CORRESPONDENCE.

Manawatu Times, Volume II, Issue 37, 24 February 1877, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

[Our correspondence column being open, no responsibility can be accepted m respect to opinions expressed by correspondents.]

•i¥o THE EDITOH. Sir, — "Fair play " is said to be " bonny play," but that is when disinterested parties see the fair play. Now, for' the life of me, I cannot see much fair play m " Pair Play's " letter m attacking the anonymous writer of the verses that appeared m your journal m the way he does. That versifier m a pleasant way attempted to show the peculiar position now occupied by the Chairman of the Manawatu County Council, whom everybody believes to be a very nice fellow and quite eligible for the position he occupies as Chairman of the County, but it has struck many of his friends that the conjunction of the threefold position he now occupies m the County is not compatible with good local government. As Chairman he is one of his own employers m his capacity of valuer for the district. To make this clear I would refer you to the 4th section of the Rating Act, which provides that (4) "As soon as conveniently may be after the passing of this Act, every local body shall appoint, and from time to time thereafter may remove and reappoint as it may think fit, one or more fit persons to be called valuers," &c. Now as Mr Thynne is the valuer appointed by the Manawatu Board at a yearly salary of £90, and as the County Council is accepting his assessment it follows that he is virtually interested m a place of profit under the County Council, and is thereby interested m preventing any exposure of his own shortcomings as a valuer. Now turning to your leading article m to-day's paper you show a state of . things that is more general throughout the Colony than you seem to imagine, and the cause seems to me very different from, the one that you assign to it. I would ask you why was Mr Thynne selected to be the valuer for the Manawatu ? If you will tell me that, I will assign the same reason why men have been appointed valuers all over the Colony, whose time was too valuable to spend m making a personal inspection of the property, that they have been assessing m their several snug offices by the aid of their .clerks ; and because it is seen, as your poetical correspondent points out, that the conjunction of the offices of assessor and of clerk and chairman sharp of the Council of Wanawatu will make us rue. Is it not quite right for a correspondent to point this out, so that if anything is to be done it may be done m the right way. Suppose that any practical settler that had sufficient time at his disposal to go round the district and personally inspect the various properties m the district, and make enquiries at the peoples' residences as to their correct names and their terms of occupation, is it not reasonable to suppose that the valuation would be more equal than it can be done m an office at Foxton by the chairman of the County, who may be too busy and whose time is too valuable to be wasted m making a personal inspection of every property before fixing the assessment ? And so also with the duty of clerk. Would it not be better to have these duties performed by some one appointed by the Council than by Mr Thynne's one clerk being given this extra work to be paid for at the end of the year or any other time that the ■ Council may be induced to vote a grant of money to the Chairman for expenses, as your correspondent " Fairplay " plainly points out to be the role to be followed, m asking the Council at the end of the year to defray the expenses m connection with his office. As we are told by your correspondent, that it is not to be supposed that he (the chairman and clerk) is going to do all the work and receive nothing. I beg to ask if it was not Mr Thynne's own proposition to do all the clerical work, and the Council were quite right to accept his offer as long as he liked to do it on the only terms that it is open for him to do it. I really thought very highly of Mr Thynne for his patriotic spirit m not only doing the clerical work gratis, but also m placing his own office at the disposal of the County, even supposing that it brought more business to his office ; but now " Fairplay " shows the game that is being played, and the position of affairs is altered by the light he throws on the subject, and I write this as a protest against any attempt being made to stop a fair ventilation of our County proceedings. — I am, &c, Foulplay.