CORRESPONDENCE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 539, 5 February 1913, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

Letters for publication, and articles for insertion, must be accompanied (not necessarily for publication), by the name of the writer, and, provided they are not offensive in any way, will be published as space permits. The Editor does lot identify himself with the opinions expressed iy correspondents, and accepts no responsibility or them.] MANGAKAKOPU ROAD. , To the Editor, Sir, —Your valuable columns have in the past given settlers in this district every assistance' infringing before the pcb'lie the scandalous way in which Moeatoa and Kiritehere settlers sre treated as regards the above road. It is almost .-ten-years since we settlers first came into the district and despite Ell oat* agitation this, road yet remains a bridle track and in the winter time in places is almost impassable. This, sir, is a portion of the road over which the mails are carried weekly, and for that reason 1 think it Ehould receive so,me consideration. Our "interests are in the direction of, Te Kuiti, but this piece of road has been our stumbling block from the beginning, and from all appearances is iikely to continue so. It is positively disgraceful, as well as very disheartening, to see season by season slipping by and nothing further done. We want to get to the railway, and it would only ba fair of the Government ;.o complete this short piece of road to give-us the access we require after almost a decade of settlemeut in the improvement of wild and desolate country. —I am, etc., SETTLER.

TE KUITI AWAKINO ROAD The Editor. Sir,—ln dealing with public ques feioos there are two classes of people that it is very difficult to know how to treat, viz.: the ignorant ignorantly r and the ignorant wilfully. At the. risk of repeating what I stated before I must reiterate that Mr Livingston's statements and accusations re the County. Council are wild, incorrect and altogether unjustifiable. In order to enable your readsrs, and especially the ratepayers, to judge for themselves how much credence can be given this wild rodomontade of his 1 will now, sir, through the medium of you? valuable paper, give the official figures and facts aa between the Government and County Council concerning the grant for the Te KuitiAwakino road. The first information the county received concerning the Te Kuiti-Awakino road grant was on October 20th, 1911, when the county chairman was in Wellington. The Under-Secretary asked him if the council would undertake to expend the grants. Mr Scholes said he thought they would. The Under-Secretary asked him to get his council to put the Gffer in writing and forward it to him, and he would place the matter before the Minister. On the chairman's return a special meeting of the council was held, on October 31st, 1911, to consider the question, and the next day, November Ist, 1911, a letter was forwarded to the UnderSecretary, saying the council had agreed to spend the Te Kuiti-Awakinu grant. It was not until December 21st, 1911, that the council received word from the Under-Secretary that the Minister bad approved of the council spending the grant, viz : £2832.

The council's engineer immediately set to work to lay off the work, and prepare plana and specifications, nlth'ough the Christmas holidays intervened the plans were submitted to the Public Works Department for approval on January 9th, 1912. On February 2nd, 1912, the plans were returned approved, accompanied by an authority to spend £2245 10s 6d, the total of the engineer's estimate in connection with plans submitted. On January 30th, 1912, the council's grader and teams commenced to grade and re-form the road ready to receive the metal, for which the Government had already let a contract to crush 3000 yards. At a meeting of they council held on February 19th, 1912. tenders were accepted from Messrs Corlett and Irwin, of MorrinsvilJe, for carting amounting to £1055 10s, and for crushing 1500 yards to H. Rothery at £342. This latter tender was subsequently transferred to Mr Fouby, making a total of £1427 10s. On Marah 15th, 1912, a further contract was let to Mr McColl for metalling near Pio Pio amounting to £3lO. During April, 1912, further plans and specifications were submitted for metalling between the seventeen and eighteen mile pegs, amounting to £2451 2s 6d. Thes9 make a grand total of £l9B 2s 6d, leaving a balance from the authorities issued, viz.: £2491 3s 9d, of £4OB 0s 6d to pay for grading, re-forming, culverting and spreading of the metal. Now, sir, I leave your readers to consider how much reliance can be • placed on Mr Livingston's statement with regard to tne council tying up the grant for the main road. It is a miracle he did not blame them for the contractors not being able to carry out their contracts on account of the shocking state of the weather. But, sir, to enable your readers to judge of the kind of criticism indulged in by Mr Livingston and one or two others, I might mention that the meeting of settlers held at Pio Pio on the first week in January, 1912, that he, and one or two others, condemned . the County Council for not letting contracts for the metalling, that the council only received the authority for in the first week of February 1912. I venture to say that nine out of ten school boys in the thi~d standard would have more sense, and by far more logic, than to even suggest such a thing. Sir, had your correspondent the slightest knowledge of county affairs he would have known that . it is an impossibility to misappropriate even a sixpence voted by the Government for certain works to any other purpose or any other road only the one the money was voted for. In the event o" perhaps a. few of the ratepayers having little more knowledge than your correspondent about

■th.use matters, but unlike him are inclined tc ba . raasonable, I might explain that tna council have in the first place to* submit plans and specifications to ! the Government's engineer stating where this money is to be expended,, the exact mileage, the quan tity and quality of the metal, and several other details of how the work is to be carried out for his approval. This metal that has been laid down between the 83?anie-io and eighteen -mils pes;3-r .wak'h. if your correspondsntMa to be balu;vsd, was executed by means' of a inisaparopciated grant, has-been dealt with by two county and three Government eogiiussrs; also by the past and present Governments. Evidently, in this foolish young gentleman's opinon, they have all been guilty of an illegal act. Now, sir, f want to deal with this sidetracking letter of hi 3 of January 18th, in which he makes an attempt to blow hot and blow cold with the same breath. Evidently he is anxious to apportion all blame, but not praise. Wnen I asked a straight question through the columns of your paper, he had not principle enough to say "yes" or "no" to it. Of course, he was only referring to the Paemako riding, and in referring to it nobody was further from his thoughts than the councillor'for that riding Anyhow, ha did not think I had influence enough to misappropriate this money. What a logical young man your correspondent .h! Influence, by the way, to do an- illegal act. I wonder have any of your readers heard «uch doctrine aa that before. Well, sir, I mig'Utsil your correspondent that I anT the parson responsible for the metalling between 'the seventeen and eighteen rails pegs; Also I am the same individual that is responsible for the metalling at Piu Pio, with the exception of a few chains opposite the saleyards thai was put down by the Government six or seven years ago, before. I believe, your correspondent came to the district. Were it not for my efforts there would probably not be a shovelful in either place to day, and had I been as selfish as your correspondent appears to be, I could have had the most of it spent on the main ruad opposite my own gate. Sir, as you are aware every councillor nf the Waitomo County Council has the privilege of spending £5 without consulting the County Council where, in his opinion, it is urgently required. I have availed myself prstty often of that privilege in order to repair the worst places on the different roads in my riding. I have on mora than one occasion spent soma of these fivers on that road leading past your correspondent's homestead, but not a sixpence have I spent yet in the -locality in which I myself reside. Your correspondent says he criticised the balance-sheet last year, and will probably do so again this year No doubt he will; his ability is well known where finance is concerned, but he might find, like the last time he sallied forth on that quixotic expedition, that it will be too much for his brain force, and that he will again have to execute that strategic movement of hia to the rear, and charge gallantly once again on the dogs and their collars. I notice, by the way, that he had another grievance against the council because he neglected reading the Chronicle, and -therefore could not see the advertisement re the dog tax, and in his rage at some of his neighbours getting off free of this tax he issues a challenge to the councillor for the riding. Well, sir, what is the good of me having a quarter of a century's experience more than -:his young man if I am to be caught napping in that fashion, because I strongly suspect him to be making this spirting offer on a dead certa'nty. I would remind him that it woud be by far a nobler action on his part to give his fiver to the hospital, for the benefit that it will bring to the people of this district, than to be giving it for the purpose of trying to draw, the attention of the powers that be to those of his neighbours who chanced to get off without paying this dog tax. It is futile for this gentleman to be drawing my attention to this, because, after all, your correspondent ought to know that it is not the councillor's place to meddle in those affairs. Although I am the councillor for the Paemako riding, and have taken my part in levying this tax, still I am no collector, neither will I be a spy on my neighbour were thecouncil never to get a shilling of this dog tax. I notice, sir, that your correspondent says those remarks of his are final so Jar as I am concerned, and that if he has to fight it will be with the Waitomo Council. Perhaps it is just as well for him, but I am greatly afraid that he will have to put that sword of his back in its scabbard again, because, after all, the chairman of the county holds a responsible ,and dignified position, and he could scarcely be expected to indulge every assuming snd illogical young man who likes to see his name in print. —I am, etc., P O'DWYER. Paemako, January 28th, 1913.