ELTHAM COUNTY

Taranaki Daily News, 12 November 1934, Page 6

ELTHAM COUNTY

STANDARD WIDTHS FOR BRIDGES. ROTOKARE CONTRACT COMPLETED. The monthly meeting of the Eltham County Council on Saturday was attended by Messrs. A. L. Campbell (chairman), R. J. Knuckey, P. R. Brown, A. V. Messana, M. W. Barker, J. L. Campbell, W. E. Carter, C. E. McGuinness and E. J. Gifford. The engineer, Mr. F. Muggeridge, reported that in the south riding bitumen patching, water-tabling and widening of formation was done on Boylan Road. Rotokare and Campbell Roads contract had been completed, the rolling and trimming off being carried out. One sidetrack was metalled on Mangawhero Road. Shoulders were patched and watertables cleaned on Rotokare Road. In the Mangatoki riding side tracks were metal patched on Hastings Road. Watertables were cleaned and the blinding graded in on Skeet Road. In the Omoana riding watertables and culverts were attended to on most of the roads in the riding. Slips were cleared and one nine-inch concrete pipe culvert put in on Rawhitiroa Road. Slips were cleared from Moeawatea Ridge Slips were cleared from Moeawatea Ridge and Matemaroke Roads. The corner recently widened on Patea hill was metalled. . In the Kaponga riding metal patching was done on Rowan and Eltham roads. On Mangawhero Road loose metal was raked up, patching attended to, and sections blinded. Watertables were cleaned on Auroa and Mangawhero Roads. In the lEtham riding slips were cleared from Mangamingi ridge and Mangawhero Road. Metal patching was done on Horoi Road. The scarifying and reforming of a section of Tirimoana hill was completed. .The Main Highways Board advised that members would be making a visit to the district on November 29 and would meet representatives of the Eltham borough and county at 3.45 p.m. BRAKE AND LIGHT CHECK. The Commissioner of Transport wrote asking for a report on the recent check of brakes and lights on motor-cars in the county. All information in the reports would be summarised and made available to local authorities. • The chairman said the Noxious Weeds Amendment Act gave certain things wanted but it did not do all that was required. Crown lands and reserves were still subject to the jurisdiction of the Minister and local bodies could not prosecute or deal with these lands, some of which were the worst cases. The Director of Agriculture, in reply to the council’s views that the subsidy on sodium, chlorate was inadequate, said these views were not held by other councils which were taking dvantage of the subsidy also of the legislation enabling them to buy this commodity and sell it to ratepayers at less than cost. The letter also denied the statement that no dairy factory that had procured sodium chlorate since August 1 had been granted a subsidy. To date no such application for subsidy had been declined. The Main Highways Board forwarded prints showing the standard lettering for marking pavements approaching railway crossings. The work would be subsidised as for ordinary maintenance. The Main Highways Board advised that it had been decided to standardise bridge widths between kerbs as follows: Firstclass highways 24 f ;et, second-class highways 20 feet, third-class highways 10 or 12 feet. Before the design of any bridge was undertaken approval should be obtained for the widths proposed. It was only with the greatest reluctance that the board insisted on alterations to plans. First-class highways were those with a traffic intensity of over 300 vehicles a day, second-class 100 to "00 vehicles, and third-class less than 100 vehicles a day. The chairman: I thought we had a wide enough bridge over the Mangawhero. Councillor Barker -emarked that there was an apparent inconsistency as the bridge at Tangahoe was of less width than the Mangawhero. The chairman asked what was going to be done with the bridge over the Kapum, as it was only 11 feet? A copy of a lengthy statement in regard to the Dairy Commission’s report was received from the Auckland Provincial branch of the Farmers’ Union. “We have had enough of this in the newspapers,” remarked a member and'the communication was received. The Unemployment Commissioner forwarded a circular regarding schemes 4a and 5 “over the fence,” pointing out that in future a subsidy would not be paid where the applicant’s financial position was such that he could put the work in hand without assistance from the unemployment funds. The Waimate County Council wrote urging vigorous opposition to any alteration to the existing county franchise. It pointed out that a proposal had recently been made to substitute universal suffrage for the present system. Members agreed that it was undesirable to alter the system at present in operation. The inspector reported that the roads had been fairly clear of stray, stock. Twenty head were released during. the month. Three convictions were obtained for breaches of the heavy traffic regulations. One conviction was obtained against a settler for allowing stock to graze on the county roads. Speaking on the difficulty of horses maintaining their feet on tarred inclines, Cr. Carter said that rubber horse-shoes were now giving satisfaction and it appeared that it would be unnecessary to construct separate side tracks if these were generally adopted. PERSONAL. Mr. S. W. Sheppard, a member of the staff of the Stratford Public Trust Office for the past 18 months, has received notice of transfer to Dunedin. RUTH CHATTERTON AT THE KING’S. DRAMATIC ROLE IN “LILY TURNER.” An unusual story of real life tragedy will be finally screened at the King’s Theatre, Str.-.tford, to-night. In “Lily Turner” Ruth Chatterton gives an outstanding performance, powerfully dramatic and acted with restraint. Lily is left penniless, and to help her a showman, a decent enough fellow with a weakness for drink, marries her. The two drift from one cheap show to another. Finally she meets a young civil engineer and persuades him to take the place of the strong fellow of the show, who has “gone off his head.” He has practically completed arrangements to go off with her to take a new job in Mexico when the strong man ’returns and permanently cripples her husband. She feels that she ought to stay by him as he stood by her in her trouble, and thus arises the familiar struggle between love and duty. She makes her decision and the story actually ends on a note of hope.