AKAROA BOROUGH COUNCIL

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 2, Issue 195, 31 May 1878, Page 2

AKAROA BOROUGH COUNCIL

. .. o I Wednesday, May 29. Present—His Worship the Mayor (in the chair), and all the Councillors. The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. CORRESPONDENCE. The Clerk read tbe outward correspondence. It was announced that Messrs R. M. Barry and A..G. Wiggins had been elected auditors for the Borough. A letter was read from Inspector Broham, stating that for. the future the police would not undertake the collection of tbe dog-tax, and intimating .that it would be necessary for the Council to appoint a registrar of dogs. Cr O'Reilly proposed that the Town Clerk, Mr McGregor, be appointed Registrar, to take over the duties when they were . relinquished by the police. The motion was seconded by Councillor Waeckerle, and carried. Before proceeding with any further business, the Mayor wished to call the attention of Councillors to clause 29 of the standing orders, in which it was laid down that all votes should be taken by show of hands, and that every Councillor present was compelled to vote. I

A somewhat personal altercation ensued between His Worship and Cr Meech, during which the Mayor twice called the latter to order, and finally demanded that he should either apologise or leave the room; in the event of hia refusing to comply, His Worship threatened to have him removed. -

Cr Meech was quite willing to apologise if his Worship would point out any language of his which could be considered offensive or disorderly. He read standing order 25, which runs as follows :—" Any Councillor using offensive or disorderly language, and having been twice called to order, or to withdraw or apologise for such conduct, and refusing to do so shall be guilty of an offence." He appealed to the Council whether his language had been offensive or disorderly.

The Mayor persisted in his demand for an apology. Cr O'Reilly asked if he could propose a resolution.

The Mayor said that depended upon the nature of it.

Cr O'Eeilly would propose that the Council adjourn, as there was no possibility of getting on with the business owing to the way the business was conducted.

The Mayor ruled the motion out of order.

At this stage of • the proceedings, Crs Meech, Billens, Cullen, Sunckell, Waeckerle, and O'Reilly rose from their seats and left the room. , Those remaining not being sufficient to form a quorum, the meeting lapsed.