ROADS AND STREETS.

New Zealander, Volume 5, Issue 334, 28 July 1849, Page 3

ROADS AND STREETS.

To the Editor of the New Zealander. Sin, — In a late number of your journal you recommend the denizens of Auckland to subscribe for the purpoie of mending the streeti. His Excellency appears to be of the same opinion ; for he u laid to have observed, that the Government did quite enough in taking care of the country roads, and that (he townspeople must take care of the streets for themselves. He reminds us much of a certain rector of a parish, who quarrelled with his parishioners about paving the Church, and quoted this authority from St. Peter, Paoeant illi, non pavcam ego; which he construed thus — " They are to pave the Church, and not I." If, however, the Governor did say what is ascribed to him, I think the subscription ought to be withheld upon principle. The enormous sums that have been realized to the land fund by the sale of town allotments were levied under the pretext, and under the engagement, of devoting a certain sum to the public works of the colony, out of which the townspeople are surely emit'ed to claim as much as would suffice to irnder the •treeto panable once apain. Might Ibe permitted to ask whether the improvement of Princes-itreet was paid for by private sub»cription ; and if not, to enquire why the Government shou'd have taken that particular street under it* fostering care to the exclusion of all the rest ?

Metoikos. tWhatever may have been the viewi of " An In» h,ib't,int," to whose letter we appended the note to which our correspondent rrfers. we certainly had no such meaning as thit there should be a private subscription to relieve the authorities from their obligation to make the roads and streets passable. We merely recommended others to imitate the example of the perions living about Wyndham-street by contributing—not for the good of the Government Treasury, but for the comfort and convenience of themselves and their neighbours — to make at least a temporary improvement in the paths immediately befoie and leading to tlicir own dwelling houses. From this motive of self-inteiest, we would " mend our ways," rather than wade knee -deep in mud as a demonstration of public spirit and independence.— Ed.]