THOSE BY-LAWS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 1, Issue 105, 27 May 1880, Page 2

THOSE BY-LAWS

A special meeting was to have been held on Tuesday to consider, and, if satisfactory, to adopt the by-laws, a draft of which was advertised in the Herald a fortnight since, but the meeting fell through for want of a quorum. His Worship the Mayor, and Messrs. St. HiH, Friedlander, and Weymouth Heberts, with Mr. E. G. Crisp, the Borough Solicitor, were present, and one more Councillor was required to give legality to the proceedings. For this important addition to their number, the abovenamed gentlemen waited, but waited in vain. Mr. St. Hill was for hunting up Councillor Robinson, but it was hinted as extremely improbable that he would be found at home, so the suggestion was not acted upon. The possibilities of other members rolling up was discussed, but any gleam of hope in this respect soon disappeared. They came not. Tim Councillors present, cheered possibly by the influences of a glowing fire and the prospect of once more putting off the consideration of those dreary by-laws, waxed merry, and while sundry anathemas were at intervals poured forth by Mr. St. Hill on the absent ones, the joke, in the absence of the glass, went merrily round. What other influences were at work on the minds 'of our worthy Councillors we know not, but that wit and humor prevailed to an extent hitherto foreign to the usually dry discussions of the Council Chamber is a matter of fact. Sundry conundrums were flung about by the Mayor and Mr. St. Hill, and our unassuming apd rgticent Borough Solicitor, as he saw the object of his special care being put off for a more convenient season, seemed to have a special inspiration, and from what appeared to be a mine of anecdote and conundrum, contributed to the general merriment, To those of our readers who are partial to this kind of entertainment and those who are blessed with a vein of fun and humor in their composition, the following riddle given last night by the Borough Solicitor will perhaps prove as difficult to them in the solving as it did to their worthy representatives in the Council, and also enjoy as hearty a laugh as they did when made acquainted with the simplicity of itA man gets married and has two sons, one named Jack, the other named Tom, but Jack says he is no relation to Tom; what is Jack ? ” After patiently, waiting for three-quarters of an hour, it was arranged that the meeting should stand adjourned until Friday night, but the probabilities of a quorum being present on that evening were so risky, that two of the gentlemen, who guaranteed their ’’presence, so as to conform with the requirements of the law on the matter, arranged to contest a game of chess should their mental faculties not be in requisition for

the' less serious work of playing at Borough legislation. We extremely regret that those of our fellow citizens who have been elected by the burgesses of Ashburton to fill the position of Borough Councillors are not more in earnest to merit the trust and confidence which has been tnus reposed in them. It has been hinted that there are a class of men in our midst who will leave no stone unturned to occupy positions in society which will add, perhaps, an extra title to their names, but who are just as anxious to shirk any duty or drudgery which may be associated with such a title. From our acquaintance with the members of the Borough Council, we are assured that every individual member of that body is above such a charge ; but unless more interest is exhibited in matters of detail of Council work, the general public will not hesitate to pronounce a verdict which will not be flattering to some of the gentlemen who hold the position of City Fathers. Recently theordinary meetingsof the Council have been well attended, arid the most hyper-critical of our citizens would find it difficult to censure the councillors for any lack of duty in regard to the general routine of the Borough’s business, but it is where meetings are called of the Works, Planting, and By-laws, and other Committees that there is room for complaint ; and it is specially in connection with the Borough’s by-laws that the burgesses of Ashburton will soon make their voices heard, if more energy is not displayed in making them law. The Borough has been in existence now for nearly two years, and during that time many pounds might have been carried to the Council’s credit, as the result of prosecutions under the by-laws had they been in force, as well as contributing very much to the sanitary condition of the township. We understand that all that is requisite now to making them effective is for the Council to hold a meeting approving of the draft already advertised ; a copy is to be transmitted to the Colonial Secretary, and upon his acknowledging the receipt of it, prosecutions under these by-laws can at once be instituted. In the interests of the Borough we would once more urge on the Councillors of taking the bull by the horns, and see to the immediate bringing into force of this necessary acquisition to effective Borough administration.