THAMES COUNTY COUNCIL.

Thames Advertiser, Volume XX, Issue 6155, 24 July 1888, Page 2

THAMES COUNTY COUNCIL.

A statutory meeting of the above Council was held in the County Chambers at noon yesterday. The County Chairman (A. Brodie, Esq.,) presided, and there were also present Councillors Townsend, Steadman, and Dunlop. The Chairman explained that the meeting of the Council had been called, in complianc® with the 184 th section of the Act, to approve the Treasurer's balance sheet. The statement had been published, so there was no reason for thejr reading it again. ' On the motion of Cr Townsend, seconded by Cr Steadman, the balance sheet was approved.

WAIKAWAU BOAD CONTRACTS. The Chairman said that before'proceeding to open tenders, _ he thought it advisable to read a petition against the proposed works which he had received. He then read the petition, which was as follows

"Wo, the undersigned settlers in the Hastings Riding, have noticed in the public Press the report of your Engineer made at the Council's meeting on the 4th Inst., that he had pegged off the whole of the Thames* Waikawau road for contract, but that the road had not yet been inspected by the members of the Council. We beg to state that we. feel alarmed that there might be an attempt made to have the balance of the loan for the Thamcs-Waikawau road expended upon a portion of it where there is little or no traffic and we therefore most; respectfully request that you recommend the members of the Counoil to visit the said road aa soon as they can make it convenient, so that every member, or_as many of them' as possible, may obtain an individual knowledge of that part of the Hastings district. We further most respectfully state _ that before calling for tenders for the section of the road botween Tapu and Waikawau, the Council should consider that the traffio is nocossarily heavy as far aa the mining district of Waiomo, and from thence to Tapu, where tlio traffic of the Te Matn, diggings must come to in a natural course, aud there the present traffic may be said tq terminate. Tlio laud botween Tapu aud Waikawau is not adopted for settlement, nor does it look like being auriferous or valuable for minerals, It is a barren piecc of country, and in all likelihood for many years to come a pack orbridletrackwill be amply sufficient for transit, there being not the slightest expectation or hope that the Coromandel i County will bo ablo for a long time in the future to eonncct with Waikawau by a dray road, There i 3 only one settlor witlun the County below Te Mata Creole, and it looks unfair to inako a dray road some two, miles and a half long to terminate at his door. Wo are at present deprived of the uso of tlio road for traffic below Waiomo owing to its extraordinary want of repair, ,or iniuulcuanw, which hats deteriorated it to.

such an extent that with slips, bog-holes, to,'it can Bcarcely be classed even a passable bridle track in its present condition, Wo beg that you will tako into consideration that the settlers betweon Thames and Taptt will have to repay most of tho borrowed money on the loan referred to —that we feel sure that already there has been more money expended between Waikawau and Te Mata than will be repaired by the solitary settler already mentioned, who carries on no industrial operations to require the use e£ a dray road for, and who has immediate access to a good water frontage quite suitable for loading and dis- j charging small vessels; and that we also feel certain that if money be uselessly! thrown away on the unused parts of the road, the Council will be unable to complete the most urgent portion of it out of general rates. Therefore, we hops you will sec fit to recommend to the Council that before incurring any further expenso below Te Mata creek, they call for tenders for the completion of the road between Thames and Tapii, and that they do so as speedily as possible. —We are, &c,, W. Deeble, F. McCormiok, 6. Way, A. W. Taylor, W, A. Taylor, M. Davies, (j. Glasgow, C. Croucher, R. R. Trotter, J. Bennett, senr., C.Bennett,M. McMahon, J. Pepper, W. MoMahon, T, Davison, T. E. Davison, E. Whitley, W. G. Plummer, A. Whitley, A. M, MoMahon, H. Baker. S, Stephens, Mrs H. M, Jacobs, W. 6. Stanley, W, Everitt, D. Stevenson, J, Neves, W, Pepper, J. Goonan, P« Goonan, R. H. Young, A. Hamilton, W. Plummer, H. Fawcett."

Cr Steadman said it appeared to him a peculiar thing that the petition had been, sent to the Chairman, instead of to the Council, through the representative of the Hastings Biding. The petition had evidently emanated, and been written by, Mr Deeble, who, aB the Council well knew, bore him no love. Anyone could see that it was a personal matter, and that tbe public interest was in no way concerned. Mr Deeble, who professed to know the" Counties Act," and the" Loans to Local Bodies Act" from beginning to end, must know, that this work was one of those included in the list of works to be carried out after the £12,000 loan had been obtained. A portion of money had been assigned for it, and it was not now in the power, of the Council to alter it, Many of the people who signed the petition, did so in ignorance of its con tents—while others had signed it because their fathers had done so. He ventured to say that if the land which the proposed work would benefit, belonged to Mr Deeble, that Mr Deeble would do all in his power to have it prooeedsd with, ' The Chairman: We will proceed to open the tenders. : • '

A contractor: I object to two of the tenders, as they were put in'the box after 12 o'clock. The Chairman: You are quite right, and if I knew whose tenders were put in late, I would hold them over. The tenders were then opened. No: 1 Contract, Waikawao Road. £ s. d. , P.Trainor ... ... 10710 0 J, Loatham and party ... 327 0 0 J, McCormick 275 0 0 1 W. Billing 137 10 0 W.Mitchell 266 0 0 A. Butler ... ... 234 13 0 Joneß, Benr., ... ... 130 13 0 The Engineer's estimate for this work was £260. No 2 Contract. A, Butler 225 8 0 H. Merrin and party ... 256 10 0 P, Trainor (Metal, £3 15s per chain) ... 151 10 0 W. Mitchell 237 0 0 W. Billing (Metal, £3 12s per chain) ~,11110 0 J.McCormick ,„ ... 280 0 0 R, M. Hawkes 186 0 0 J. Johns, senr., 147 15 0 The Engineer's estimate was £235, No .3 Contract. J. McCormick 350 0 0 W. Mitchell ... ... 212 0 0 J.Leatham ... ... 288 0 0 P. Trainor (£3 15b chain metal) ~.. ••• 19310 0 W, Billing (metal, £3 128 per cnain) ... 163 10 0 A, Butler ... ...282 18 0 R. M. Hawkes ... ... 193 15 0 ; The Engineer's Estimato ,was £275. The Chairman informed the contractors present that the tondcrs would be oxiamined, and the result made known as soon as possible, The Council then rose.