REORGANISATION OF CITY COUNCIL OFFICES.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2310, 30 August 1881, Page 3

REORGANISATION OF CITY COUNCIL OFFICES.

A t the City Council last evening, Or. Hulbert’a motion, which has existed some attention in the public mind, was fully discussed. Following is a record of what took place :

The motion slanding in Cr. Hulbert’a name was as follows:—“ That in view of a reconstruction of the several departments of this Council, the present staff receive legal nolice of the Council’s intention to dispense with their services; and that applications be invited, through the Press, from person* competent to fulfil any of the following offices : —Town Clerk, City Surveyor, City Treasurer, Rato Collector, Inspector of Nuisances and Cabs, and Assistant Inspector and Rato Collector; and the following to be the salaries attached to the several offices : I’own Clerk, £4OO (if a solicitor or barrister, £700) ; Oily Surveyor, £4OO ; City Treasurer, £3OO j Rato Collector, £200; Inspector of Nuisances and Cabs, £200; Assistant Inspector and Collector, £150.” Cr. Hulbert suggested that, as some of the officers might bo referred to specially in the discussion which was to follow, those in attendance on the Council should bo given an opportunity of retiring at this stage of the proceedings. Messrs Haskins (the town clerk) and Walkden (the surveyor) then left the Chamber.

Or. Hulbert asked leave to amend his motion by omitting tho schedule of salaries. The Council agreed to the omission of this portion of tho resolution. Cr. Hulbert then proceeded to address the Council on the subject. He said that he felt very deeply tho importance of this step in th* interests of the citizens ; at the same time no member of that Council could regret more than himself any inconvenience or seeming hardship upon any officer which might result from his motion being carried ; and ho would willingly agree to a moderate compensation being piid to officers whose services might be dispensed with, if, in the opinion of tho Council, such was deserved. But it must, he submitted, he patent to every member present, that for a long time past tho tmiinees affairs of the Council had been conducted in a manner far from satisfactory. There had been complaints, not only on the part of the Council itself, but from the outside public, of a complete disorganisation in the staff of official, which reached occasionally to the extent of rebellion. There was, in fact, an apparent want of taot and administrative ability on the one hand, and of respect and obedience on the other. Various attempts had been made to correct this state of things, and he candidly admitted at the outset that the present departmental committee had in several oases greatly improved the different departments of the Corporation staff ; but he was of opinion that the improvements thus effected would not be of a permanent character. They might get a committee who were not so well acquainted with the business, and he contended that directly tho wholesome check to which he had referred was removed it was more than probable that they would drift back into the old unsatisfactory condition of things. It was not his intention to make any charge or charges against any officer of the Council; his object was to point out the necessity of a reconstruction of the official departments, and a redistribution of the dntiea and responsibilities of the several officers of the Council, a work which was now, and had been for some time past, absolutely and imperatively necessary. He asked members of the Council whether they could honestly say that the affairs of the Council had been conducted with that attention to economy and duo consideration for the interest and convenience of the public generally which they had a right to look for ? He submitted with confidence that their reply must be in the negative. Tho convenience of the ratepayers, whose claims to consideration were undoubted, had not been considered; in some instances they had not been treated with the courtesy which it was theirs to command. Then look at the way in which the legal business of the city had been conducted. This department alone was a disgrace to the Council. Look, for instance, at their by-laws, and some of the proceedings in which they were involved at tho R M. Court, forming, at once, a humiliating spectacle, and affording material for public scandal. Oases had been sent to that Court which ought not to have formed subjects of legal proceedings and tho Council had thereby been brought into ridicule. It would not be difficult for him to point the moral should the Council deem it necessary, there being a large amount of evidence as to incapacity and blundering to select from. Why only quite recently a case had occurred connected with a certain contract through which, but for the prompt and intelligent action of the chairman of a particular committee, the Council might have bad to defend a law suit, and would probably have been oast in heavy damages. For this state of things of course the Council were blamed He need not say that such evidence as this pointed to the necessity for reorganisation of one department at least. Next he would ask the Council to carry their minds back on the financial arrangements of the Council, and he thought they must come to the conclusion, as he had done, that they were of tho most unsatisfactory character, and demanded their immediate attention, The sjs’em had, he admitted, been much improved under the guidance of a finance committee of more than average ability and practical knowledge, but take away tho support thus given to the officers, and where would they be ? Why, precisely in the same condition as before. Therefore he held that the Council could by no means rely on the improvement which had been effected continuing for any period. Ho would then go on to point out other glaring defects, and instances ef negligence. Was it not a fact, for instance, that a certain superannuated officer in this Council held imprest or suspense accounts which were never audited, till at last he came look upon the money which he hold as his own ? Was it not also a fact that the system of rate collecting was a disgrace, and that tho Council had lost hundreds of pounds through the negligence and incompetency of its officers. The ratepayers were not treated with courtesy, and were put to trouble and inconvenience by being dragged to the R.M. Court, many of them to answer for offences of which it was proved they were in no way guilty. Ho contended also that an objectionable feature in the existing slate of things was tho relation between the Council’s officers and the contractors, which were not by any means of a satisfactory character. He pointed to the case of one contractor, who refused to sign his agreement unless a clause was inserted that he should not be dictated to by the officers of the Council, but should only bo responsible to the committee. That was a state of things he considered highly undesirable. Further, he would like to ask members of tho Council whether they felt that at all times their efforts were seconded by the officers. Whether, on the contrary, the proceedings of one committee were not used as against another committee, so that the proper harmony among councillors was utterly destroyed. Or. Hulbert then proceeded to define hia idea of what tho town clerk should be. Ho should be a man of legal training, who would be able to advise the Council generally, and conduct the correspondence, much of which required a knowledge of law. He should also be a man calculated to command tho respect and confidence of the Council, tho officials under him, and the ratepayers, who would at all times advise and counsel his Worship, and be able to assist him in extending the courtesy and hospitality of the city to distinguished strangers. It would not, ho believed, be difficult for tho Council to get a suitable man; and then with regard to the present staff, why the Council could reappoint those of tho officers whom they deemed worthy of such consideration. With regard to tho city surveyor’s department, it was, in his opinion, the only one which had for soma time past been conducted in a satisfactory manner. Tho only change bethought desirable in that direction might bo the abolition of tho assistant officer; at tho same time ho recognised the necessity of having some one regularly in tho office to issue permits and answer necessary inquiries. This, ho thought, might bo provided for, however, in reconstructing tho other departments of tho Council offices. Ho then proceed to say that the offices of town clerk and treasurer, instead of being combined as at present should bo separate. The latter should be an accountant and actuary, competent to keep the books in a way that could be easily understood and readily audited, and to be responsible for tho due performance of the financial part of the Council’s work. The duties of the town clerk, according to his idea, he had already briefly sketched. Or. Hulbert then proceeded to make certain suggestions as to the reorganisation of other departments of the corporation service. In conclusion ho said that he had tried, and he believed suo-

cessfully, to avoid personalities. Ha had not cast blame on any particular offioer. But the Council would understand that he purposelyleft unsaid many things which it were better not to. say. He now left the matter in the hands of the Council, having no fear for the issue so long as the matter. was viewed conscientiously and calmly, and bearing,in mind the-responsibilities of their position nnd the interests of the ratepayers whom they represented. Cr. Eing seconded the resolution, remarking that the mover having exhausted • the subject ho would not trouble the Council with enydengthy remarks of his own, Cr. Thomson was sorry to have to oppose the resolution. He was also sorry that the mover of it had not adduced better reasons why it should bo carried. Ho had made many statements in a vaguo- kind of way; but reateno he gave them none. He had told them,he did not want to threw blame on parties not deserving of it, and had pointed to boots-on the table, which he said could be made to prove a great deal; but ho had failed to ppoduco a single practical piece of evidence whatever. The address of Cr. Hulbcrt was indeed rather a cariosity in its way He bega--., for-example, by saying that he did not desire to .bring any charges against particular officers of the Council, and then brought forward such a sweeping resolution as that before them. He (Cr. Thomson) said it was. incumbent upon any member to bo prapared to fully substantiate any charges such ns were clearly made against a particular officer in this instance. When a charge had to be made, it were well that it should be made distinctly and not covertly. He was one who would state boldly his dissatisfaction whenever he felt dissatisfied. And as to the present case he failed to see tho ground for the sweeping resolution before bham, in speaking to which it was evident the mover referred most particularly to the town clerk. As to that, he might say that he knew it was not possible to get perfection in any walk of life. It was more especially difficult even to please whore there were so many masters to please, es anyone who had served in a public capacity would know. He had a knowledge of such: difficulty from personal experience, which ha sincerely hoped never to repeat. As to (ho proposal that the town clerk should bo a lawyer, speaking as a layman he failed to see what advantage would bo derived. They had during the past been aided by the services of men like Dr. Foster and Mr Garr.ic-k, who were supposed to stand very nearly at the top of their profession, and if those gentlemen could not save them from blunders they could scarcely hope to benefit much by the labors of one of the minor luminaries. But looking outside that, were they likely to get a man of any standing in the legal profession for £7OO a year. Ho thought he was not much of a solicitor who was not worth more than that. But there was yet another consideration. Much as he might respect lawyers, he did not regard them as infallible advisers on all points, and in matters of ordinary business or financial transactions the legal town clerk might not be found a pillar of strength, but something rather the reverse. With regard to certain charges made by Cr. Hulbert in moving his resolution as to the rats collecting, for instance, he admitted that there was much to be regretted and deplored. But in striking the blame they should go to the fountain head, and not at one particular officer who happened to occupy a position of responsibility without being allowed proportionate control and authority. In that matter the Council (who kept an incompetent man, knowing him to be incompetent) should take the Hume on their own shoulders. Another statement of the mover was equally weak, namely, that in which he attempted to show the officers at a disadvantage because they had been known to come under the displeasure of the contractors. To him (Or. Thomson) this was the best evidence that the officers were doing their work ; it showed that the work was being looked after, and that the contractor was being kept up to the work. Another qualification in the town clerk, according to the mover, was that he should be a sort of social companion or wet nurse to the Mayor. No doubt they should get the very best officers in every respect, but who was to be judge. For his part he knew the town clerk to be an energetic officer, though he might have, as who had not, some peculiarities of manner that he might be better without. As to the remarks about the treasurer’s being a separate offiee elsewhere, it was an argument in favor of the town clerk, who combined the two offices for a salary not bo great as was given to that officer in other cities of the same size. As to the city surveyor, he too could speak as to the efficiency of that gentleman's services. The imperfections noticeable in the work of the rate collectors were due to the system, which required improvement, and he might say here that in his opinion Or. Hulbert’a proposals for re organisation in this direction were calculated to make bad worse. Or. Hulbert had remarked in conclusion that he did not wish to throw blame on officers who did not deserve it. But it did not strike him that it would be absolutely wrong to risk blaming any one who was not deserving of it. Unfortunately, Or. Hulbert had framed his resolution in such a way as to prevent his humane intention from bearing fruit should the resolution he carried. Desperate diseases required desperate remedies, but he had not shown that the disease was of that character to call for a remedy so entirely desperate as that which he had proposed to the Council. Ho should have come boldly forward with his ground of complaint, and placed the direct issue before them.

Cr. Vincent agreed with Cr. Thomson. The mover should have brought forward a specific charge. No doubt the Town Clerk was a little brusque In his manner occasionally, but he (Or. Vincent) had generally found him to be a zealous and energetic officer. He should have no hesitation in voting against the resolution.

Or. Cuff also opposed the resolution. The Town Clerk was a good officer, and worked hard to his (Cr. Cuff’s) knowledge. But the fact was that he did not meet with that amount of support and encouragement from the Council to which he was entitled.

The Mayor said he was sorry to see such a sweeping resolution brought forward at such a juncture —the approach of an election. Ho had been in the Council a number of years, had nearly filled the office of Mayor for two terms, and he had always found tho town clerk zealous and obliging. There had been some defects, but those had been greatly amended by the removal of a particular servant of the Council. If one officer had done wrong tho charge should have been made boldly against him, and not in the way it had been done. He disagreed altogether with the mover’s suggestion as to the appointment of a solicitor as town clerk—be did not think it would bo practicable, from tho difficulty of getting a competent men for the money. He might take this opportunity of saying that he had received a letter from Cr. Oherrill expressing similar views to his own. He should strenuously oppose tho motion.

Cr. Taylor could not see that the resolution, if passed, would do any particular officer harm, since those officers who were considered efficient would no doubt bo rein stated. At the same time he should have wished to see tho charge directly made against the person it was aimed at. But as the position was really understood by the Council, he failed to see why the course adopted should not meet the case. Personally, ho had no fault to find with tho town clerk, who had always treated him with tho greatest courtesy. Nevertheless be agreed in the necessity for a reorganisation of the staff, and thought they might got a legal gentleman to fill the position of town clerk with great advantage. Or. Treloaven —Is the object of your motion (o define the dutiis of tho different officers ? Or. Hulbert - Certainly.

Or. Treleaven—l shall support the motion. Or. Lambert agreed in tho necessity of a reconstruction of tho staff of the Council. Tho town olerk.had to perform two offices, and he believed tho work to bo too heavy for him to carry out efficiently. Ho did nob agree with the proposal to fill the town clerk’s position with a lawyer. Tho natter would no doubt bo referred to the departmental committee if the resolution should bo carried, and ha thought a groat deal of good might result from it.

No other Councillor offering to address the Council, Or. Hulbert replied. Ho thought tho task of replying bad been made easy for him during the debate, as councillors who had spoken had in effect agreed with the statements ho had made.

Or. Thomson took exception to this remark as applying to his address on the subject. Or. Hulbert at all events understood the effect cf tho remarks of speakers to bo in that direction. He took exception to a remark by the Mayor that such a resolution should have been brought forward by a retiring councillor. In his (Or. Hulbert’s) opinion that wus the time to bring forward such re-

solution. It would be impertinent of »- new man to do so, and hia object was to clear the way for those who might coma afterwards—the new men. He then replied to other remarks, and- left the matter in the hands of the Council „

The Mayor was about to pat the resolution, when

Or. Thomson would move an amendment. Ho pointed out that four members of the Council were retiring, and two of them would not again sit at that Board—Ors. King and Taylor—and ha thought that the two latter at all events would have acted more courteously had they left it to their successors to decide how the business of the Council should be conducted. Ha would now move an amendment that the matter under consideration be deferred to allow the new Councillor!! to express an opinion on it. Seconded by Or. Vinomfc. A discussion followed, and on the amendment being put a divii-ion was taken with tfce following result r—Ayes—Ors. Thomson, Cuff, Vincent, and the Mayor. Noes —Ors Ayers, King, Taylor, Troloavon, Hulbert, England, and Lambert.

The reroluiicn was then put and carried. After a desultory discussion as to giving notices, &c , the matter of carrying the resolution just passed into effect was left in the hands of the Mayor.