RANGITIKEI COUNTY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 254, 27 October 1939, Page 2

RANGITIKEI COUNTY

IMPROVEMENTS J MUNaHLV meeting >f ■ 1 Or. r, > '■ .MAHTON, Oct. 26. The Rangitikei County Council met ; on Thursday, Cr. K. W. Dalrymple * presiding over Crs. W. Dcole, J.. E. , Deacon, A. D. Mair, V. Smith. A. S. . I Coleman, G. 1.. Marshal?, J. Brice and ' iMessrs H. H. .Richart'.so'i (clerk) and I S. A. R. Mair (engineer), | Leave of c.bsencc was granted Crs. |R. C. Dalziell and L. Hammond. I The council decided to co-operate 'with the Ms.vton committee in conjnection wit'.i the emergency precautions scheme. The Local Government Loan Board wrote, stating that the board was considering the council's application to raise by way of bank overdraft £5OOO for repair of flood damage. The Commissioner of Crown Lands r <orward<!d a copy of an Order-in-y Council vesting certain sections in t Block V., Pukeokahu. in the council _ for county purposes. r The council decided to abandon the 5 proposed housing loan of £4OOO. The council agreed to sell the closed road on Calico Line to the Nga Tawa School trustees. An application was received from the Ladies’ Rest, and Plunket. rooms 1 movement for a centennial memorial ■ at Bulls, solicioinig assistance from 5 the council.— The council made a donation of £25. The secretary of Local Bodies’ La- ’ bourers’ Union wrote asking county councils to deduct, the union annual subscriptions of 27s 6d from wages and remit to the union. —The council i decided not. to take any responsibility ; in collecting the fees. ’ Marton Fire Brigade wrote thanki ing the council for its donation to the .’ funds of the brigade. The New Zealand Counties’ AssociaI tion forwarded recommendations ; agreed to at a joint meeting of repi resentatives of Municipal and Coun- ■ ties’ Association in connection with • county council officers and regular employees on military service, which were agreed to by the council. In order to oiyible the members ot the staff to attend the annual meeting of the Wellington branch of the New Zealand Institute of County Clerks on November 23, the council decided to hold their November meeting on Wednesday, November 22. Charles Leary wrote asking for a refund of £5O in connection with timber carting.—The council regretted that it was unable to refund the £5O. The council decided to acquire the land between the roadman’s cottage sit 1 and main road at Pohonui Village in order Io obtain access. Finance Statement, of accounts as at October 26: Debit balance after last, meeting. £24,231 5s 2d; payments made since last meeting, £4787 17s 8d - £29,019 2s lOd. Receipts since last meeting, £3093 Is 9d. Debit balance before to-day's meeting, £25.926 Is Id. To-da*'s payments, £5330 3s 4d. Debit balance after to-day’s payments, £31,256 4s scl. ENGINEER’S REPORT At. the monthly meeting of the Rangitikei County Council the engineer, Mr. S. A. R. Mair, reported as follows:Rangitoto Riding.- -Metal repairs have continued on Bulls-Scotts’ Ferry Road. Part of Raumai Road has been ieformed with power grader and rometalled. Willis’ Pit. has been fenced. All roads are in good order. Otakapu Riding.—Wangachu Valley and Ratana Roads have been trimmed and repaired. Footpaths in Turakina are being trimmed and re-metalled whore required preparatory to tai 1 surfacing. General maintenance has ’ been carried out. on all roads where necessary. Porewa. Riding. Mctai repairs have ' been carried out cn. Mt. Cun and ' Upper Tutaenui Roads. Overhanging ' growth has been clearcd_back on r ern ’ Flats Road. Coleman’s Road has been reformed with the power greder ane drains cleaned out. Calico Linc-Clifl ' Road corner has been h \ oiled and fenced and planted by the Tree--1 planting Society. Wangachu Riding. Repairs to Hoof . damage ha.s continued on ali road. Slips have been removed from Ohau- ’ moko and Okirae Roads by the hull L dozer, and protective won; made <.u . Mangatipona Stream near the roar • man’s cottage. Roads arc now fain? i passable, but considerable repairs ar*. 3 still required to bring them to U standard price to the August fh‘»d.s. Rangitira Riding.—Gencr.-J repair ’ have been in hand on all roads wne.f necessary. A defined outlet lias beei f cut to a small bridge on Ng-.i Stream Houhou Road. Pipes are being lai< n to water stock paddocks at Gower': Otairi Riding. - Ongo Road lias bee; s i trimmed with the grader and the bal,r ance of slips removed. The road int the metal pit at Pukeroa ha.s bee completed and accommodation t re* t ’ . for workmen. The crusher has ber. -] overhauled and repaired at Kakariki •r and should be returned to the quarr. s to-day. The tractor to drive the 1 crusher has been overhauled, and wit! t fine weather a start, with the crushin;, j should be made within a lon night s General repairs nave been carried out 2 on Watershed and Otara Roads. Mr. - T. A. Duncan has been furnished with 1 an estimate of the cost of forming and 1 metalling 24 miles of the west end ol Hautawa Road. f Awarua Riding.- Metal repairs haw . been carried out on Torero,Toe Toe. . Makohine Valley, To Kapua, Otaihapc 5 Valley and Ohutu Roads. Practically - all flood damage has been repaired. 1 - have inspected the upper end ol i Makopua Road. Geneizdly it is in - fair order for the limited traffic it ? carries. Minor widening is in hand by 5 the roadman, as time permits. The - dangerous cliff on Toe Toe Road re- ? quired to be fenced, would cost £l5 for : (about five chains. ; ’ Tekapua Riding.—The balance of (slips in Pohonui area have been rc- ■ [ moved with a bulldozer, but it will take some weeks yet to finally trim up all the flood damage. Metal rej pairs have been carried out on Manjgamahoe, Turakina Valley and Murray’s Track Roads. Corners are being

I widened on Namunui and Kaweka Roads preparatory to completing the metalling at an early date. All Scheme No. 13 r.i»:: in t he Taihape area have been di”’’t d away to farm development work. Erewhon Riding. Mefal repairs have been carried out on Pukeokahu, Pungutaua, Otuurei and WainuiMoawhango Roads. Roads in the Moawhango Valley area have been trimmed with graders. Taihape-Napier . Road is in fair order. Ruainii Riding. All flood damage has been . repaired. Metal repairs have been in hand on Upper iurakina (Valley, Ruanui and Mataroa Township I Roads. Hales Track to Papanui wooi|shc\l has been put, in good order. I Main Highway Gon struct! »n | Curls’ Tutaenui Mair. ( I Highway .—The contractor has made ;fair progress with lhe formation and ■ mctailing on the first two miles from (Curls’ Bridge. No authority has yet been received from the Main High- ; ways' Board to accept a tender tor the concrete culverts at Crofton. Unless these are put. in hand soon, the construction contractor's work will be inconvenienced. Feilding-Hunterville Main Highway. —Contractor for construction of the embankment to replace the old bridge on Hauhau Stream has been several times instructed to put the work in hand before wool carting commences, but he has not yet arrived on the job. Crushing Plants Kakariki.—This plant has worked to full capacity ol two 10-hour shafts during the month, and often on Saturdays to keep up with orders. A plentiful supply of excellent shingle is iavailable in the river as a result of [thiiUloods last month. The plant has T stood up to the work well, except a ‘ break in the main crankshaft of the Fraser-Chalmers jaw crusher. As a „ new shaft was in stock little delay was caused. Renewals to screens, etc., are being made as necessary at convenient I times. The running gear has ail been overhauled, and is m good ..ac-. Pipeworks.—Stocks of pipes and posts are being kept up with one moulder. Utlku Plant.—Heavy orders have kept this plant going steadily during the month. The drum crusher shaft failed and was replaced with one from Kakariki, pending a new one arriving from the makers in Melbourne. The | rest of the plant is in good order and I working efficiently. Noxious Weeds Mr. John Robinson reported:---A general inspection, has now been | completed of ali properties in m;, district where Hemlock, Foxglove,, and Ragwort were growing in any | quantity last season. In most in-j' r stances farmers have already made ar- I rangements to have their weeds at-( fl< tended to early in the sc/ on, and a P 1 number of applications have beer, for- ' ‘ warded to the stock inspector for sub- ’ IJ sidised labour. The hemlock and fox- 1 ’ glove appear to be well under con- ' ,l trol, and are very scattered compared] 1 ' to the large areas which were thick i ( with those weeds three years age-.! c( Sweetbriar is now well advanced ;n ' s growth in the Moawhango and Hihitahi districts, but as this weed docs i!1 not seed until well into January, I w am not asking farmers to interfere I l .’ with it until the shearing is finished. !l Mr. A. W. Trotter reported: A IP 1 general inspection has been made of | w properties known to have variegated 171 thistle and hemlock growing during ' ai the past season, the worst areas in ’ the case of variegated thistles being' Mangahoe and the Turakina and Wangachu Valleys, and for hemlock the Parewanui district and properties along the Tutaenui Stream south of Marton. Verbal and written notices I 21

have been given, and in many case.s, ilthoug?. still somewhat early to be Jone economically, the work is now in irogrcss, or ha.s been completed. It is •.■cry nolicesble, particularly on the wavy river flats that the variegated hisih- i.s nowhere near as bad as any jther season .since the Noxious Weed Yet has been enforced within the . ..only, ’/his iu probably due to the join, we; v inter. At the same time, it s rather disheartening to note that hose who have done lhe most work n past seasons probably have the Aorst crops this year. Further good progress has been made with the cuting and spraying of barberry. At. iresent there i.s little sign of any rag* vort showing through, and it i.s yet al her early to start with blackberry