CORRESPONDENCE.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 8 June 1916, Page 2

CORRESPONDENCE.

ABOUT THE SPOIL AND TOWN BOARD MATTERS.

TO THE EDITOR,

SIR, — In further reply to Mr McLeod's letter in your issue of 18th May, I would point out that the letter itself clearly shows that Mr McLeod1 does not stick to the truth. He says in the twentieth line: " Now Mr Field becomes more truthful, and shows that I do hot go in for plunder." ! ! ! Yet in the fourth statement from the end he says : " Next he states (and about the only truth) that I want none of his charity." Really, Mr McLeod should he more caretul if he wants even the imbeciles (if any) among your readers to believe him. In the letter of mine to which my friend first refers, he picks out four statements which he says are falsehoods. My letter extended to nearly a column, and contained many more than four statements, and although Mr McLeod says every one of them is false, except those above mentioned, yet he can only pick out four that even he considers false. If Mr McLeod had that strict regard for the truth that he professes, he would not make such rash statements. If your readers will compare Mr McLeod's letter with that he tries to criticise, they will see that Mr McLeod distorts statement after statement of mine. He quotes me as saying: " The Waitemata County Council were prepared to take spoil from anywhere," and then he says the Council' are not in the habit of plundering any property. Would anyone but an absolute fool imagine I implied they were prepared to plunder. The whole context shows that I meant the Council as a whole (of course excepting Mr MacLeod; who had his own ends to serve) were prepared to arrange with the Town Boar.d to take spoil from any road, and j that Councillor McLeod (Chairman of the Helensville Town Board and head of the Club who had already arranged to purchase the ground in question) persuaded them to take it from private land in which he was interested. A.gain, he quotes me as saying: "Mr McLeod's statement made at the time that spoil from the road was required elsewhere was palpably absurd." He then says this is a falsehood, for " I never made such a statement to Mr Field." Now I never said he made, the statement to me. Why should, he? He made the statement to members of his Board. A man who thus distorts his opponent's statements, and then charges his opponent with falsehood, is really not worth arguing with. In the final paragraph of hjis letter Mr McLeod sums up the charges I have made against him. I dealt with the question of illegal expenditure last week. I affirm, he denies, that he made a mess *of the proceedure in connection with the £3000 loan. Your old files will show that through a mistake his Board was saddled with extra advertising charges. The Town Board Minute Book shows that Mr McLeod himself settled the conditions of the loan, and then had his actions confirmed by the Council; also that the rate of interest to be offered and the currency of the loan were never discussed by.the Council till after the poll. If any ' ratepayer of Helensvi lie doubts whether Mr McLeod or I is telling the truth herein, I will arrange to let him see the Minute Book. Therefore either Mr McLeod is not telling the truth, or the Minute Book which Mr McLeod, as Chairman, signed to be correct, is lying. Is Mr'McLeod telling the truth now, or was he telling. it when he signed the Minute Book? Whatever your decision on this point, your readers cannot acquit Mr McLeod. I am loath to call any man a liar, or even to say he tells, falsehoods. I recognise that a statement untrue in fact may be made because its maker thinks he knows and doesn't, through being blinded by ignorance or prejudice^. I would rather say to man, you are either a fool or a liar, I do not know which. However, thera is a gentleman in Helensville who looks at things in a different way. I understand that that gentleman, who was a member of the Board when Mr McLeod was Chairman, said to the Chairman at a Board meeting : " Jim-McLeod, you have had the reputation for 30 years of being the biggest liar in Helensville, and I can confirm it." Of course it was very wrong of him to say so, but it was not I that said it.^—l am, etc.,

E. Thurlow Field.