Page 3 Advertisements Column 1

Kumara Times, Issue 663, 12 November 1878, Page 3

COUNTY ELECTION. TO the electors of the ARAHURA riding. Prompted partly by the wishes of several of the Electors mid in part by the belief that my knowledge of the wants of this important Riding of Arahura, and my desire to be of service , to the district, would render my candi* | Mature fairly justifiable in your eyes, 1 1 have decided to offer myself as a candidate for a seat in the County Council of ! Westland as one of your representatives; ( I will therefore, gentlemen, slightly touch j on a few of the more important subjects which I conceive must be of interest to I you, and upon which -you will naturally | desire to hear some expression of opinion from those who crave at your, hands the honor of being your representatives. One most unfortumte circumstance for , this district has been the position of' matters for some time past with regard to the. Hoad Board. That body is, as you are aware, practically defunct, although it has toot yet been decently interred, as in my opinion it should have been long ago. Without entering into a consideration of I the causes which have' brought about so j Unfortunate a state of affairs, I will simply Say that, should I be returned to the Council, it will be my earnest endeavor to get the Road Board merged in the Council Without delay. Putting aside the unpleasant fact that the residents in the district might be called upon under certain circumstances to. pay a twofold rate, the anomalous position of the Board tends to act injuriously on the'welfare of the district, more especially in the retardation bf toeoessary public works. In desiring to deal finally with the'Board,' to'bury it out of sight, I believe I am at one, with nearly •every ratepayer in the Hiding] ' l am also strongly of opinion that although this district has received more expenditure by the Council than perhaps any other, yet proportionately it has by too means been,treated liberally. Looking, at the revenues it pays in to the coffers of the County, far more money . ought to have fallen to its -share. In the other ridings the population is scant, and the revenues derived from them, in some instances, infinitesimal Therefore I shall, if returned, urge upon the Council the justice of expending a fairly proportionate share of the County revenues' upon opening up the district to a considerable further extent. There are numerous tracks and roads which require repairing,, and. communication among the mining community is capable of a great deal of improvement. It shall be my aim, gentlemen, to see that in this respect the district is not neglected. .An important question is, Shall the County Council take over the races! I am aware that the existing body once declined to assume the responsibility of so doing, but have since made an offer to the Government.'. I believe that not only will the Council find the races profitable, but the miners will be benefited considerably, inasmuch as the local body will be able to provide for their requirements, far better than the General Government; consequently, I ain desirous that the Council shpuld take over the management of the races, and' I should certainly usq my strongest efforts to bring such; a (consummation about; if I obtain a 'seat as . N your representative; Naturally' I would advocate the supply, of water at as cheap a rate as possible'. With regard to Hospital support, my individual view is that charitable institutions should be supported out of the Consolidated Revenue, when each taxpayer would bear his fair share of those burdens 1 1 which every community has naturally to endure. At preseht each district contributes a proportion tb‘ the expense of the Hokitika Hospital. At.present, however, and pending legislation on the subject, it is not likely that any material alteration on the existing state of affairs will take place. 1 shall endeavor, as far as possible, to see that you do not contribute more than your legitimate proportion, should, the question of charitable aid be again debated in the Council. So far as it will come within the scope of the Council, I shall, if elected, do my utmost to get that body to urge upon the Government the desirability, hay the necessity, of deviating, the line of the Hokitika and Greymouth railway so that it may pierce through Stafford, Goldsborough, and Kumara. Unless this is done the district generally will suffer considerably, and it is certainly of sufficient importance to have its claims for railway communication urged strongly and repeatedly. This is a most important matter, and, believing as 1 do in the future of the Arahura district, T should be neglecting my duty unless I urged upon the Council the necessity of bringing our claims to have the required deviation made laid before the Government without delay. These are the matters of the most vital importance to' us at present, and therefore I have briefly given you' my opinions upon them. Thera are several other matters I should have liked to touch upon, and no doubt 1 shall have an opportunity of doing so at an early date. In conclusion, gentlemen, I may assure you that if you honor me by electing me as one of your representatives, I shall Value your confidence highly, and do my utmost to deserve . it. I have resided amongst you for upwarils of 14 years, and have taken, part in public matters, especially in hospital and education affairs, to the best of my ability. I therefore venture to hope that you will do me the honor to choose me as one of the three successful candidates. I am, Gentlemen, Tour obedient servant, B. LYONS. Stafford, November 5, 1878.