APPRECIATION1

Stratford Evening Post, Issue 97, 6 December 1928, Page 4

APPRECIATION 1

CHAMBER Op COMMERCE AND F.W. ENGINEER. Mr T. M. Ball attended at the meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, last night, and with him was Mr J. Keller, who replaces him as Distriut Public Works Engineer at Stratford. The chairman (Mr J .B. Richards) said he had invited Mr Ball to the meeting in order that the Chamber might fittingly bid him farewell. During his stay in' Stratford Mr) Ball had extended every possible courtesy to the Chamber, and the work he'had don© had been of the greatest value to the district. Mr Richards also referred to Mr Ball’s work on the railway construction.

THE HIGHWAYS SYSTEM. . Regarding the road to . the Mountain House there had- been sufficient money on the Estimates to carry the road past 1 the Mountain House. Shortly after he arrived, Mr Ball made an effort in this direction, and if he had been left alone the work would have been done. However, the matter seemed to be in train again now. .Mr Ball had instituted the Highway’s ‘ Board system in the. district. The speaker doubted) if the public had yet fully realised the force and advantages of that system. It must be patent to anybody who gave the matter any thought, that the system must result in ratepayers being relieved of some "responsibility as regards maintenance of roads. It Bee.med that a point had been reached when the old policy of the land paying for the maintenance of roads could no longer be carried out in view of the development of the motor traffic 1 ) and) the altered incidence. The new system had been very successfully instituted in this district by Mr Ball. The Highways system was operating in this district very much better thaw in some others, and he thought this was largely due to the excellent dilection of Mr Ball, Another of MiBall’s works was the Moikau bridge, which had) been regarded as an impossibility up to very recent years. . MAN BEHIND THE MONEY. In respect to all big public works it might b© imagined that anything was possible with sufficient money, but it was necessary to have good, men behind the money if satisfactory results were to be obtained. The Chamber hoped that Mr Ball’s transfer .wag only a step to a much higher position, and when he occupied that higher position he hoped' h© would remember Taranaki, and see that the works it needed got attention. Mr Richards also took occasion to welcome Mr Keller, who, he said, had been for soma years in the East country before going to Taumarunni. Mr Keller was following in the footsteps of a good man, but that was always an incentive to the newcomer. Mr Ball suitably acknowledged the chairman’s remarks. Mr Keller thanked the chairman for his kind welcome. He could fully appreciate the chairman’s remarks regarding Mr Ball, whom) be had known for many years. Mr Ball bad given the speaker a good start in the district, and he would reap the reward of some of hi 3 labours. The speaker, had been in fairly ly close touch with the railway work* since 1911-