Provincial Council.

Lyttelton Times, Volume X, Issue 630, 20 November 1858, Page 3

Provincial Council.

Tuesday, Nov. 16. The Council met at 5 p.m. Present: the Speaker, Messrs. Ollivier Cass Dobbs, White, Fooks, Rhodes, Higgins, Potts', Ward, Ilarman, Hall, Blakiston, Studholme, Iliorn3un, Packer, Miln, and Duncan. After prayers, the minutes of the preceding meeriiig having been read, Mr. Blakiston, on behalf of Mr. "White, who was not yet present, asked whether the surveyors on the staff had the privilege of taking pupils :^ and, if so, whether such pupils receive from Government pay at a rate equal to sutvev labourers.

Mr. Cass replied that the surveyors on the staff were allowed to take pupils; and, of course if they did the work of survey labourers they received pay accordingly. He was glad the question was asked, as it enabled him to put the position of the surveyors and their pupil* fully before the public. When he was first called upon to fill up the appointments under the land regulations, it was found-that those gentiemen whom he had recommended to the Superintendent were unwilling to accept the appointment, and that there was a difficulty in filling up the places at all, even after obtaining surveyors from Melbourne. His Honor then suggested" the plan of the surveyors taking pupils, so that there might be no difficulty in future in finding competent persons. The objection which he (Mr. Cass) offered to thi3 was that he knew from experience that supernumeraries were always in the way in field operations; the objection was however overcome by getting these pupils to serve as chainmen, in which capacity they had turned out most useful, usually effecting a saving of expenditure to Government, because while they received not above the ordinary wages of laborers throughout the province they were always to be depended upon, always at their post, and not liable to disappear after pay day as most ordinary laborers did. As to the premium received he did not make it his business to enquireinto this point; but itwas not likely that surveyors imparted the secrets of their business for nothing; it was not the custom of the profession to do so, and in the present case it was not to be expected, any more than in any other. The idea of eking out a scarcity of surveyors by pupils was not original here; it had been in use under the New Zealand Company, in whose service several gentlemen now in the profession in this province had acquired their education after paying a premium to the Company, and receiving, while pupils, or cadets as they were called, the pay of survey laborers. It had worked well hitherto in this province in many instances which he could name, one of which was that of Mr. Boys, who had employed his own brother on his staff for some time* and in that way made him fit now to take surveying contracts under the public works department. It was not necessary for him to say anything more to show that "the system worked well; if the Council objected to its continuance he would see that it was put a stop to; but if in after time the surveys were less efficiently carried on for want of surveyors, he should have to remind them that they had put a stop to the plan by which an available staff was • being created.

Mr. Olliyier then moved the 2nd reading of the Cathedral Square Bill, explaining its provisions, as previously stated on the Ist reading. Bill read a second time.

Mr, Blakjston asked a question of the Provincial Secretary with reference to- the state of the ferry over the Waimakariri.. Mr. Ollivier read a report of the Provincial Engineer on the subject which had that day been sent in, recommending.a. plan for providing an efficient service oil tbatriver, at an expense 'which it seemed unlikely that a private person could afford without help'from the Government. It would be perhaps necessary to ask for a vote of £600 for the purpose, and he could say that if the plan were carried out, a person would be found to pay £200 a year as rent for it. This report had to be further considered by the Executive Council before action could be taken upon it.

COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY. The Council then resolved itself into committee to consider the estimates. . ■ : . The first vote taken was Inspectors of Sheep £600 Occasional inspections. ...."........" 25 Mr. Hall asked whether the regulations for the office of inspector were yet prepared; also whether: some change might not be introduced in the practice of occasional inspections. Mr. Ollivier said the regulations would be submitted to the Council. As to the occasional inspections, it was true that they were now required only for small numbers of sheep at a time imported by sea, such as choice lots of rams, &c, and therefore the sum of £5 whicii it had been the practice to allow for each inspection when-the numbers were large," might now conveniently be reduced. The gentleman who had beeen used to serve as, inspector had now left Lyttelton, and therefore it would be necessary to appoint some one else'resideiit in that town for the purpose. S'tefp's 'for' these purposes would be taken without delay. Waste Lands Department, £939 ,10s. In this department the only alteration"made was the increase of. the messenger's pay from ss. to 6s. per day. . Survey department £6,600. ..In this department the sum of £50 for forage allowance for the Chief Surveyor was sulded.^ : Harbour department £455 17s. 6d. On this item Mr. Olliyier explained that ; during the past year the fees received had been in excess of, the amount payable'to the Pilot. It would be found convenient perhaps by and by to -fix that officer's salary at a permanent sura,'and carry the fees received to account of revenue. Charitable Aid £756. Mr. Hall, on this vote being put, asked if some steps were not about to be taken to form an hospital at Christchurch. There \vei%e many cases which required hosipital care, but in which it was impossible to move the patient into Lyttelton. It had been i proposed to sell the lunatic asylum reserve, iand appropriate the proceeds to the establishment of fin hospital ; but it had been left undone to await the -report of Dr. Prendergast on the

subject of an asylum site. Perhaps it would he best after all to place the hospital in Ihigley Park. ■ ~■: ■ ■ ■- •■•'- - : -•

Mr. Ollivier. said lie was in a" position to state that the reserve in question was not found adapted fora lunatic asylum. They therefore proposed to bring in a bill lo dispose of it in the manner referred to, as the site was too far removed from town to be available for an hospital. He should give notice of the bill for the next sitting day.

Akaroa sub-treasury £\ 19 10s. Mr. Haiuian drew attention to a complaint which had Veen made by the Sub-Treasurer at' Akaroa, (Mr. Watson):that after application'to the Government for a safe for .the use of the treasury, no steps had been taken to provide him with that accommodation, nor even any answer vouchsafed to his application. It was very wrong to leave this officer with the responsibility for large sums of money without providing any means of securing it; and it was of course a matter of serious complaint that the letters which he had written to the Provincial ■ Government on this and other matters connected with the furnishing o'the offices under his charge had never received any attention, nor even had their receipt been acknowledged.

Mr Ollivter stated that a letter had been received • from Mr. Watson asking for a safe. Such a thing could not then be got here, and a reply was sent, saying that it.would.be obtained if possible. Accordingly one was brought down from Auckland, but it happened to be very much wanted for the provincial treasury and was rather too large for the requirements of Akaroa. Another smaller one was then sent for. As to the letters from Mr. Watson, he could confidently say that all received had been replied to without delay. Beside the one referred to above, one had been received asking for furniture for the police office, to which an answer had been sect requesting particulars to be transmitted; no other on the subject had ever come to hand, though reference had been made to one which had been written" and unanswered.

Mr. Hakmas stated that he had himself seen in the Akaroa Sub-Treasurer's letter book two letters besides that referred to. It was not fair that that officer should incur the blame of neglect when the fault lay elsewhere; for this reason he was anxious to find out how the irregularity occurred.

| Mr. Thomson could bear witness to the irregu - j larky of the course of post between Christchurch j and Akaroa. He did not doubt that the letters I in question might easily have gone astray, for in private business he had been aware of many instances of delay and loss communications with the peninsula about the time specified: Mr. Hall pointed out that two letters written at two very different dates had gone astray; the curious point was that they,were .both on.the same subject. As to the application for the police office it would be ■said', that that department was now under the General Government whose duty, it would be to provide furniture; but no such provision had been, made • last session and there, would; be no opportunity; again for eighteen months. . Would the Pro--; yineial,.. Government • allow the^. office ; to, remafn'barje^nd* useless for two years, especially when it "was ..remembered, that the -expense must ultimately fall on the province?/ Mr. Oli.ivier said it was clear'that the letters in question had been written hut he could assure the hon. gentleman" that they had never come to hand, nor could lieaccount for them in any way.Of course he relieved-.the 'Sub-Treasurer from all blame., in,.;the Jnatter-whatever j-not the slightest, iiupntation of neglect attached .to hini^. Timaru Harbour Master ... ,£SO. „ Constable 30 V ; ' On tills vote Mr. Rhodes asked what the duties of harbour master at Timaru were? Was this sum of ',£.50 in addition to the £150 given him as resident magistrate, and if so, what did he do for the money? He was often not to be found when the trifling duties of the resident magistrate required him, and as for the harbour > mastership, he did not even look after the buoys-■• and beacons whichwere laid down. That job had to be done by some one else." The officer was half his time in Christchurch instead of attending to his duties. The district of Timaruwas important both in extent and wealth, and they required government officers of the most active habits; instead of which a salary was paid to a man who did nothing at ail. He would oppose the vote. Mr. Thomson asked if any provision had been made for;a boat's crew as requested. Mr. Oluviek said the application for a boat's crew would be attended to. As to the office of harbour master, he recollected that he had him- : self objected to the creation of the berth; not - thinkingjthat there were duties to bedone^whichrequired such an appointment.- His hob;:friend ' (Mr. Rhqdes) asserted the contrary at that time, but he (Mr. O.) could not.but be p'eased to hear ■ that there was so little need for the services of an official..- Perhaps the little the- public 1 eird of anything going wrong was due to the vigilance of Mr~ Woollcombe. At am' rate the time was coming when there would be plenty to do, and then he could undertake to say that tl c officer would not be found a drone. The vote was passed. On the votes for r ,■_• ■■ Printing, Advertising and Stationery ..£3OO Council Library ... ... „.£l5O Mr. Hall suggesie.l that for the selection of books for the library;a select cc.m nittee ought to be appointed; but as flure would probably be no time for tke committee to report before the session closed, it'would be well to name a *'pw members- to whom', the business of scl'cti n should be delegated.

. Immigration expensesin the provinoe...£6oo Mr. Studhoi.mk a^sked if any arrangements were being Hiade lor .the' reception of immigrants at Timar.ii..-'I „; '.... •.•" Mr. Ollivier said as soon as they heard from, England that a ship was going to be laid on with; immigrants specially for Timani. tlie government would take steps to provide for their at'conimo.. dation there. ~ Mr." Haitian referred to the salary and expenses of the agent in England. He supposed that (li 3 fund* for the purpo c n'cre iiichidctl in the grant for the general object; but ho tlmue-rr the foinmitt -c should have an oyportunit;, o considering it. . . .\:j .vl';v'».»■* ■*

Mr, Fooisa thought it a most improper course leave this iteuj oat of. -the estimates. Ail nrotes of this kind should by right be submitted (to the Council. ; After souk? discnssian the vote was passed. ■ , The items to he added to the estimates were ' tlien considered. On the vote of £fiOO for the erection of a market house in Christchurch, Messrs. Thomson .and Rhodes opposed the grant, on the ground that it.was simply for private use, and that such "mdertiikmgs had never been known to succeed in the colonies. ; Messrs. Harbian and Hn.s supported the vote, Instancing the case of the Steam Company to. whom a su.m of money had been given. • Messrs. Bowes and Dobbs supported the vote, ■tmt required more information as to the plans i and the site which the building would occupy. ; Mr. Oass explained the site of the building: *nd of .these which now stood in the Market • Plsee. Mr. Packer having said a few words, .;the question was put and carried. Compensation- toJSarwelL —. £60 TlantingHagley Park~ 200 Mr. Fooes proposed the increase of this vote *o ,£SOO, in order that portions of the Town Belt planted. -Mr. ©llivier pointed out that the present 'ivoteby no means contemplated extensive operations?, as the sum would suffice only for preliminaries. Before going into the undertaking fully, it would be necessary to provide a very much larger sum of money. He boped the amendment would not he pushed. Messrs. Rhodes and Ward objected to spending money on ornamentation of the towns so long as necessary works in other districts weie waiting to be done. Mr. Ftfe recommended that steps should be taken to enable the towns to do these sort of works for themselves. The vote was passed as originally proposed. Immigration £1500 0 0 £osts in the case of Campbell v. Fitz Gerald.... 57 11 10 This was a vote required bj' the circumstance of an action being brought by the late Lt. Col. Campbell against the Superintendent, which ■was defeated with costs. The defendant had been unable to recover the amount of costs from the plaintiff. Under the circumstances the Superintendent could not be expected to pay the •Amount out of his private purse. Carried. 3Mr. Ollivieu here took the opportunity of reading a despatch from the Manager of the "Union Bank of Australia, acquainting him that advices had been received from London by the last mail of the disposal of the £30,000 debentures. They had been sold at £105 per cent, -and a certain amount was taken up to ratify the transaction. DRAINAGE OF LTTTELTON. Mr. Ward on behalf of Mr. Davis, who was aibsent, moved an address to the Superintendent for an increased sum towards the drainage of the main streets of I/vttelton. He regretted that his honourable colleague was not present to advance all the arguments in favour of the special works which he named in the motion, tout he (Mr. Ward) felt sure that the Council would not refuse to grant any sura which might be required to improve the sanitary condition of the town of Lyttelton. Mr. Rhodes seconded the moti m, Mr. Ollivier felt the great necessity which existed for securing the health of the towrrof Lyttelton, which he regretted to find had been lately in very bad condition. But the Government were going to take other measures than those indicated in the motion now brought furward, and therefore he hoped it would not be Mr. ITooKs and Mr. Thomson* urged the great importance of measures to improve the sanitary •state «f the tnw-n. Me Ward would not press the specific works oamed, if the Gsvernment were prepared to proceed with a complete plan. He hoped, however, that when the vote should come before the committee in its proper place, the Government would be prepared to state what their plan was, and to make the amount of the vote such as would he sufficient to give effect to it without delay.—Motion withdrawn. Mr. Harman moved for a sura to be placed on the estimates for a road to the Slaughter Yards 3ast of Christchuurch. The road was exceedingly necessary, and some attention would be necessary to forming and draining it in order to prevent its being, as it was during last winter, under water in many places. When the former site for slaughter houses on the Town Reserves -was ordered to be sold and a new site was set apart it was promised that the large snm likely to aecrne from that sale would bs more than enough to make the new site accessible Mr. Rhombs thought that the butchers themselves desired to remove the slaughter yards to the other -side of Christchurch. If so, there ■would be no advantage in spending money on the approach to the present site. Mr. Ollivjer said that the Government anti■cipating the requirement had contemplated an expenditure of about £250; but from a report of the Provincial Engineer it appeared that the i cost of the works required would be about £945. If so large a sum %vas required he thought that a wise discretion would be exercised in abandoning that site and taking another. As to the proceeds of the old site they were, though large, - nothing like.sufficient to meet such an expenditure as this. Mr. Fooks reminded the Council that the road .led not only to the slaughter yards, but through a. populous district; one which from its first habitation -had received but £30 of public money; while private individuals had been at the expense of making and maintaining portions of the road.

; Mr. Hakma*? bad not expected the cost to prove so large. He would not press the motion ; ' against the wishes of the Government if they f \ would promise to consider the wants of the disi triet, and consult with those iHteresterl as to whether the slaughter houses should remain where they were itnd liave a 1 good road made to > ■ them, or should be removed to a more conve- '• iiiont site. , Mr. Oi.LiviF.ii promised that the Government '■ would carry out the work it' it was found ncces-ti-.vy, and that the desires of those interested ■\'.'uld Ijc attended to. ws would any application vhich aiig'al be deflisitC'ly hud before .Uiera.

The motion was then withdrawn. LYTXELTON ELECTORAL DISTRICT BILL. Mr. Ward asked leave to withdraw the motion .given notice of for the first reading of this bill. He explained the provisions which it was in- ; tended to introduce into it, which were simply the alteration of the boundaries of the town of Lytteltou, so as to include the natural town population, thus assimilating the district to that defined by act of General Assembly. The electors of that portion of the Port Victoria district which would be transferred to the town were so strongly opposed to the measure, he found, t!i:i« he could not proceed with it. He believed that the reasons for their opposition «-ere selfish ones, being merely the desire to •inrrul the elections in the Port Victoria district while they were lepresented practically and for all purposes by theLytttlton members. The residents in the rest of the Port Victoria district he teit sure wore anxious that the townpopulalioii w'.rij-h cuntrolle 1 their elections should be ■•emoved from the district, but on that ground the request should come from the electors or j members of that district, and not from him. He felt that though he might be allowed to bring j in the bill if it simply proposed to remove j acknowledged inconveniences, it became, when i affecting the proportion of electors to representatives, a sort of reform bill, and when objected to by the electors themselves it was scarcely the place of a private member to interfere. Perhaps at a future time the Government would undertake to do what was requisite not only in this case but in others of a similar character.

governor's bay road. Mr. Fyfe moved an address to the Superintendent for a sum of £50 to be placed on the estimates for the purpose of connecting the beach at Mr. Perceval's with the Governor's Bay road. At present the ordinary means of communication with Lyttelton was by water, but the beach was inaccessible without trespassing upon private property. Mr. Potts seconded the motion. He was acquainted with the spot and knew the necessity for communication with the water at that spot. At present a road was a good deal used which led through a private garden. Of course, though the accommodation was willingly accorded, the public ought not to trespass any longer than could be avoided. Messrs. Thomson and Dobbs from their knowledge of the requirements of the district urged the adoption of the motion, which was accordingly carried. The third reading of the Sheep Bill was then postpone! till Tuesday next; at which time Mr. Thomson gave notice that he would move the reconsideration of Clause 22. After other notices of motion.were given, the Council adjourned till the next morning. On "Wednesday morning the Council met, and adjourned till Tuesday next.