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Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 93, 31 August 1878, Page 2

It would certainly appear as if there we.ro some demon of misrule at. work >m the Public Works Department, determined to thwart any steps which may be taken on, behalf of this district; ,In a previous issue we' drew attention to the necessity for removing that nuisance and eye-sore the old

goods shed. It has long been disused, is m a most dilapidated condition, and is a most dangerous obstruction to the traffic of Main- street. Acting upon our suggestion, his Worship wrote officially to the Public Works Department, asking that the structure should, at least be placed end on— if it were at all required — to the present goods sheds. To his communication he received the following reply :— " Sir, — -I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the '3rd insL; calling attention to .the old unused gbods'stied, and desiring that it may be removed. In reply I beg to informyou -thatr, as it.is.in contemplation to utilise the shed by laying a siding into it, your request cannot be complied with. — I have the honor to be, Sir, your obedient servant, Johx Blagkett, Engineer m charge of North Island." Now mark the spirit of obstinacy, exhibited : the shed has beetvrotting away month after month, discarded as useless, but no sooner is its removal asked for, than it becomes invaluable. Mr Blackett knows as little about the wants of such places as Palmerston as he does of the number of square feet m Tirabuctoo, and, of course, the reply has been dictated from data furnished from some official resident m the district. We would very much like to know who the Machiavelian adviser is whose venom prompts him to set a veto upon anything whioh would be conducive to the progress of the town, or the convenience of the community. No opportunity is., lost. -to. cause the Minister of the Department to refuse concessions however so just, or innovations upon the old beaten track, no matter how necessary. In the present case,,, however, wo are pleased to know 'that. i.6lj? "mope j}j an p ro bable the tables will be turned on thi3 local Puck, and instead of the Chairman of the Borough Council being necessitated to crave, he is m a position to command. According to facts the Main street of the town is two chains wide, thirty-three feet of which can be claimed by the Government for railway and sheds. Now what do we find? At the very spot to which we allude, on the southern side of the line, the engine-shed, &c., — without the space between and on each side of the rails, — occupies exactly thirtythree feet, from which it will be immediately seen .that not only the unused shed, but also the goods-shed proper, is now, and always has been, illegally upon one of the streets of the town. When we were informed of the curt reply of Mr Blackett, we took the trouble to learn exactly the width of the street by the obstruction of. the shed, and we found that — from the building to the inner side of the pathway — there were twenty-nine feet, composed of — pathway, ten feet ; ditch, five feet ; roadway, fourteen feet. Although, however, the thoroughfare is supposed to be that breadth, by the extraorJinary engineering skill displayed. in its formation, but little over half of it is available, inasmuch as it is raised up so high, and sl>pes down so precipitously into the drain alongside, that there is but room for one vehicle at a time, and considerable caution has to be exercised m steering straight along the. crown. How such a course as the blocking uo of a main thoroughfare was allowed to exist for such a length of time is surprising, and if it be tolerated any longer the forbearance will become culpable. The plea urged that it is inadvisable to have trucks loaded and unloaded on the main line is certainly a good one, and worthy of consideration ; but then, to obviate that difficulty it is only necessary to remove the. goods-sheds altogether, and place thearend on to the present enginesned, into which a siding could be run. By this means Main street would be left its full width, traffic would not be dangerously impeded, and a useless and worthless eye-sore got rid of. The Borough Council is now master of the situation, and as courtesy has been ineffectual-, it would be well to try the efficacy of sterner measures.