CORRESPONDENCE

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 24 April 1912, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE

THE SWING BRIDGE

TO THE EDITOR,

Sir, —As Mr J. McLeod is evidently not intending to write any further on Bridges and kindred subjects, and it does not look well for any man to be talking to himself, I must endeavour to bring my remarks and arguments in connection with the subject matter to a close. Before proceeding, how^ ever, I must express my regret that Mr McLeod did not see his way clear to accept my challenge. It is/ of course, perfectly true that there will be another election in September, but it would bo impossible to get, at the election of five members, the straightout i?sue and results that could have been got now between Mr McLeod and myself, as the exponents of two sets of ideas in reference to bridges and some other things. I pass over all: Mr MuLeod's remai'ks as to the people 1 would have had behind me in the contest, because,it is evidently impossible for him to believe otheiwise than that I must be battling' to some~ body's order and am unable to have the courage of ray own convictions for myself. In other words, or rather, in Mr McLeod's own words, '' I must have an axe to grind." And this brings me back to the formation of the Katepayers' Association four years ago. I append herewith the remarks made at that meeting by Mr J. McLeod, which I think will bhowthat while it is quite true that I had a grievance against the Board for refusing to put me on the Ratepayers "Roll, it is also true that Mr McLeod had what he codsidered grievance as to various actions of the' same Board. And .the peculiar point is that at that time he was raising objections to monies being spent without expert advice, yet latterly, his objections take exactly the opposite course, and he now finds fault with the other members of the present Board for wasting money in getting expert advice and reports.

'~ The report of that Ratepayers' meeting, lune 1908, as published in the Kaipauv Advertiser, as you will no < ~tice., Mr Editor, occupies a column and ■^/harf, and looked at after four years, Iher^are quite a lot of striking things in it, but I think there is nothing more striking than Mr McLeod charge of idea as quoted:—

"Mr McLeod said the disgraceful way the Board were conducting the business of the Town Board should not be tolerated, and this back-doov-meeting methods was particularly true of evwything .they touched. Their incompetency was especially marked in conneection with Domain Board affairs. A £750 grant had been obtained from the Government to develop the Hot (Springs. AH had worked hard to obtain it. Outside influence from various representative bodies irr Auckland, Wairoa and elsewhere, to: obtain this money for \\\e Board, and now we find: the money being absolutely thrown away, squandered, by people who do not know what they are doing. The work being done was worse than useless anl is bound to have a serious effect on future grants. This work should be stopped at once, and ihe Government be asked to send an expert to report upon it. He quite agreed that the ratepayers should tako matters in their own hands and do something to prevent these things from going on." /

As a proof of my bonefides in what I, in my first letter claimed as to ideas necessary for the progress of the town, I have- also enclosed a copy of a letter of mino published in the. Kaipuka Advertiser of March 1908. I give you the copy of the paper with this, and ii' you have space, I would be glad if you would publish it.

Having, by means of these two papers, substituted my claims of having for the past four years at nil events, taken an active, intelligent, and consistent interest in Heloiisville as a Town, I must now close.

Yours faithfully, Jok Rea ''without an axe). Following is the letter referred to :— To the Editor,

Sir, —I read your article on a" ' Proposed Water Supply for Helensuille ' in last week's Advertiser with much interest, and after weighing, as far as conimousense enabled me to do, the pros and cons of the matter as put forward by you, I am still endeavouring to keep an open mind unti[ such times as the Town Board shall have a definite scheme and data, etc, to lay before us. Not being an engineer myself, I should certainly like to see a detailed report on the whole business by a practical man before forming any judgment, as to the possibility or otherwise of Helensville getting a water supply. Thereis, however, one item upon which you> touch in the latter part of your article about which I have very decieed viewe, and that is the question of rates. I am quite sure that the time has arrived for Helensville to adopt the principle.of rating' on unimproved values. Under the present system it simply means that the people, who by reason of their improvements, etc., are helping to push the place ahead, are the people who have to pay the bulk of the rates, while on the other hand, the people who, while holding unoccupied areas of good building sites are doing nothing but sitting tight for increased values are paying in rates a mere bagatelle, position which as time goes on will become more intensified. More particularly should Helensville adopt such tilings as Water and Drainage Schemes. Time was when to talk about rating on unimproved values, was to be charged with being an expone.it of single tax and Land Nationalisation, etc., and a certain section of landholders have invariably endeavoured to do their best to convey the idea that rating on unimproved .values is the Gospel according to Henry George, and he has prophesied all sorts of disasters to follows its adoption. To any persons who may have been misled by such mis-state-ments and,untruths, one can point with satisfaction to the history of the system and the gratifying results that have followed in the numerous places it has been adopted in the Domion during the last few years. In closing, I would be glad, if in your next issue, you would kindly state what the requirements of a district are to be legally qualified to forming into a Borough—Joe Rea."