>ed the CpunciV (Would not take ,any action.— The chairman s,a^!i,good men were , .being taken almost •,weefUy, and some sections of the roads j, were , now without surfacemen. — Cr. BoVven point-' ed ! out. that it should/ be emphasised this county was different to other counties, their rqad^being mainly.clay .rpads,, a.iid required constant supervision. — The chairman said it was. quite! apparent they would not be able to get the wool out next year.— -Cr k <I?K Blake seated, that most of. th© "men i he had m mind were second -division.. men. —^The overseer said that practically all the, .Council's first, division, men had' 'gone, and,',' most ,iOf those , remaining, ' second, •.diyision.-n After ,£v\riihf)r , idipcussiQn Ci. ;MattheAys moved that the Council .should i>vri,te to the local efficiency trustees asking {them to consider the necessities; of the district m retaining sufficient able-bodied, • men to keep the roads open fqr traffic, especially wool.y-Gr. ; Witters^ opposed the Council taking any action, remarking it was next to ai)pealing.— Cr. Tombleson was also opposed' .to ; the Cpjmpl moving m the matter;-^-Motion Tost. •