The Ranger.

Manawatu Herald, 31 March 1892, Page 2

The Ranger.

•__ — _+__ ■ We cannot congratulate those members of the Borough • Council who voted against the acceptance of Mr Guerin's tender, for the way they went to secure their end. On the 7th March tenders for Ranger were opened by the Borough Council, ancl Mr Guerin's was the lowest. By rights this should have been accepted at that meeting, but just at the close, when all business was supposed to have been finished and our reporter had left, loud complaints were made as to J&Q, /manner Mr Guerin had carried out his duties in the past,

The statements appeared so serious that the Council decided to hold over the acceptance of any tender to last Monday, when it was understood that the Councillors who had made these statements would get their informants to appear and substantiate their charges. Monday came, and not one inhabitant appeared to help the Councillors in their hour of need. We agree with Councillor Stansell that if men promise to come and do not, the Councillor cannot make them, but we do hold that those who had lent a ready ear to complaints* against a Borough official should have been the first to have supported hitn when they found that the tales carried to them were unsupported. We very much regret to find that instead of this step being taken, those Councillors who had obtained the delay, acted still in the belief of the bona fides of the information given to them, and convicted the Ranger of the acts attributed to him, without calling upon him for a defence ! They convicted Mr Guerin by voting against his appointment, for why ? At present nothing is decided, no ranger was appointed, it was not decided to call for fresh tenders, and a resolution providing that no ranger should be appointed for three months was lost. If anything is to be concluded from such a mixed state of business, it is that the majority had determined to oust Mr Guerin from his office, complaints or no complaints. This is the most unsatisfactory act we have seen carried in our Borough Council. We are not supporters of the Ranger, but we hold that an old official of the Council deserved to be treated with more consideration and that before any motion was deoided on he should have been heard in his own defence.