The City Fathers in Council

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 353, 19 September 1889, Page 2

The City Fathers in Council

The last meeting of the Borough Connoil was a most prompt and businesslike one, all tha subjects being fairly discussed without any waste of time ; but the proceedings were enlightened by a few good points that were made during the evening. The skirmish on the subject of Childers road was opened by a neat little letter from Mr Reynolds, soliciting the advice of the Council as to wbat further “ formalities ” required to be gone through before the work could be gone on with. He politely reminded the Council that a sum of money had been placed on the estimates for the purpose, and other proceedings bad been taken which to those unacquainted with municipal usage might be understood as a finality of the preliminaries that are essential to a work of any importance. But the thing that Mr Reynolds appeared to be unable to understand was that no practical steps had been taken to go on with the work. In his report npon the subject the Overseer could only recommend that the work be done properly, or not at all, with the exception of employing a man upon it for three or four days. Cr. Lucas made a counter attack upon the proposal; the road was only bad in some places and a man could easily fill up the holes, as suggested by the Overseer but the strongest point of all was that the Council had not the money—it had all been sunk in the artesian well. Cr. Dunlop looked at the thing from a moral as well os practical point of view, and, in other words, reminded the Councillors that they had souls to care for as well os bodies that might be bruised. Cr. Hepburn rose, looking as fresh as a daisy on a spring morning, and pre« pared to clear all obstacles. Instead of b miking at the money question he made a flying leap over it, showing the ruck a clean pair of heels. The result was that tenders were ordered to be prepared for. Just after, an application was made for £2B te assist in the representation of ths district at tha Dunedin Exhibition. This was passed with* out a murmur against it, there being a proviso that the County Council must contribute the same amount, It the County Council is inclined to contribute more or less than that amount, the position will be a peculiar one, The arguments used in favor of tha vote added a grim humor tq the resolution, Or Townley would have hia tallow Councillors bellsve that becauss the Korsrorlum had voted £lO.OOO the Counail wae justified in voting £25. £lO.OOO i> an understatement, but in any case if the local bodies, which have sins enough to answer for as it is, were to always take pattern by ths Assembly that meete in Wellington what a country wa would be living in I What has been done with all ths borrowed millions tor the pay» ment of interest on which such districts as our own have to struggle on up to the girths in taxation ? A more unfortunate Illustration could not have been given. Cr Lewis went one nearly as good, and argued that because things were bad with the tradespeople it was the duty of the looal bodies to put up the "epons." That may not have been exactly what he meant, but it Is tha only construction that oan be placed upon hia words. He forgot the old saying that it is uasleas to try and extract blood from a turnip, When the accounts came up there was a discussion on an item in Messrs Finn and Chrisp's bill which related to a recent Court ciee in connection with the pound. It wa* admitted that the amount would have to be paid, but it had been considered that Mr Cannon (formerly poundkeeper) should refund 1 it, In reply to an application made to that gentleman he had politely declined th* invitation, hie contention being that b« 1 himself ought to have been sued and then be would have conducted the forensic bueinees himself. Cr Lucas eloquently pleaded that it had been necessary to employ a enl'-'.tor, and he urged that Mr Cannon, from hi- qwn 1 words, was liable tor the amount, Cr Lewi* thought Mr Oannon was perfectly right, although the Council wae not wrong, because having been euad they bad to defend the action. Other Oounoillors considered that whatever the moral obligation might be, a* Mr Cannon would not release his purs* strings for the occasion, there was no provision in the vast resources of the law to compel him to do that which he declined to do. Beffire dismissing the sub.jeot, however, Cr Lucas shot in a “ stinger " that the pound was now under a control which admitted of no shuffling. At th* termination of the ordinary business Cr Lucas said he had one matter to bring forward ; h* 1 thought the time bad arrived when something should be done in regard to the tarring and 1 sanding of the footpaths. A murmur—" no money ” —came from the locality in which Or Dunlop eat. This was a poser, but Or Lucas soon recovered himself, and hit harder than ever. He said 1 what he proposed was only a matter of a few pounds—it was not like voting away £l7O when they had not got it in hand. Cr Whinray calculated that it would take £lOO to do the work, and Cr Dunlop raised numerous objections, the principal one being that as those who had already had the work done had contributed directly to the cost, the consent of the other property owners also would have to be obtained if they were to con. tribute. Cr. Hepburn, the champion of Newtown’s rights, saw another chance to score a point. He drew such a picture of that beautiful but neglected locality, that it is a wonder th* Councillors did not weep. Money bad been put on the estimates for works whioh wore more urgently required than the one proposed by Cr Lucas, but those works had never been started, nor were they likely to be. Why not put off the work propoeed 11 qutil next year ” ? He would move that the Overseer make a report on the subject. The Mayor said the motion was very indefinite—what distance was the overseer to contemplate in his report ? Cr Wbinray bad just done speaking and Cr Hepburn caused a laugh hy saying as far as that Councillor's place. He then made it Derby Street. Cr Harding could see no barm in a • report ’ being made and he seconded the motion, whioh wa* carried, the meeting adjourning at about • quarter to nine.