The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, MAY 24.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 2, Issue 193, 24 May 1878, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, MAY 24.

Elsewhere will be found a letter on the proposed Borough Loan, signed " Civis." While inserting the letter, in order that this important question may be presented to the ratepayers in all its aspects, we may remark that we differ in toto from the opinions of our esteemed correspondent, and think his application of clause 157 entirely unwarranted. In support of this contention, we do not propose to go seriatim through the whole of the borrowing clauses of the Act, but as " Oivis " has done, we sliall confine ourselves to one fact, and one clause. The fact we rely on is, that the Borough of .Masterton has taken all the necessary steps ■' to raise the sum of £8000 jby way of special loan, of which the principal and interest shall be secured on the general rates of the borough,. . The ! words quoted are from the notice appearS ing in the New Zealand Gazette of March 28, 1878, the italics are our own. Over the above notice appears the following notification, signed by the Minister acting for the Colonial Secretary :— " Colonial Secretary's Office, " Wellington, 27th March, 1878. 11 The following notice received from his Worship the Mayor of Masterton is published tor general information, in accordance with section 145 of 'The Municipal Corporations Act, 1876.' " J. Ballance, " (in the absence of the " Colonial Secretary." So much for the fact on which we rely ; now for the clause we referred to, viz., clause or section 145, which runs as follows :— " When any such resolution is carried, the Mayor shall send a notice thereof to the Colonial Secretary, who shall publish the same in the New Zealand Gazette, and such notice so pub- ! lished shall be evidence that the raising of the loan to which it refers has been duly authorised under the provisions of '' this Act." It will be seen that this completely cuts the ground from under " Civis' " feet in the matter of his -argument that because Masterton may have acted illegally, we should not run the risk of doing the same. The clause is no doubt inserted to prevent any possible afterquestioning as to the legality of a loan. It will be readily understood that capitalists would look askance at such loans if it were possible at any time to sturt objections as to the legality of all the steps that had been taken in raising them. This clause absolutely bars all objections to any prior steps, when it says that " the notice so published shall be evidence that the raising of the loan . . . has been duly authorised. ,. Clause 157, then, must refer to a case where a Council has borrowed money without taking the'necessary steps (including the Gazette notice) to validate their proceedings. We shall retnrn to this subject again, but we hope in the meanwhile that the question of the loan will be fought out on the broad ground of its expediency or otherwise, and that those who disapprove of it will be content to oppose it on such grounds, without endeavouring to prevent a decision on the broad principle being come to, by menus of raising side issues, or. to use a common metaphor; by '• dragging a red herring across the scent."