THE METAL QUARRY.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 16 March 1916, Page 2

THE METAL QUARRY.

TWO COUNCILLORS AT

LOGGERHEADS

TO THE EDITOR

Sir, —Will you please allow me space to reply to Mr Dye once more, although he has in no way answered any questions I put to him about his twisting statements? The best he can find is that 1 stated in a previous letter that the giiany was a new discovery. I explained all that in my last, and if Mr Dye has not the common intelligence to understand, I cannot find brains for him. He is still playing the scoria tune, and if he could only set it to '■ What's the matter with Father ?" he would be all right. I would point out that all the engineers I know condemn scoria as a road metal, and it is well-known to all who pass through Kaukapakapa Riding that the ratepayers' money is being wasted on scoria, although Mr Dye boasts of the cheap rates he gets it at. Three years ago when metal could not be procured, some Ridings were compelled to use scoria—Mr Dye included. The different questions which I put' to Mr Dye in my last were to try and draw facts from him ; he evades by saying they are absolutely too absurd to reply to, and that my ignorance is most deplorable. Then he tries to excuse his visit to Waitakere as Chairman's duty. Mr Dye introduces Brown's Bay, which has nothing to do with Waitakere quarry but that is Mr Dye's happy knack of dodging when he is getting cornered. But now, as he has introduced Brown's Bay, I may tell him that that is one of the matters which I fought against : the passing of by-laws which we since had to rescind in justice to the 8 rown's Bay syndicate.

Mr Dye states that Mr Jackson and myself knew Mr Dye was opposed. Mr Jackson was the first to tell me that Mr Dye had changed his mind and had turned against the quarry. Mr Dye states that he mentioned in my presence at last Council meeting that he was opposed from the first. I knew his dodge—that he was paving the way for his letter in reply to mine ; and ,further, I am sick of having to get on my feet to correct misleading statements, and if I contradicted them all we would be there, in Council meeting assembled, all night. Mr Dye started with the Press ; let him finish with the Press, and not bring up matters which have nothing to do with the business before the

meeting.

Mr Dye's memory again fails him when he refers to Mr Oliphant's motion for a sub-committee consisting of Messrs. Lang, Bethel, Cochrane and . the mover. I was included in the proposal, but I refused to act because I was too far away, while all those on the committee were close together, and I was quite prepared to trust to their judgment Mr Dye then follows with more palaver about his innocence, and he thought he was dodging it because he was not elected.

Mr Dye again refers to my little error of £9,000. I did not apply to the Editor of the ECHO to correct the mistake, as to any man of ordinary intelligence it was clear a mistake had been made, because I had mentioned the cost of purchase at £1,100 showing that I did mean £1,000 as the total.

[The little error and drop of £9,000 in Mr McLeod's letter was a simple compositorial miss of dropping an ought (0) thus making the mistake of turning £10,000 into £1000.—ED.] I have already asked Mr Dye why he did not correct the first error which appeared in print that £25 per acre was being paid, instead of £5. Mr Dye says : " MrMcLeod continues to prate about the Council's Standing Orders, which evidently he does not understand, though signed by him as Chairman." For Mr Dye's benefit I will tell him that the Council never had any Standing Orders until I drafted and introduced the present ones, and Mr Dye in his lettsr of January 30 th. is quite in favour of them, because he thinks they suited his purpose on that occasion. Re Mr Dye's bluff re my untruthful statement about blue metal. If he would tell the whole truth he would state that he was compelled to use scoria and anything he could get, because he could not get Morningside metal, as the Council was practically shut out. Mr Dye next tries to bring me into conflict with the present Chairman, by say that I, in my last, referred to the present Chairman. More quibbling on Mr Dye's part. I asked him a question which he cannot answer, and that is—"lf it was good for Mr Dye while Chairman to take the business without notice of motion* why did he advise the present Chairman that he could not take it ? , But like other questions I have put it does not suit his purpose to answer. There is an old saying—When beaten abuse the other fellow.

Mr Dye winds up—" Can it be that all tnis bitterness is because WE, in conjunction with others, did not choose to give our support to Mr McLeod' for the chair ?" Who wA is I do not know, unless he means the Council staff, who, with his knowledge,' were grafting for the present Chairman. The fact of the position is this: The affairs of the Council had got into such a tangle that the late Mr John O'Neill asked me if I would stand again for the Chairmanship, which after some consideration I consented to do. In the meantime two of my supporters passed" away, and I did not stand. I did not ask Mr Dye nor his we to support me. In my previous term as chairman there was no mention

in the Press of Oliver Twist Council - or of me going on my knees begging to Ministers to relieve my own blunders or the blunders of a previous Chairman • ' nor had I to ask the Council to stop all expenditure because we were at the full limit of our Bank overdraft. When I was in the chair, I brought forward a borrowing scheme, and put it before the ratepayers, and they decided to borrow £60,000. }/Lt Dye was afraid to submit the scheme to the ratepayers for fear they would adopt it, and refused to allow the right to vote on. the matter. In the last four years close on the £60,000 borrowed has been spent besides the rates collected, and yet Mr Dye, as Chairman, had to ask .the Council to stop expenditure to allow the funds to recoup, and one Riding has overspent £1,500 while Mr Dye slumberred. Yesterday we had another meeting of the Oliver Twist Council (as tM^Btar" appropriately named us), and I hmna^ed to get one kick out of Mr Dy4fc last twist. In his last letter of March 2nd, referring to broken metal, he states: " The last contract of 280 yds was 5/6 per yards for quarry, carting, spreading, and boxing," and continues —" Compare this with cost of getting stone . from Waitakere hills." I asked him yesterday if that included the cost of breaking and to my surprise Mr Dye said, " No. it did not include cost of breaking." If we add the average cost of breaking, say 4/6 per yard, I find that Mr Dye is not such a miracle-worker after all, '.v when we get the whole truth from him, IL' which is like drawing bis eye-teeth, and by his innocent statements one would think he had not yet cut them. Another little query I put to him was' —" Is it , > not a fact that you are paying 8s per yard for gravel from the creek for carting and spreading ?" And he actually admitted the fact. ' > I have here shown the ratepayers two little facts, one which Mr Dye has quoted at about h&lf-price, and the other he carefully kept to himself, because he did not want it to appear that he was paying 8s per yard for gravel from the creek, while broken metal could be supplied at about 7s per yard on the trucks at the station, and one yard would be worth two of the gravel as a road metal. If I were to 'dig down further perhaps I could show that a few more of his miracles in the way of cost of material have a bit of the bogey about them. Mr Dye accuses me of making gross misleading statements, but he fails to show.where they are, and I think I have shown up one or two of his.' Mr Editor, for Mr Dye's satisfaction, will you please admit your error of a figure in one of my previous letters, as that was the only thread he could hang to ? Thanking you in anticipation.— I am, etc., James McLeod. March 11th., 1916. [Our correspondent, or " any other man," will in future '■ cut down " their. ' sayings to half a column, or into the W.P.B. they go. Our space is limited ■ and the "war is still raging," but we do think this correspondence should be allowed to drop.—Ed.]