BOROUGH ENGINEER.

Taranaki Daily News, 15 July 1915, Page 6

BOROUGH ENGINEER.

(T.iTICISM 01' Till', TKA.M WORK. FDKCK.S HIM TO IiKSLiX. Tilk i:lsii;.\atk)X accepted. Matters concerning the borough engineer, .Mr. C. Skitrop, were discussed at a special ineeLing of tlie New Plymouth Borough Coun.il yesterday afternoon. There were present; The Mayor. Mr. .1. F.. \\ ib'an, and Councillors .1. T. Mannix. A. K. Wat.kins. A. E. Sykes, C. H.'ißur-gc-s. F. .1. Hill. W. Short, W. A. Collin, A. 11. Johnstone." J. Ilayden, J. S. .S, Mediey and L. ,\'l. .Uontea'tli, The matter arose out of the following letter received from 'Mr. Skitrop:—"As certain councillors are dissatisfied with my supervision of tlie work on the. tram route, T respectfully request, the council to relieve life of my duties as early as possible. Mr. Clayton will be here about the middle of August, and by tlie. end of August 'he should be in a position to undertake my duties. .My only rea-011 for offering to supervise the soltar road was that .1 said the council was in dilliculties, as by tiie term of my agreement my duties ceased 011 the last flay of May, and my successor could not he e\) e.-tcd to arrive before August or September. However, I am sorry, 1 made the offer, as 1 am held responsible for damage done to the road by ex essive wet weather and heavy carting. I have renan-i'd' the damage done, the cost of which was (J2 Ids. inelniiimv material and labor. Tlie council will Ik/ doing me a favor by letting me go early as possible. If line weather Continues for a few days, I shall treat the portion lion- soltarred with its second coat, which will, put it in first-class order."

The "Mayor said that this -letter did not surprise lum, in view of tile criticisms that had 'been made on Mr. Skitrop'.-; worl-;. Mr. Skitrop had met the council generously, and lie (Mr. Wilson) did not know who the council was going to get to continue the work. Even when the new borough engineer arrived, lie would have so much to do m accustoming himself to the new conditions that lie would be unable to devote. a great deal of time to the tram route. Councillor John stone, said a man of spirit could not tolerate Mr. 'Skitrop's position. He thought, as far as possible; the council should meet Mr. Skitrop, and nothing should be done to 'humiliate him. The council asked Mr. Skitrop to go ahead with this special work, and he consented, but bad weather had come, and had placed the work in a bad state. So man had given the council more loyal work than .Mr. Skitrop; lie was at work early in the morning and late at night, and had carried out his duties satisfactorily for a small salary. His road work had been good, but it was unfortunate that bad weather had impaired the particular road work\lio was ijow engaged upon. If Mr. Skitrop's resignation was accepted, the ypeaKor did not know what was going to be done; the work had to go on. and who was there to do it? Councillor Johnstone hoped Mr. Skitrop would continue, and ! he was confident the work would be well done. Councillor Short maintained that the road would not lie made good for much more than £2 10s. He declared that the -work was not. satisfactory: the road had sunk in many places, and the. material used was such that it constituted a waste of money. The portions of the road put down in favorable weather were not satisfactory. If Mr. Skitrop could not put down a better road, lie was scarcely fit for the position. The 'Mayor moved that the council express its confidence in Mr. Skitrop, and said he did not think Mr. Skitrop had failed in the work that bad been entrusted to him. He did not think any public body liad sub.jcotedMlie material employed to the same treatment adopted by Mr. Skitrop, and, on the whole, this material had provided a very solid foundation. Mr. Skitrop could not be held responsible for alterations in the kerbing, for when the kerbing was laid, down the tramways were not contemplated. ft •would he impossible to increase Mr. Hooker's responsibilities by giving him the work which Mr'.' Skitrop was now. doing. If a special engineer was employed to carry out the work, it would tost the council some £llOO, whereas Mr. Skitrop was doing the work for a matter of £3OO. Councillor Mannix seconded the motion.

Councillor ; Sykes did not think the touncil would be in difficulties if the services of Mr. Skitrop were lost, and he saw no reason why lie should not' stand by his original attitude. ■Councillor Burge*? did not think it was fair to ask Mr. Skitrop to stay on for three months. He liad treated the council fairly well. It was essential that someone should be appointed to look after the work, and, even when the new engineer arrived, it was difficult to sec how lie could do the work with his other duties. Councillor Collis thought Mr. Skitrop should be asked if 'he could see his way to carry on the work. Mr. Skitrop's work had given satisfaction, and there was no reason why he. should not continue to do good work if lie was given favorable weather. Councillor Monteath said lie was prepared to support Mr. Skitrop in road works, but he ihad made a Blunder on t'he tram works. In continuing the work in bad leather, lie made a mistake, and we have to pay for our mistakes. The Mayor: At the cost of £2 IDs! Councillor Monteath: Well, I have my doubts about that. Councillor Short: So have I. Councillor Medley said he would like Mr. Skitrop to 'be asked if he would stay on for a further two months. Councillor Johnstone hoped the resolution would "Be carried, as it would get over what appeared to him a serous difficulty. This work was not a matter wliich could be left to haphazard. He had ben engaged by the council in laying down roads, and he had done exceedingly well, and there was no reason to expect he would not do good work in the future. The criticisms which had been made of Mr. Skitrop's work were entirely irrelevant. ]so suggestion had been made as to how the council was going to carry on if Mr, Skitrop left the work. The resolution was then put, and carried, a division resulting as follows: Ayes: Councillors Monteath, Johnstone, Collis, Burgess, Mannix, Watkins and the Mayor; Noes: Councillors Mc'dley, Hnyden, Short, Hill and Sykes. Councillor Monteath then moved that Mr. Skitrop's resignation be accepted, and that he be released as soon as circumstances permit. Councillor Burgess seconded. Councillor Johnstone said the only other course that could be adopted was to defer the matter, and see what arrangement could be made. The council should make a strong effort to have competent advice in laying down thfr trams. He moved as an amendment that the matter be. deferred, and that theMayor consult with Mr. Skitrop, Councilor Collis seconded the amendment. Councillor Burgess did not think it fair to Mr. Skitrop or the council to have the. mutter continually turning up. and it ought to be settled now. The Mayor said that, in view of the division on his earlier motion, hj could only support the .notion. The resolution was curried the voices.