AKAROA BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 3, Issue 391, 2 May 1879, Page 2

AKAROA BOROUGH COUNCIL.

Wednesday, April 30. The ordinary fortnightly meeting of this Council was held on the. above date at their office, Balguerie street. Present—His Worship the Mayor, Crs Penlington, Billens, Cullen, Bridge, Meech, and Bruce. The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. RECEPTION OF THE GOVERNOR. The Mayor said that before they went on with the business of the evening he had a few remarks to make respecting the approaching visit of His Excellency the Governor. He believed that this was the first time they had been honored with such a visit since the place had been formed into a Borough, and it behoved them to show due respect to, the representative of the Queen. He would suggest the appointment of a Committee to make the necessary arrangements. Ho thought that

gentlemen outside the Council should be asked to assist in the matter. He had spoken to several gentlemen about it, including the Resident Magistrate. The standing orders were suspended to enuble.the Council t<j discus matter at that stage of the meeting. % -. Sonre discussion then took / place, in which' Councillors were unanirtious as to the propriety of according His Excellency a fitting reception, and the only difference , of opinion was as to the precise form it ! should take, considering the probable short i duration of His Excellency's visit/ Ultimately a Committee was appointed, consisting of his Worship the Mayor, Crs Meecb,, Penlington, ..and.Bridge,,, and. J. Aylmer, =R.M., 4o 'add 'toil theiT number. Trie Committee" to ►be au-1 thorized to make suitable arrangements for the reception, and to incur any reasonable expense. CORRESPONDENCE. The outward correspondence was read. Letters were read— j From W. Montgomery, Esq. (telegram), j re survey of the line of the Akaroa railway. _ This telegram was read at the public meeting recently held on the subject, and has already appeared in our columns. From the Registrar-General, asking for certain statistical information as per schedule enclosed. From the Mayor of Christchurch, enclosing resolutions of a public meeting held in Christchurch re the holding the next session of Parliament in Christchurch. Cr Bridge moved that the Clerk report to the Christchurch City Council and to I the Government that the Council endorses the action of the Christchurch Council in the matter. Seconded by Cγ Cullen and carried, the Mayor dissenting. From Mr C. Alger, resigning his seat in the Council. From Mr H. H. Fenton, reporting on the bridges just completed. by Mr W. Jones, and recommending that £20 be deducted from the sum due to the contractor on account of certain deficiencies in the work. A long and somewhat acrimonious discussion ensued on the reading of this letter, which may be summarized as follows :— Crs Bridge, Penlington, Cullen, and Bruce were of opinion that the Council were bound to accept the report of the officer they had appointed to superintend the work. Cr Meech maintained that the Works Committee was the proper tribunal to decide on the carrying out of any work. The Mayor and Cr Billens thought the present report of the Engineer was invalidated by a previous one in which he had stated that ono of the bridges was ." satisfactorily completed." In the course of the discussion, Cr Meech left to fetch the plans of the bridges, in order to substantiate a statement he made respecting the specifications, and during his absence several councillors left the room, the meeting consequently lapsing for want of a quorum.