THE CITY STREETS.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14888, 30 January 1914, Page 2

THE CITY STREETS.

• TO THE EDITOB.OF.'fTHE FRESS;" ' r Sir,—lf Mr.'A.; D.';Dbbson, Aβ city surveyor j informed your reporter as indicated in the report published last Tuesday, "that he .had been a consistent advocate for the use of tar for street maintenance and construction," his method of showing his. advocacy was, to say the least, peculiar during my first year of office as Mayor, when he persistently opposed the carrying out of the proposal" to asphalt the city streets, which I ma3o in my installation speech in May, 1908. Ho alleged that tarred metal rolled up in front of the road roller, so that it was impossible to make a. level surface. It was only my persistency that towards the end .of fhe year brought about a compromise, resulting in the laying down of dry macadam with a surface ,of tarred metal screenings. , As far as my memory serves he did not advocate the laying down of tarred metal such as had been laid down-in Cashel street, I believe, by his predecessor—until ho fathered the late MrT. Taylor's road scheme, which was published with his endorsement within a week of my leaving office in May, >1911.In my opinion, and in the opinion of others, a grave and expensive mistake was made in tearing up a great part of the old consolidated roadway in Manchester street, which, with a- top coating of tar macadam, would probably have worn at least as well as the new roadway will do.—Yours, etc., C. ALLISON. January 29th.