DISPROVED!

Thames Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 17764, 11 December 1929, Page 4

DISPROVED!

CHARGES AGAINST COUNCILLOR .FULL CONFIDENCE EXPRESSED. CR. J. F. McMAHON EXONERATED. A matter which has exercised the minds of members of the Thames County Council, as well as a number of ratepayers of the Hastings Riding, was disposed of yesterday.

Briefly, the position is that at tK£ last meeting of the Council a deputation from the Hastings Riding Ratepayers’ Association waited upon the Council in connection with a letter alleging certain ' charges against the councillor for the riding, Mr F. J. McMahon.

After a very exhaustive enquiry in committee, the Council called upon the complainants to bj'ing forward witnesses which they| had stated that they possessed, and to substantiate the. charges.

The matter was left open until the close of business at yesterday’s nieeting, hut there was no appearance of the complainants or their witnesses, and the Council decided that there was no evidence to support the charges. The Charges. The matter was brought-before the Council at as last meeting, in this manner:— - The following letter, dated October 7, was received from Mr N. A. McMillan, secretary of the Hastings Riding Ratepayers’ Association, to Mr H. Lowe, chairman of the Thames County Council:

“One of the matters that came up before the Hastings Riding Ratepayers’ Association at a meeting held on October 4 at Puru was the fact that shingle taken from the foreshore with: the Council’s horse and scoop, driven by C. Munday, Council driver, and deposited on roadside at Penny’s Beach, has been loaded into a lorry owned by McMahon and delivered at Waiomo mine at 4.30'’ p.m. en October 4. ■ i

“The Association would like to know if the Council is aware of the above and is a party to the transaction, and if the matter was entered on that date (October 4) in the County book?”

Discussion in Committee,

The Council went into committee, and discussed the matter very fully, and-on resuming open meeting the chairman moved and , Cr Courtney seconded the following resolution:— “That this Council deplores the fact that the Hastings > Ratepay- ; ers’ Association should have gone so far as to make these charges

against Cr McMahon, and have, after they have been under the consideration of the Council for two months, completely failed to substantiate these charges, after f~' full notification to attend hafSf been given them. This Counpf also expresses its unbounded confidence ■in C** McMahon, and regrets that such unfounded charges should have been n/>de against him.” . 7 The motion was carried unanimously. • v A further set of charges in connection with the carting of some trails to the Monowai mine was also dealt with, and after a lengthy discussion or. resuming open meeting Cr Alley moved and Cr Brunton seconded thefollowing resolution:— ,

“That this Council is quite satisfied that the charges against Cr McMahon are untrue, and that those making them have absolutely failed to prove anything against him"