BOROUGH MATTERS.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXVI, Issue 13338, 29 March 1911, Page 4

BOROUGH MATTERS.

The report presented to the Borough Council last evening by the newly-appoint-ed engineer is an interesting and instructive document, and indicates that the Borough possesses in Mr W. T. Mansfield a real life official, who is not disposed to move along in the old grooves simply because the grooves were there for his convenience. The most pleasing feature of his report is that which deals with roadmaking, which has been the bugbear of Wanganui for many years. Mr Mansfield recognises that he has not the best material at his disposal, but he is sanguine that good results can be obtained with the metal available, which he proposes to experiment with in the Avenue at the foot of St. John’s Hill, and then if found successful, extend the principle in other streets of the municipality. He intends to do what is done in many other places—first consolidate the metal with i a thin sprinkling of clay by rolling and wetting, and then charge the surface with a coating of screened stones treated with tar, topdressing with sand and tar; We can quite believe that a roadway constructed on such a system would give better results than have hitherto obtained here, and prove, as he says, “dustless in summer, mudless in winter, and easily scavenged.” Mr Mansfield also intends to bring into use the Straker waggon for haulage purposes, and it is to be hoped he will be more successful with it than his predecessors have been. When the waggon was purchased it was claimed that a saving of at least 50 per cent, in the cost of hauling metal would be made—in Auckland and other cities the saving by the use of motor waggons as compared with horses and drays is 75 per cent.—but for various assigned reasons, including the bad approach to the Hylton pit and the allegedly soft nature of the borough roads, the waggon has had IPtle use. The cartihg item Til the borough is a big one, and a saving of 50 per cent.,, would run into a substantial sum in the course of twelve months. The question of the Borough Council constructing private drains is another important matter referred to by the engineer, who sees no reason why the work should not be done by private contract under the supervision of the Sanitary Inspector. He is correct in his surmise that the introduction of the system was due to one or two causes. There was unfortunately a good deal of “scamping” in the matter of drain-laying, and it was to obviate this that the borough undertook the work. Now, however, there is a Sanitary Inspector, and there seems no reason why the old order of things should not again be resumed, under strict surveillance. Mr Mansfield evidently thinks, and we believe many of our readers will agree with him, that an engineer’s time in an important borough like Wanganui, can be more profitably spent than in supervising petty details which can well be left to other officials, and in this respect he throws out several suggestions that will probably be given effect to. In view of the probable amalgamation at no distant 4ate of Wanganui East and Gonville with the parent borough, Mr Mansfield’s time .will be fully occupied with the bigger municipal matters. We wish him success.