Mr C. A. Pownall in Reply.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 7242, 25 August 1902, Page 3

Mr C. A. Pownall in Reply.

f'fO TUB EDITOR.]

Sir,—Mr Hollings' reply to my lottor, i in roforonco to tho Gas Loan, is of tho . " lame duck" ordor, and does not attompt ! to moot tho points at issuo, or to justify , tho ill-judgod methods of himsolf and Council, for which ho is primarily to blamo, as ho ought to bo ablo to give tho , Council bottor guidanco in theso mattors. Tho fact romains that 11 gas loan of £5000 is being borrowod upon au insufficient basis; and the fact romains that tho effect of tho loan will bo :— 1. That Lansdowno will roccivo all tho benefits of tho loan without paying the rato. 2. That tho outor ward of tho Borough will have to pay tho rato, and recoivo no benefit from tho loan. If tho Mayor can wrigglo off tho horns of this dilomma I shall bo surprised ; but I do not think the ratepayers will swallow the bait very readily. If the Mayor is willing to accept a iittlo friendly advico, I should suggost to him: Firstly: To obtain tho opinion of a working fireman, or manager of a largo gasworks, 113 to tbo cost of putting our gasworks i l sound working condition; and secondly, to either loavo tho Outer Ward out of tho rating area for tho loan, or join such an amount to tho loan as will mako tho roads iv the Outer Ward, and thus givo it somo compensation for the rato. This may convert an inovitablo failure into probable success and got him and the Council out of tho holo. I can afford to ignore his reference to my borrowing inclinations, as Mayor, as ho cannot point to any loan obtained at my instance in which the project was not a complcto success. As to my making a mistake (as ho says) ovor tho Drainago Loan, let mo point out to him that tho area to bo affected by drainage was fixed by Mayor Heron and his Council; and let me ask him to look up his facts in futuro to save him making any other such egregious blunders. Not that there was any mistake at all—as tho proposed work was carried out in its entirety ; and my suggestion to raise £10,000 more was to covor necessary extensions as the population grew. In conclusion, let nic notice tho facetious remark of tho Mayor that I am "straddling on a rail ami do not know which way to jump; " and to retort that he and tiio Council arc straddling tho same rail and do not know which way to fall 1 Whichever way it eventuates, tho " bump " will bo considerable, and it would bo well to remind the Mayor of tho fato of his prototype, " Humpty Dumpty," who sat on the wall, in order that the Mayor may preserve a steadier balanco on 'his Mayoral structuro than ho is doing at tho present. —I am, etc., C. A. Pownall.

you roally coimider siieh flimsy evident an "thin card Bullicient to arrest a gentleman of Mr Clrienson's position and integrity?" "Not in itself, perhaps," lie replied, "but look at thin." lie drew from liifi wallet a piece of white blotting-paper mid lurid it, ii]) before the, window. It wan porfoetly clear tlio correspondence card had bcwi blotted on it. "VVliero did you get tliat?" "On Mr Cirierßoii'B writing-tablo in hie private room licrc." The sergeant made no remark. "Moro than that," continued Jones, " a cabman from tlio Charing Cross rank lioh called at Scotland 'Yard. A Himilar correspondence card, also signed ' Richard GrierHon , wan lianded him on the rank by a messenger, rcqucstiiiff ! him to be iit the bank sit twlovo last night. Here it id. Ho came, and subsequently drovo a gentleman, wlio said ho wiia the bank numiiger, with four or five boxea, Home diatanco into the country. There was another cab at the bank, into which two or threo other men got with similar boxes and drove off in tho opposite direction." "What happened when the cab had reached tho country?" "A van was waiting. Tho boxea were transferred and the cabman dimnissed.' "And I. suppose you've found the van and the money at Mr (Jricrson's chambers?" Harca.stically remarked Deaslcy. "Not yet; that's to come," replied Toiicß, savagely. Wo took a sample of tho wine and submitted it to an eminent analyst, who certified that it contained a preparation of opium. (To be concluded in our next).