MR JENNINGS' TE KUITI SPEECH.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 414, 15 November 1911, Page 5

MR JENNINGS' TE KUITI SPEECH.

i To the Kd it on. | Sir,-—Willi your permission 1 would | like to draw attention to ,«ii:ne of tho ; statements made Ity M r .1 onn mgs in his To Kuil i pp-eeh, ;»:< v■-;)■)! ied in your issue of "the •); h inst A drs'.:r ihi :)>f the vr.-:|; I > i; i of ii is idee! o rah', and ibe oner.-me,] ■ linimin i of ! wurl; demanded of a conn! r; member, ! Mr Jennings goes on U> say • - Seine ! idea could he obtained of the labour j entailed wlnm it wan remembered j that, ntd. a singio road, not a school, i net a telephone «■ t" any one of the ether mitm-roms puldie requirements throughout tl)e vast electorate wan obtained without effort on the. part of the member." As one who thoroughly understands the methods of ob- ■ taining authorities for roads, bridges, etc, I fee! in duty bound to point out to the electors that Mr Jnninga is talcj ing upon himself the credit due to tie district voad engineers who are (unfortunately under political pull) not; allowed to correct such unwarrantable misrepresentations. I, however, object to being used aa a "black board - ' under political control, as "unfortunately are the greater number of engineers," to allow Mr Jennings to white-wash me over, and thereon post up to his own credit that which justly belongs to myself while district road engineer ol' To Kuiti South district. For the infer- ! illation of my back: block friends, i j may say that if is the duty of every I district road engineer to forward to '■ Wellington once *'n every year, a j complete list of the requirements for ; his particular district. To support j these estimates the em: inei ris :n;-t n:e- j ted to proceed to Wellington, where, j with his chief, he goes carefully over I each item, some of which may be I struck out: altogether, some may be j reduced, while others ar< marked in j red ink, " urgon j" and so on, 1 am ! pleased to inform all parties that, i j had more, items marked "urgent." on j my estimates than any other engineer j in the Dominion, while 1 can eonseien- j tiously pay that Mr Jennings never I mentioned any authority to me. nor j did lie at any i ime heist, or ofiVr to I help, me (o old ain grant : !.'r | or bridges. I iberefo: e weui.i like j to know why r Jennings has so I dismally failed in obtaining ;;rannfor the back block reads during the ' last two y-ars. Answer: "lie has J lost his prop." (hi many occasions ! j have infornied Mr Jennings of the fact of having obtained! authorities for the different works, and what was most amusing to me I almost, invariably received a few days later a communication from the individual mostly concerned informing mo that Mr Jennings had notified him of having succeeded in obtaining a further grant for his ro:ri, etc., arid applying to me to have the work put in hand at once, i heel no objection lo this practice whilst in the Civil Service, as possibly if strengthened the minds of the settlers in favom of the member, and at tho same time it. did me

no harm. As the panic tacd'es are now being lu-i'd for vote catching purposes I must ask tilt' member fi» "taihoa", si ii'k (a (lie truili, ami as I have previously said " give o! hers a little credit; for services rendered": oiherwisala.ru afraid thru, the sorvices of engineers will no longer he required. In conclusion I may say thai so long as Mr .1 railings or .■•rivone else to (lie (rath by lighting out bis campaign under irulbful conditions, "well ami good." Then lot the oleciors decide for thornsalvos, tin- choice of their rep-esentn-tive on his merits, jm! when : nrh tactics as above men I mucd are pi: I into practice, then "in niy opinion the above explanation is p.ei out of place. I ain. etc., ALL. ,'ui.IAN. (La-LA District, Load Engineer. To Kuiti, Noveiiihor 1 Ith.