Meeting at Ashurst.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IV, Issue 180, 27 June 1884, Page 2

Meeting at Ashurst.

On Wednesday evening ft. public meeting was held at Aslmrst,- iv the school-room, to consider .the best means of procuring the erection of^a bridge over the Manawacu River ait the Lower Ferry. The ineeiing was^ well attended, there being about 70 porKpn* prosont. On the motion of Mr Macarthur, Mr Cotter was voted to the chair. The Chairman opened the proceedings by reading the ad vertisernent from the St.nda.rd calling the meeting, and Uvieflv pointing oat tire-object that Mr JTacartlinr had m convening the meeting, and called upon" that gentleman, to address those avseinbled. Mr Macavthur said that it. .was now nearly nine years since the settlers had jfirst conimeuced to? urgp:?the erection of the bridge over the Manawalu River. There were several ways by which they could np\v .get^-tlie, bi-idge;built; Of course tlie^beVirpj^ of* uli was to obtain a special grant of money frdih'tlie'Govorninent 'for the purpose; then again -it- might bo so managed .that some, private individual^ oi\ company, might,' build, the bridge at their own.expense, with the;privilege of collecting the tolls from il for a: teem <ofryeays>/ jHe was iiotihbweverjiln, faypr of , the ;l.atteiv,p.kh; 3B* vbould also be done .by_r.«iisins: a special loan, but he did .not likej jthstt eTthe'K' Lastly, there was the plan of, ; obtain.', in S •£ grant under the ' Roads ' sand Bridges, Construe lion Act, and- jhe, was of opinion that this swas "the /upst, advisable course tb.^akelj- Las<j.jsear r at: the time when the application for thiia TuQuey shpuld;have been sent m, th!e County of Oroua ,had no,t ,bee^ formed; aud if it hatl been/ arid :Me Council Lad/ applied for a under that' -A«l| -for a single bridge/ in' one portion? q'f v tlie 1 county, the other' .pprti^n^of it : wbiiU prqbably ; have opposed tlie a:cti6n, ; as consuming fiearly; the whole of the sum allowed to the' [entire 'county. * The sum required for the bridge Was estimated /at l'AsfipOl and the total- allowance to aiiy "one body : under 1 tlie ' : A\ctV alluded i tq was £5000, and thus only JglpW would have been available' for'thb'remainder'of the CdunGyj even,suppo3- : ■ing the whole !£so'op: :^.had" been granted. But' now that ,tiie" Counties' Act was suspended, the district could apply for three times as miich money ; as lit coukHast year, : because tlie threb Road- Boards m it. were entitled to apply for the Wme ; a^iount as th'jß Council was limited to before ' the working of- the Act was suspended Biit althQUghj, last, yeaiy Iho County Tiatl '•■'a])pl)erl for the whole, amouutj £5000, they' had ; onily : received about oue-thiid of it, under the RoadsVand Bridges Construction Act, still the application for money to be spent on bridges ■ took '-preceden be to hat ' required: for roads. This "year' the Financial Bfeiiteroent siiewed that soiiie.il os, ooo remained to be'divided aniongst the local bodie^ thrpughoufc the Colony, Out of this' sum we stood a 'good charibe' of obtaining, the money we required, since it was for a liridse.-and . bridsres-. tdok-i>»'*"»« > Jonee._ Mr Maeartliur thought, therefore^oriat this was the best way to get tlie bridge "I'miltwitHouib burdening 'the ratepayers with further taxajiibn, . He prop6se;dthat the i. 9 00, which it. was nece-isary f6r the Ward to i"aise, should be taken up by paying interest and sinking fund on it to t|ie mont. '"Tbus JgOO would 1 haVq^to be paid away annually. This ' liability would be easily met, without,burdening the ratepayera m the least, fqrtlie lessees of the ' perry, paid them j&I.GO m rei)t,'/and' the J690 would be'takejq froai thai:, arid wheh the lease dxpired, which it' would do m about two yeirs' tittiej ; th6 local body would" put such toll's" 'on" "the bridge as would make up the £90. The great, and most important point, i that he wished .to put before the meeting, was that the Government compelled the loca| body jto j guarantee theja'nnnal pay^ >ment-of £ VO for mteiest and sinking •■ fund, by Ipvying a special ratie.i M\q Board proposed to strike a special .rate of about f d m the '£,', m order to •'comply/?witl> ty jKonddrat the same tirui pledge" fnal iliis rate :^puidf ,. not H ; be . actually <cbi-: lected . ; ; r The r .money ■; : required to meet the liability .would be coming regivlarly m frqmnithe!;Eerry'j so that tiie.rate would. not require to be j collected. The, only, .danger thespeaker fpre-aw, was that:.^^futiire Boards; might bre,ak faith with -the ratepayers, and, having the! power ito collect an ejtra rate > :.i6fgh;t exercise it. \ He thought the danger a very ( uutikelyjone, and personally did not fear it m thejeast, ! ajihqugh>;he} was the representative of a heavy rateable value, and* fin extra rate would lately affect him. ' Still he wished the^yrate, payers to fully understand wha^t they were doing, and act with "their eyes open to the facts of the case, so that no one could accuse him "m years to corap, qi having led them into difficulties. Moreover he, (Me Macarthnr) was not before them to urge them to take any act, but merely to ascertain, their feelings m the matter. He again ; urged ( thosjd present' ho yo t'e deliberately, and the JJoard' ■ yoiild z^act. accordingly .yi lf theiy Sanctioned it., the st'ep'would be taken af "pncO, ,a? sill applications ; must be. m. before* 'thel27th'. If they- refused,- j ehen the Board' would siniply not apply 1 for tlie .money. '■'.' :;l '." J; V ■'■'-■' "-I ''■'■ '.■'■ ''■-■'■' , (^Several" e'n^njr'ies wefe tlidh fflade; thosel present wishih'g 51 to " lciiow ' why WaW. No. 6, f ßhould ..take the responsibility of a J woi-k V.^'at' atfedteU' the; whole rcOtinty? What Wa's f the likelihood of future Boards breaking faith and making the ratepayers pay theispecial rate^an^d-dtlier; questions of a' similar notice j T whilst ppfe-gentle-man con.sidet'ed- thatj; Ashurst had enough rates\to pay already. : ; ; > 3\|lr Maca&Hur again §x|»lairie9' that the irate, thougii;sti ; (ipk Would, nqj» be collected, andfes^s^^fpelated v his caution, as to acling'raslHy • he did not] wisjijtojui'ge;; them; .tos jauy^ !^cpui > g|B3 buti merely to know thei£ views. rl^Er Ealjqon^ su^>pca:ted Mr Maaarthur'a suggeStioni las dull. sev : ei t kl Others, and Mr J. 'Wbil)ley (hen proposed the'follq wing resoiutioni" That 'this! y^ing^pf 1 th.c ratephy'er^^of. Ward No 6, do^hereby cbmpower 'Mr ' Macarthur to make anapplipation fov '-yefeum ll of LpO'O Atii^er L r the 5 Roads' an&j Bridges Construe' tibh L A ! ct, and it v alsb{ pledges i' self tq support a. ,spepial : i-aoe for 'the ' purpose^ jirbyidied that' the ißoatf 'Board' alfeo "fil^ge' Melvea not to oolleot the same." '

;3Ax\ J, Cotter spoke m favour of i the motion; as also did Mr W. W. Carlile, of Woodvllle, who remarked that it had been thought desirable ihat^AVoodville should partake m the ipskdC^ikigg^the special rate, and he had such"" confidence that no risk was really inenrred, thai; he would willingly have given his acquiescence, had it been possible for him to do so. Mr Grammar seconded the resolution, which he did not think incurred lo ; pavthe/fcix it woujld n(M; be/so very heavy' after ail, aithoug'h^by right", join also. However, he thought the public genera.ly would profit by, and (July appreciate, iheir action. \ Mr Falloon they shouldgo r m x^>)f<f^jßuin-^ir{l(d^nWo|o. ljierit, and 'some one else t&oiiglit that since Mr Fa 1 loon had done so well out of the ferry, he should make up the deficiency* ifthere-werevtinij. : ' The motion was tlien put, and carried unanimously, j Mr Maparthur remarked- that-the ineotin^ia# greatly Btrens|he*e^lSa .Hands, and tney could rely upon him ujsing his utmost endeavours to bring about the great object of all present, aiid hoped to succeed m ultimately for the district a bridge over the Manawatu Kiver. ! A ffordial vote of thanks was accrtrd<b93tojMij IM^arthu^fiolQaSn M ni'ofeion f tff Mr "KeW, and tWiisuaT bqmpliment to the chair terminated ;tlie proceedings.