THE EX-MAYOR AND ENGINEER.

Wanganui Chronicle, Issue 12856, 9 April 1912, Page 4

THE EX-MAYOR AND ENGINEER.

TTo the Editor.) Sir, —It is a very unfortunate thing indeed to find the trouble between the ex-Majfor and the borough 'engineer; still continuing. At the outset Mr Mackay made it plain there was no private squabble between him and Mr Mansfield, that he was simply looking at the matter from the point of view of the burgesses as a whole. • This seemed to be ®> at the beginning, but Mr Mackay's subsequent actions, have made it rery apparent to even the blindest of us that there is something very much in the way of a private squabble; Otherwise, why should he be so determined to unseat the engineer? Mr! Mackay, sine© he has been outside o£ Jiie Mayoral' office, seems to have found out ft 'lot of things which it seems to me he should

have known long ago. He parades th©

r St. John's Hill gates and the Indus ( Street fence, the famous manholes, etc., etc., before the public now, and surely

if he was taking the interest hB should ) Lave as Mayor, and which he led the people to believe he was- doing, h© should have been conversant with all these operations. The St. John's Hill gates were not erected in, a day, neither ■was the Indus Street -fence, end if he was given the " tips" which he has since received during the'period of erecting these fences, he could have brought the question of expense up earlier; It seems as though Mr Mackay is'not in his right senses;-in the past he has been much

1 more1 conciliatory than he is fet the present time. It would liave been much "more to his credit had he kept "muni" and taken no part' ill the borough affaire until-a more suitable time. 'Yet, we -find him addressing a. public meeting which endeavoured to bring into disrepute a number of the Councillors, besides the engineer. He subsequently forwards charges against the engineer (which, of course, it was agreed ne should do), .and after having feeen the engineer's reply, lias" & second dig athim, knowing that the engineer has not the freedom of carrying on a newspaper controversy^as Mr Mackay has,, otherwise probably, the latter would" come out second best. Mr, Mackay ca«" thank himself for the position, he is nowplaced in. While Mr Mackay was in the Mayoral chair,' I understand an endeavour" was made to get round the building by-laws. The engineer stood ■ by the by-laws and the Borough Council supported"him. All round it has been stated that Mr. Mansfield has the interests of the borough at heart, and there can' be no doubt that he has granpjed with the question. «f road formation, drainage, water, footpath formation, tidying up of reserves, etc., in a. waj, in which it has not been grappled with before. Ir-Mr Mansfield, is given an opportunity it will be found that Wariganui in a short while will be one of the tidiest and most up-to-date places in New Zealand. It is perhaps costing: nioneyybut if the workj^ad been taken in hand properly in' the'jears !gone by there would not have been the necessity of pushing matters_ i^6,w th"ey 'must b» if the place)is to tfe kept tip to date. Everywhere it is admitted Mr Mansfield is as good an engineer as it is possible to get, arid his only trouble is that apparently\ terrible complaint "incompatibility of temper." This may be th« case (and if Mr Mansfield has not been as careful v as he might have been, I hope he will, for his own .sake, make a big effort to ; .work in with the Council and the employees), but the borough wants someone who is not a nincompoop, swayed by every influence. &nd .'" MrMansfield is no nincompoop. ; The ques-. tion of bringing forward another o&jadwY date for the Mayoralty is a good one. ' Undoubtedly if Mr Mackay gets back to the= Mayoral chair there will be nothing but trouble for, the engineer and— his Councillor suppor.Ws. As a mrit'able'inah, Mr Meuli,could, hardly be beaten. He i$ a successful. contractor and a- popular* man with all—a splendid combination of circumstances. "As a man who ktiows the work, Mr Mansfield could discuss matters with him, and as a successful business man he is jtist what the borough requires at the present' time. I think,all honour is due to Crs. Robinson. Muir, Oalver, Spurdle^and.Holloway for the position —a mopt unpleasant one—which they ' have taken u»; and it is to be hoped that" they wjli. bring;, their colours through. -. I hope Crs. Poynter and Alderton will be able to .see things in the same light sas. the others. r Apologising for taking up so much of. your space.— T'anij etc^ " ." . .