OFFICIAL MISMANAGEMENT.

Grey River Argus, Volume VII, Issue 489, 4 March 1869, Page 2

OFFICIAL MISMANAGEMENT.

/To the Editor of the Grey. River Argus.) Sir, — As a resident and miner in the Grey district for the last three years^' I have watched with great interest thft method adopted by the Nelson Govern-^ ment for the execution of their dutieß • more especially has my attention been^ directed to the unfair play awarded to this district during the past twelve months.' The Government, other than in collecting business licenses, miners' rights, and the! revenue generally, totally ignore the! interests of this their niosj; important district, preferring to squander inon^ys raised on the Grey in more favored and less important places — such as Westport, Charleston, &c. When application is[ made to the Government's representative, for an improvement in addition to, or. assistance in, any works of a public nature, their reply is at once-rr"We have no, money to spare." Now, I should -much, like to learn where and how the revenue^ raised in the Grey district has been expended — certainly not where it should have been, in the localities whence derived, as in the whole of the Grey district the' Government has never formed five con-^ secutive miles of even a passable track.* They may plead as an item that must be supported the heavy list of officials, consisting of one Warden and R.M. , his clerk, an inspector (in name only) of public works, and six policemen, more correctly speaking, inland revenue officers, for on no occasion can a blue jacket be seen, unless some unfortunate storekeeper's or. publican's license has expired, and require^ renewal. I may state that on several occasions money has been spent in the! construction of tracks, apparently never intended for any other purpose than to be destroyed again with the next fresh in. the river. It seems a hard case that the.' pop\ilation of this district should be compelled to suffer from the stupidity of a^ paid official ; and suffer we must, unless, practical, common-sense-men be appoiuted in room of some who now reign supreme, by virtue of their having once belonged to. Nelson. Not only have we to complain of the want of public works, but the man-, ncr of executing said works is productive of much bad feeling. It is a common occurrence for tenders to be called for. public works one day, and let by private, contract the following ; such, I imagine,' is not the course usually adopted in^ Government offices. Besides, Ido not think a Government officer should be ia any way connected with commercial opera-, tions, more especially when such operations, come within the range of his powers and duties. I am sorry to learn that the Resident^ Magistrate and Warden has sent in his, resignation, for 1 fear the district will sustain a heavy loss in the absence of Mr. Dutton in that position. A better or more able gentleman could not be found to perform the difficult duties of R.M. andWarden ; but whether the outlay of pub.r He money for the Grey is ruled by him, % cannot s.ay ; but should it be so, I think that since his appointment he has been extremely careful not to expend much, money in public works, for everything" that ought to have been improved is in aa bad a condition as when he came in our midst. It appears to me that the Government look upon the digging community as mere, laborers for its (the Government's) benefit, apparently forgetting that were it not foj the miners' enterprise and energy — energy that has made them face want, misery, and hardships in every shape — the Wes^ Coast would at this time be but a, sequestred resort for the indiginoust animals and feathered tribe, needing no other Government than that of nature's. gift. Hence, I conclude, if it be as I say A that we are not only the pioneers but the producers of all wealth— the only busy bees in the hive — it is nothing but fair or even business like that our interest should be well watched, and every assistance rendered that would tend to develop the. real wealth of the country. But have they helped us ? The want of tracks will in itself afford the negative ; but not only, have they (dog-in-the-manger-like) refused to form roads at their own cost, but every obstacle has been thrown in the way of* private enterprise. Their regulations say, we allow yew. to cut a track and charge, toll, but should any such speculation, prove a remunerative one, you must allow us to take the protection from you at the expiration of three months, and should' any party or parties wish to reap the. .advantage of your speculation they must be allowed to have equal interest with yourself, at a fair share of the original cost ; but should you, by bad judgment, invest in an unprofitable enterprise, we, will allow you to keep the track and put up with all losses. Ido not think such treatment is either fair or reasonable. No. man of sense will spend money on a venture if he be bound, should it prove a snecess, to admit all the world as par^ ticipators in the gains without they stand to win or lose like himself. The protection of tracks, as at present, given by, the Nelson Government, acts not as an inducement, but decidedly opposite, to the formation of good i racks, and th§

result is all the storekeepers cut almost impassable tracks for themselves, dangerous both for man and beast, as the dead carcases testify, thereby causing a large increase on the price of provisions, <fee. , as profits must be large to cover the risks ran in bringing the goods to the diggings. I may cite, as an instance to bear out my complaints, the district of Orwell Creek, discovered by M'Donald and party, who cut a track to the diggings '— not equalled on the coast — at a great expense, and as a road it should be taken by the Government for its model in future operations. I hear that M'Donald and party have offered to continue their track to the new rush at Napoleon's and Noble's, shorter than the present road by six miles ; but as the Government refuse to alter the ridiculous clauses in their protecr ition, M'Donald and party declined to invest any more money ; and very sensible they were in doing so, for I really think that after having expended a sum of £200 they ought to have met with more consideration. The consequence is, other parties are applying for protection to extend M'Dpnald's track, and instead of only having one toll of 2s Gd we may expect to pay something like 5s for every horse that ever goes to Napoleon's, whereas had they met M'Donald and party's liberal offer the toll would, in all probability, be but little increased, and a good road formed into the heart of a, new and large district. Apologising for having trespassed upon your valuable columns, but trusting that the foregoing few disconnected remarks may cause ventilation on the subject of roads and our many wants from an abler pen than one more accustomed to the pick and shovel than the quill, — I am, &c, A Mixer.