THE WANGAONUA BRIDGE.

Waikato Times, Volume XVI, Issue 1357, 12 March 1881, Page 2

THE WANGAONUA BRIDGE.

-Mr Patrick Leslie, on behalf of the Tamahere Highway Board, waited on the Waikato County Council at yesterday's meeting on the matter of the bridge over th 6 Waugaonua creek at Hinton's Gully. | Having been introduced by the Chairman, Mr Leslie said he appeared at the request of the Tamahere Board, to bring under the notice of the Council the subject of communication between the Tamahere and Kirikiriroa districts. It was an absolute necessity that some means of communication should be opened to enable the ratepayers of the Tamahere district, a portion of which was in the Cambridge and a portion in the Kirikiriroa. Ridings to go from one part of the latter, riding to another. The Tamahere Board had made application to Kirikiriroa to join in erecting a bridge over the Wangaonua Creek, the boundary of the two districts, but the latter refused to have anything to do with the matter, pleading impecuniosity. It was then thought advisable f-o send one of the members of the Board, and Capt Hunciman accordingly waited on the Kirikiriroa Board for the pmrpose of explaining nutters more clearly. He however, met with no better success, and it was then determined to call for tenders so as to be able to lay before the Kirikiriroa Board a statement showing the exact coat of the work. Armed with this information, Captain Runciman again waited on the Board, but wi*"h the same result as before : they could do nothing because they had no money. They were good enough to state that they had no objection to the Tamahere Board constructing the approach on the Kirikiriroa side, but that was all. The Tamahere Board then accepted tenders for the work, built the bridge and made the cutting on their side. There was thus a good road through Tamahere on to the bridge, but they could not get off it, because there was no approach on the Kirikiriroa side. He appealed to the Council to assist them out of subsidies which would accrue to the KiriUiriroa Board. It was simply monstrous that the settlers in the Tamahere district should be cut off from their nearest town, aud should have no outlet save that by Crawfords Uully. He, himself, lived only three miles from Hamilton, and yet the nearest road was ten miles long, and Mr Wood and others were similarly situated. He did not wish to hoodwink the Council, and he would admit that, in so far as Mr Wood and himself were concerned, they had private bridges •which they had erected at their own cost, but that fact should not be allowed to weigh in the least in the matter. It was a most outrageous thing for the Kirikiriroa Highway Board to plead impecuniosity, when, according to the Hamilton correspondent of an Auckland paper they had £300 to credit. He thought the Tamahere Board had a perfect right to claim that the Kirikiriroa Board should contribute half the cost. The contract price of the Tamahero approach was £70 and the bridge cost £S8 2s 3d. He thought it was but fair that Kirikiriroa should reimburse them in lialf the coat of the bridge and construct the approach on their own side. He attributed the whole of the opposition with which the proposal of Tamahere had been met to Mr Primrose, the Chairman of the Kirikiriroa Board. He had no doubt that the works on the Hokonui road were more important than the Mangaonua bridge, but Mr Primrose should remember that he Bat in that Council as the representative of the Kirikiriroa Riding which included the half of Tamahero Ho (Mr Leslie) was a constituent of Mr I Primroses' though Heaven knew, he had never helped to put him into the Council. He would ask Mr Priinroso how he reconciled in hia conscience his action with his duty towards his constituents whom he prevented from reaching their nearest town oxcept by a circuit. The chairman asked how much was required of Kirikiriroa to compete the work. ' Mr Leslie said they wanted about £80. He put it to thfem whether he was not asking for justice. He was sure he would get the support of the Council. Everydody was in favor of the Tamahere Board ; the Waikato Times had written in their favor but nothing would move the Kirikiriroa Board. The Chairman thought the 'natter was one which it was quite proper to bring before the Council ; when two Boards could not agree, it was for the Council to interfere. It was clear that the bridge, as it at present stood, was perfectly useless. He thought that the matter should be deferred till next meeting, in order that Kirikiriroa might be represented. Tamahere had not been wise in going on with the work until they had | obtained the concurrence of Kirikiriroa. Mr Leslie : If we had waited for that we should have waited till the Day of Judgment. Cr. Fergusson, thought the matter could be settled at the present meeting. Cr. Primrose thought it was most monstrous that Mr Leslie should have attacked him in the way he had. There were four other gentlemen on the Kirikiriroa Board occupying as good a position as either Mr Leslie or himself, and it was casting a reflection on these gentlemen to say that he (Mr Primrose) could influence them He agreed with the chairman that the matter should be deferred, in which case the Board could attend. Mr Leslie : I did not cast any reflec-' tions on the other members. I only ! said you had undue influence on the Board, and I say so again. There is one member of your Board, Mr Coates, strongly in our favour. Cr. Eergusson said the members of the Kirikiriroa Board knew that this matter was to have been bi ought forward at this meeting. He had heard of the matter, and was there to protest against any of the money accruing to the Cambridge riding going towards the bridge, having heard that it was intended to apply for such. Mr Leslie said a mistake had arisen. They had no intention of asking the Cambridge riding to contribute, as the bridge was wholly in the Kirikiriroa Riding. After some further remarks from the chairman in favor of postponing' the matter Cr. Primrose said the statement of the Waikato correspondent of tho Herald regarding the funds in the hands of the Kirikiriroa Board was false. They might have had £300 in the Bank at last meeting, but against that sum they had liabilities of more than £200. Cr. "Wells concurred with the opinion of the chairman as to the advisability of deferring the matter till another meeting for Monday 21st inst., to consider the question, with a view to its settlement.