CITY COUNCIL.

Globe, Volume III, Issue 227, 2 March 1875, Page 3

CITY COUNCIL.

Monday, March 1, The usual weekly meeting was held in the Council Chamber. Present—His Worship the M avor j an< * Crs Calvert, Ick, Bishop, Farr, Jones, Raphael, Gapes, and Hart. The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. The town clerk reported receipts for the week to be as follows:—From rate collector's account general city rates, 1874, £7l 6s; Waimakariri do, £ll 17s Bdj from Heathcote Road Board towards formation of East town belt, £67 10s; from Provincial Government, half-year account of fire-engines, £25; fints from R. M. Court, £2 109; stage coach and driver's liceuse, £2; rent from market place, 7s; total receipts, £IBO 10s Bd. Overdraft at'bank on general account, £1578 8s 6d; drainage account (cr), £6BIO 18s sd; drainage rate account (cr), £1667 2s 7d; wagestobe paid on general account, £197 16s sd; on drainage account, £453 16s 6d. The Mayor said that Messrs T. B. Craig, and Herbert E. Alport were duly elected auditors for the present year. The official notification would be published in the morning papers. Mr Harman had called upon him to say that that portion of the canal reserve fronting the College would be open to the College as soon as the trees had grown a little stronger and the College authorities had been given notice to that effect. Under these circum-

stances he had not considered it necessary to call the committee together. A letter would be read from His Honor during the evening asking for suggestions a? to the working of the Public Health Act, and he would suggest that a committee be appointed to consider and report upon this matter. Cr Bishop would like the committee appointed on the canal reserves, to meot during the week, w he had some further information to lay before them. His Worship said he would undertake to summon a meeting of the committee during the week. Cr Farr desired to draw the attention of the Council to a paragraph in the Globe, stating that the police had received instructions not to interfere with the cabmen who had taken out licenses occupying the stand in Gloucester street, near the Theatre. The Mayor explained that it had been considered advisable (under the advice of Dr Forster) not to be harsh with applicants for licenses, until the result of the next special meeting of the Council was known. Cr disagreed with the action of his Worship. The cabmen had brought the present state of thing* upon themselves, and had entailed the expenditure of perhaps nearly £7OO, which might have been avoided. Crs Gapes and Raphael supported the action taken by the Mayor. Cr Ick also drew attention to a letter appearing in the same journal, and characterised it as being simply a tissue of falsehoods. Cr Bishop felt that as the letter was an annonymous one, and simply contained falsehood, that no further notice should be taken of it. • His Worship desired to say that he had done all in his power, both as a private individual and in his position as Mayor, to arrange this matter amicably, and possibly this result might have been arrived at if all the members of the Council had been of his mind. The men had sent in their applications in all good faith, and as the Council had considered it advisable to postpone consideration of the applications for a week, he he had represented the position of matters to the Inspector of Police. Cr Farr would also like to draw attention to a letter, stating that as one member of the Council had an interest in cabs the Council had, with a motive, appointed a Saturday on which to hold their special meeting. The Mayor said that this was altogether wrong ; the simple reason why the meeting was called for Saturday was that the licenses were sent in on Wednesday, and as he had to give two clear days' notice when calling a special meeting, it had of necessity to be held on the Saturday. After a short passage of arms between Crs Hart and Raphael the subject dropped. Cr Bishop moved the following motion of which he had given notice :—" That application be made, at the next sitting of the Provincial Council, for reserves of, say, 1090 acres on the Band Hills at Forty Mile Beach, or elsewhere, for the following purposes : Deposit of night soil and rubbish, cemetery, abattoirs, or either of such purposes." He was not at all aware that he was infringing on any plan of the sanitary committee, and if they had such plan, he had no desire to encroach upon it. His motion was in consistence with a paper he had read some short time since to the Council. His first thought was that they would require other reserves for the purpose for which the present ones were used. Those, hfc considered, were not only too small, but were also too near Christchurch, and having inspected them, he felt they would not be able to continue them for a very much longer time, and thus the position indicated by him would not only serve the requirements of the city as a night soil reserve and as a cemetery, but they would also be able to include in their action the suburbs, and as far as answering the purposes of a cemetery, this soil had been approved of in Paris. As far as the question of abattoirs was concerned, he did not think it was necessary at the present time to take up this matter as a general question. He felt to carry his motion out it would be necessary to construct a tramway, and for this purpose they might have to borrow money, as he placed but little reliance on getting it from the Provincial Council. He did not wish to name any particular spot, as he felt that its selection would be better within the province of a committee. Cr Raphael seconded the motion. Cr Hart referred to the law necessitating in a little while the use of earth closets, hence their not requiring any reserve on the Forty Mile Beach as a night soil reserve. So far as a cemetery was concerned, he believed that the practice of cremation would soon become general, and then they would require no reserve for a cemetery. He would oppose the motion. Crs Ick and Jones supported the resolution. Cr Gapes moved as an amendment that the words "or for any other purposes'' be added to the motion. • Cr Haft seconded the amendment. The amendment was put and lost, and the motion carried. The city surveyor reported as follows " I find the channel in Hereford street between Manchester and Madras streets would be improved if the water were taken in an easterly direction, instead of being allowed (as it does I find at present) to soak into the ground; reversing the run of the water would not cause any additional expense. " One-half of the South belt sewer is now complete, and if it be the intention of the Council to carry the work on any further than Antigua street, the bricks should be ordered while the fine weather lasts. " A little more than two chains of pipes have been laid in Lichfield street, and where the men are now at work the ground is of a very soft and spongy nature, and likely to cause some extra expense in order not to risk Mr. Anderson's stone building being injured, but I cannot say what will be required until midday to-morrow. When the first paragraph of the surveyor's report came on for discussion, Cr Hart strongly objected to the work being carried out as recommended by the works committee. Cr Jones moved—" That the recommendation of the works committee be carried out." Cr Farr seconded the motion, which was agreed to, Cr Hart being the only dissentient. Cr Hart then rose, and used some very strong expressions, to which Cr Raphael replied in equally strong language. After some other Councillors had given expression to their opinions on this matter, Crs Ick, Farr, Calvert, and Hart rcfj and left the Chamber.

On the report bung aorain c nsinVred, it was resolved, on the motion of Or Jones—- " That, in reply to i letter from the owners and residents of property in Hereford street from Madras street to Manch ster street., that on their paying in o the town clerk the several amounts opposite their names, the channelling and k»rbiri£ be proceeded wi'h. Cr Bishop moved, witti reference to paragraph No 2—" That the survyor be instructed to order bricks to continue the sewer from Antigua street to Selwyn street. Cr Gapes seconded the motion, which was agreed to. Paragraph No 3 was adopted. Some matters throughout the city requiring attention were brought under the notice of the chairman of the works committee. One tender for timber was opjned and referred to the works committee. Two tenders for concrete channelling were opened and one accepted. A document was read, signed by several residents in Hereford street from Madras street, agreeing to contribute the required paoportion towards the channelling fronting on that street. It was resolved that the work be proceeded with. A letter was received from the office of the Secretary of Public Works, stating that, with regard to the application of the Council for the temporary occupation of section 731 in Cathedral Square to stack metal upon, the Government had no objection to its being devoted to that use provided the Council undertook to give up possession at fourteen days' notice. Letter ordered to be acknowledged with thanks. A letter was read from his Honor the Superintendent, as chairman of the Central Board of Health, addressed to the Council as a local Board of Health, forwarding a printed circular in accordance with the provisions of the 15th section of the Act, requesting a report to be furnished of the general sanitary state of the city; also upon the working of the Public Health Act so far as it had come under the attention of the Board, and desiring the report to be sent in before the 20th March, as the Central Board had been called upon to report to the Governor before the end of that month. It was determined to consider this letter at the termination of the other business. A letter was read from Mr James Park, of Melbourne, acknowledging receipt of bank draft, and was glad to hear the street sweeper had given satisfaction. A letter was read from Mr J. G. Palairet, complaining that a neighbor had been depositing night soil for the purpose of manure in his paddock. The town clerk was instructed to reply to the letter. A report was read from the rate collector, on an application for remission of rates, unfavorable to the application. After some discussion, further consideration of this matter was deferred for a week. Applications for owners' and drivers' licenses were received from Stephen Lawrence, Colombo street south, and Alfred Smith, Ferry road. Consideration was deferred until Saturday next. Cr Jones would like to know whether there were any omnibuses or stage carriages running at the present time without licenses, and how many? The town clerk replied that only two or three of them had taken out licenses. Gr Jones said this was not right. The Council had had no misunderstanding with these men. and it was not right for them to be running and receiving money from passengers without takine out a license. He intended in his place in the Council to see that all omnibus owners took out licenses. Cr Raphael at this stage tendered his apologies to the Mayor and councillors for any improper expressions he might have used in a heated moment during the earlier portion of the evening. Crs Gapes, Bishop, and Jones also spoke on this subject, after which the Council resolved itself into a Local Board of Health to consider the letter from his Honor the Superintendent. It was resolved—" That the sanitary committee, with the Mayor and Cr Bishop, form a sub-committee to consider and report upon the letter." The Oouncil resumed and then adjourned.