COOK COUNTY COUNCIL.

Gisborne Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1628, 16 December 1905, Page 3

COOK COUNTY COUNCIL.

MON Hit,Y MEETING. Tbo monthly meeting of tho Cook County Council was hold yesterday whon tho following mombors wore prtsont ; Captain Tucker, iu tbo okai.r, Ors Harding, MoDouald, H. Konway, P. Kenway, Onrmiohaol, H. H. Wall, and F. Lysnar. CORRESPONDENCE.

Mt W. D. S. MoDonald wroto under dnlo of Novembor 26th ; lu connection wish tho grant for Hangaroa-Tahora rond, disoussing tho matter with a Tahora settlor ho etsted tbat tho rond on whioh it is proposed to expend tho grant is not likely to bo used at all, at loaßt that it will bo of uo immedialo benefit to the settlors and tbat tho sottlora avo in urgont ncod of some oxpondituro on tho Wharekopno-Tahora road whioh is tho I road used by tho pcoplo. I would be glad if you oould bo good enough to look I into tho mat'er and ondoavour to have tho tnonoy spent whoro it will givo most immediate bouefit to tho Tahora eottlaro. Porbaps tho grant oau bo diverted to that portion of tho Tahora road whoro it is mo3t urgently needed. Or Lyanar said tbo Hangaroa-Tahora rond had been sutveyed, and the settlors, Mr Stsolo especially, wore desirous of getting tho road mado. Tho ,£250 grant would make a pack traok for tho settlors. Tho road should bo properly ca'lad Steele’s, and the agitation for tho grant bad been going on for years.—lt was deoido j tbat tho grant shouid bo expended as proposed by the Government. —Mr Steelo wailed on the Counoil and defined tho lino of road for which tho graut was made. It .should rightly bo called the Waikura Tahora, as it started from Mills’ homestead.—Tho Chairman said tho Council had resolved to write to tbo Government hastening the expenditure of tho grant.

Mr T. S. Williams, of Tupavoa, wrote in regard to the Counoil taking a road through his seotion No. 5, Paremata. He was wi ling to take £'2s provided the Con"cil fenced both sides of the road with

u soven-wiio fence and put up gates.—lt was agreed to offer £2O and to fenoe both sides and put up two gates. The Department of Agriculture wrote drawing attention to the noxious weeds on oouuty lands and roads, and threatening legal proceedings unless effective measures were taken to cope with the same

Mr H. East wrote sta'iog that having started fishing at the mouth of the Awapuni lagoon, ho applied that tho Whakawhitira road bo opened for the benefit of the fishing industry and the publio generally.—Referred to Poveity Bay Road Board. Aoiroular in regard to the Now Zealand International Exhibition, to be held in Christchuroh commencing November, 19C6, was received. A request from the Te Arai Road Board, whioh will marge in the Cook County on January Ist, 1906, asking for an advanoe of £l2O on subsidy due in order to meet

existing liabilities, was favorably entertained.

ENGINEER’S REPORT. The Couoty Eoginoer reported as fol lows :

Contraot 127, erection of bridgo, Wbnrekopae: I have received notice that the steel superstructure has been shipped, and may be expected hero in a few weeks. The concrete abutments and wings are already erected.

Contraot T3O, bridge aud approaches, Hara9taba : Good progress has been made with the timber work, practically all material being on tho ground, and a considerable quant’ty worked and in place. The progress of the earthwork has been slow, but I hops to report better resalts □ext month, Contract 181, erection of bridge, Mangatu: This work will be started almost immediately. The contracto; is taking advantage of the low state of the river to erect coffer-dam for central pier. Contract 134, erection of stock bridge, Poututu : Completed. Very slow progress was made with this work. Tho work was, when let, considered urg. nt, and I do not think the contractor has used his best endeavois to push the work od, whioh is 40 days over contraot t ! me. I consider that some portion at least of fines should be enforced. .

—uumrucr jas. camag moral to depot: Work proceeding satisfactorily. Contract 139, quarrying and spawling st >np, Gray’s quarry : About 2CO yards ai e repoitcd a 3 ready for carting, whioh is being proceeded with. Repairs to reals havo bom effected at Arskihi, Tauwharepara o , Pauikau, and Pouawa, and arrangements are being made for carting of metal on a number of roads in tbe Waikohu riding and elsewhere.

Tbe road machine has been at work on 1 tbe Gisborne-Wairoa road, and will shortly : be shifted (if found advisable) on to the Ngatapa road ; on this latter road a day party is at present at work executing preliminary repairs to enable wheel traffic to proceed. A number of lenders wi’l close to-day for works in different localities. Good progress is being made with tbo laying off of works in connection with Government grants, and I hope in the course of the next two months to have preity well all grant money laid off for expenditure. Annexed herewith is repoit of estimated cost of bridging and metalling Waimata road to Akroyd’s, and also a report re proposed road deviation at Puatae. Estimate for ereotion of five bridges on tho Waimata road, also completion of motallmg ; and repairs to portions of road originally meta'led with inferior stone-. Bridges to bo of steel superstructure, and ironbark piers.—Bridges and approaches : Waterfall creek £2ll 8?, P. Kenway’s creek £650 15s, H. Kenway’s crossing, Wa’mata, £lO3l, Post Office crossing £1453, Aktoyd’s crossiog £675, total £4021 3s ; 113 chains clay road to mstal, £1582, 262 chains pa*tly metalled £l3lO, total £2892 ; full total £6913 3s. The above eetima’e is liable to alteration if it should be fouud whin borings are taken that couoreto will have to be substituted in plaois for ironbark pieis. Propcssd road deva'ion at Pautai rook?.—The propo;od linos are through the properties of Messrs Lo'sel, Barker, and Cooper. Two lines havo been laid off and ptrmanently gialed and pegged. No. 1 line : Start'ng at the northern oad, leaves tbo beach nt Loisel's old wharo and yards, strikes a abort dista cs inland to gain a practicable gradp, thenoo passes touthi wards along tbe Bluff and the head of tho I Rutot ibi lake, ins'oad of tbe wcolsbed, and i finally comes oul on the beaob near Mr Hinton’s homrstead, a distance of three milos and 25 chains. Estimated cost

£llßl 13 1 . No. 2 line: Starts at the sumo point and follcws the first Hdo till peg - 3 miles 22 chains is reached, whence it e diverges along the eastorn side of the g • watershed, regaining tho eld road at the | d saddle on the t pof Euat e hill, a distance d if 5 miles 25links. Esiimated cost, £1558 >1 2>. The grados throughout are good on o both lino?, running f,<m lin2o to 1 in n 38, and I thould siro igly recommend No. id 2 lice bsing adopted, as it would save the of long todicu3 grade of lin 20 and 1 in 28 1, from Hinton’d bomcst*al to the Bototahi

a ko. I m\y s ate that iho above estimate ocludes only fiimalkn, 5 hs meta'ling of ibove lines would be additionally : No. 1, £2650, and No 2, £4BOO. Should formation only be executed tbo read would be in good order for some seven months ic the jca'.

TENDERS AND APPLICATIONS. Tho fol’owing tenders were received:— aw,“.,» g 2000d06. T !ta-a Wiiai.v, jfß9 9 J Pi'iturcs) aod L®slio 15s, \Y. Qjing' (tlamillon) £47 18j 41, Mr WildUL’d tender war accepted. Contraot 141, colleo ing and breaking bouldo s, Waimata —Wi liarn Jones(Matiwhero) 8s per yarJ, Patrck McLaughlin 6j per yard (accepted) Contract 1-42-Sullivan and Co. and Gocdly were the only tenderer?, the la'.ter’s being accepted at the following prices : Lifting and breaking 28?, quarrying and spreading 7s, blinding 3?. _ . Oontrait 143—N0 tinders rooeived. | Lolt t) Engineer to carry out. Contraot 144, in'tilling—Goodly 6s 6d pi r yard (accepted) Contract 133, stock track, Tahora— P. McLaughliD, formation £3 53, clearing arid ituraping 12s, and pipes at prices qu t;d; W. Jone?, £3 153 and 15a, pipes ai qao'ed, The former tender was accepted, Contract 145, W, Joaos, nut Ring, 12*

per yard ; re-formation l‘2e per obain ; Patrick MoLougbliu, metalling 10?, re-formation Bs, McLaughlin's tender was aocopted. . Contraot 149, W. Wright, formation and stumping Motu road £4 10s bor obain, metalling 4s poe yard. To uler not accepted, prico for forming and stumping bsing considerably above Engineer’s eatima'o. Tho woik was loft to tho Engineer to oarry out. It was dcoided to ask tho Government to give pound for pound subsidy as tho road ran past sections whioh tbo Govornmont would shortly put on tho marlrot. Six applications were roooivod for tho position of dog tax oollootor aud hoaltu inspector for tbo Couuty. Tho salary asked for rangod from £BO to £l5O, Mr Tholwall was elected to tho otlico at £IOO per year.