CORRESPONDENCE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 551, 19 March 1913, Page 2

CORRESPONDENCE.

The Editor. Sir, —It is now juat on tw9 months since I denounced the County Council through your columns on the method of spending the grant of 1912 on the main road. Ingoing so, I would like it to be clearly* understood that there are men on that council for whom I have the greatest respect, and that any criticism from me applies to the working ability of that body, and not any particular individual. I claim th?s right as a ratepayer, ar.d I can assure you that no man can say with truth that I have been other than fair in this respect. I would also like it to be clearly uridre stood that when I wrote that letter I wrote what I believed to be the truth, aiid what I still believe to be the truth, and further, that I intend to stick to my guns. You will have noticed that the council have never yet replied to or denied any of those accusations. It is true that Cr 0 Dwyer attempted to show a bright side for the council in his letter ot February sth, but as the chairman did not endorse his letter I did not bother read ing it, and have since consigned it to the flames where, from all accounts, it may well have gone before it ever saw print. There is one point, however, I would like to explain, that is with regard to the phrase where I stated that I "understood" certain money was being misappropriated, lo give your readers a clear idea of the position I would like to point out that the road from Te Kuiti to Pio Pio carries the great bulk of traffic. Once arriving at Pio Pio the road branches in four different directions, viz., Mairoa, Mangaotaki, Aria and Paemako, the latter, of course, being the main road to Mokau. You will notice, therefore, in spending money on the main road the greatest good for the greatest number, would be gained by metalling that portion which lies between Te Kuiti and Pio Pio, and while I admit that the settlers right on to Mokau have every right to have the road metalled, the council in metalling this portion near Paemako were robbing that portion between Te Kuiti and Pio Pio. This is born out by the fact that the late engineer, Mr Williams, refused to sanction the expense of doing this work, he being strongly of the opinion that the money should be expended on the road that carried the greatest traffic, and it was not until after the removal of Mr Williams that this work was carried out. In your issue of the sth, I noticed a letter from a ratepayer who calls himself an Englishman, that be has been but a short time in the country, and who also seems to have a considerable deal of faith in Cr O'Dwyer. He needn't have stated that he was only a short time in the country, as this is apparent, but as he appears to be fairly willing I will try to make some use of him. As a p.olonial and a settler, out to get the best return for whatever money there should be available, regardless of individuals, and one who is tired of seeing a good district bled to death through heavy freights, I would like ratepayers to ask Cr O'Dwyer the following question: The chairman of the county council made a boast f.he other evening at the agricultural social, held on Te Kuiti Show night, that the council had metalled seven miles of road before Christmas. Would ratepayer mind aßking Cr O'Dwyer why, holding the authority and the money to bridge over the unmetalled portion Gf the road between Pio and Pio Te Kuiti, abroad admittedly one of the most important roads in the King Country, yet the fact remains that the council neglected to put one stone on this portion of the road. In the same issue of the sth appears another of those childish* trivial letters from Cr O'Dwyer in reply to a challenge issued by me to him. In this letter I would like to know what Cr O'Dwyer is referring to when he speaks of Messrs Livingstone and Co., seeing that there was only my signature to the challenge. I am also at a loss to know what he means when he states that he was almost unanimously elected last election, seeing that no election took place, nor has there ever been a poll taken since he has been councillor. Cr O'Dwyer was first nominated at a bye-election and returned unopposed. At the following election of 1911, owing to a technical mistake, he was again returned unopposed, and it was a fortunate thing for Cr OD'wyer that the candidate he sneers about was not eligible as that particular gentleman had the support of a substantial majority of the ratepayers on the rolk If Cr O'Dwyer does not accept my challenge like a true Britisher, it shows clearly that he wishes to still further shrink from any expression ot the ratepayers' confidence in him. It would- be more sportsmanlike for him to accept and have a straight-out contest than have to be asked to resign by public petition.—l am, etc., R. LIVINGSTON.