GREY COUNTY COUNCIL ELECTION.

Kumara Times, Issue 2558, 15 November 1884, Page 2

GREY COUNTY COUNCIL ELECTION.

—. +. . Mr James Nicholas, one of the two candidates (Mr P. Foley the former member, being the other) for the representation of the Hohonu (Greenstone) district in the County Council of Grey, addressed the electors at Foley's Hotel, Westbrook, last evening. There were about 20 persons present. Mr P. Tansey was voted to the chair, who, thanking those present for the honour thus conferred on him, stated that uot being an elector in the riding, he might be regarded as an impartial chairman. The meeting was called to hear Mr Nicholas, a new candidate for public honors, expound his views on County Council matters, and he would now call upon him to address them. Mr Nicholas said : His reasons for asking the support of the electors next Wednesday would be brief. Bein» his first meeting, he might ask their indulgence. In anything he might say he did not intend to be personal in reference to the acts of previous councillors, but of the Council as a body. Some had objected to his candidature because he was a settler and not a miner ; but as his sole customers .were digger. o , and he was dependent upon them, it must be manifest that his interests

were well bound up with theirs, and he would be a proper person to represent the district iu the Council. If the diggers moved, he would have to mov. There was, he considered, a far greater objection to a storekeeper i-Hpiesenting them. A grievous injustice had been done in the Council in the matter of road and maintenance contracts, in that progress payments for work done were not made. He believed the Grey County Council was ihe only public body in New Zealand, or eveu the world, where the system of progress payments were not made. The result was that before a contract was completed, contractors and men had to come upon the stoiekeeper for advances, and the storekeeper was in duty bound to his own interests to charge those men more than he otherwise would for pro&c, than if they were paid cash. Then the storekeepers would go down, aud, using their influence, get advances, charging in the aggregate as much hs 20 per cent. This was a 1 system he strongly objected to.—[Api plause ] Every councillor was responsible for this state of things—for the system of necessitating advances of money by private individuals on Council contracts. The indebtedness of the county was an old standing grievance of the people. The revenue for the last six years was ample to meet their requirements, if only judicously expended or arranged for, and the Council might have been out of debt by this time. It was not to the interest of the county to have storekeepers in the Council; they wont try to get the couuty out of debt. A cry had also been raised that by his corning forward he wanted to get a road made to the new settlement. That was quite true; and he had every right to demand the road. But now, he was glad to say, owing to a petitiou which had been sent up to Parliament through the member for the district (Mr Guinness), he had it on good authority the road would now be made by the Government. Something like £4OO had been paid into the County funds from this Teremakau Flat, and it was quite time there was a dray road right through, where at present there is only a track three parts of the way. With these few remarks he would ask the electors to return him as their representative to the Council.—[Applause.] In reply to Mr Foley as to the name of any councillor who received 20 per. cent., Mr Nicholas said he did not wish to single out any Councillor; but it was well known such was the case ; he did not mean Mr Foley ; he accused the Council as a whole. Mr H. Hope proposed Mr James Nicholas as a fit aud proper person to represent the rJohonu Riding in the County Council tf Grey. The motion was seconded by Mr Henry Murphy, aud declared to be carried unauimously, no hands being held np against it. xA vote of thanks to the chairman concluded the meeting. Mr Nicholas addresses the electors at Greeustone this evening.