The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 1878.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5289, 8 March 1878, Page 2

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) FRIDAY, MARCH 8, 1878.

The Waterworks ■ Investigation Committee, after several weeks' of labor, have brought up their report. - The committee deserve, the thanks.,of the community for the zealous- manher Sinwliich they carried out the somewhat unpleasant duty entrusted to- them. Of; course, it was impossible to get ; at the bottom of everything connected w|th the) contract for the extension of the water! supply,;; but .sufficient has been, elicited) to. show, that the interests of the ratepayers were not looked after, by those whose jboun den duty it was to see that 1 Odrporatibn affairs, wore conducted in an honest and straightforward manner, with •the utmost , publicity, and in accordance with!law... It may be;said that “all is well; that ends •well,” and that} Vowing to the action, of the committee, the ' Waterworks ■ contractor will receive no more than ho is justly entitled to ; -but nevertheless it is a matter for grave reflection that Such" a state of things' should have existed in this city, that thousands of pounds belonging to the ratepayers shbuld bo paid away without thesanctionof law, and without any single individual connected, with- the Corporation having an .intelligent 'knowledge that,the money was justly due. jThat was precisely how matters stooji three months' ago, when Councillor, Fisher discovered that the large sum of £2970 had been paid to the contractor for “extras,” without the claim having been submitted to the Council, although the day before the money was,paid there had been.a long meeting of-the City Council. The Councillor who made the discovery, for we can call it- nothing .else, took the unusual course of writing to the Press,-on the extraordinary circumstance, and -at the first meeting of the civic body - Councillor Hunter brought the matter up, ’ and strange to' say it did not appear to create the slightest surprise.' Notwithstanding the explicit terms of clause 107 of the Municipal Corporations Act, which states that payments of moneys should be authorised by the Council, the majority were of opinion that a couple of Councillors were legally qualified to deal with the Corporation funds, and that it was not necessary that accounts should be submitted at a meeting of the Council. Ic is easy to see that under such a loose system gross abuses would creep in, and that such has been the case no unprejudiced person has the shadow of a doubt. The sole, business of the Council was apparently to authorise works. Afterwards everything was left to the Engineer and Town Clerk. When the City Council wilfully shirked its duty in such an important matter as finance, and in defiance , of the clear provisions of an Act of Parliament, is it any wonder that affairs drifted into confusion? All proper control was and as a natural consequence - the officers of the Corporation adopted that course which involved the least trouble. ’ The Town' Clerk, who was one of those by the Municipal Corporations Act authorised to sign cheques, had never read the terms of the Waterworks contract, and was ignorant -of the conditions under which money should be paid. Twenty-five percent! of the total amount of the tender Was to re-main-in the hands of the Corporation till the work was completed and passed. The amount of the tender was £17>195, yet whilst the work was in progress the To wn Clerk .signed payments to the'extent of £16,000. Nobody appears to have paid any attention to Acts of Parliament dr the conditions of the contract. The Waterworks,) Engineer himself was unaware that Mr.iBtAOKETi was, named -as arbiter in the contract, and when informed of this fact by, the chairman of the committee he appeared thunderstruck, protested against it, and said Mr. Blackett’s name had been inserted by the legal advisor of the Corporation, without his (Mr. MauchAnt’s) knowledge. The Waterworks Engineer staled that ho never would have consented to the, appointment, of an arbiter,., and had ha seen the obnoxious clause, he would have run his pen through it. This was decidedly cool. /Mr. Marohant overlooked the fact that the contract was between the Corporation of, Wellington and Mr. Joseph Saunders, and not between the latter > and Mr. Nicholas Marohant. However, Mr, Marchant’s ideas -were only in keeping with the action of the Council. Evory : , -thing was left to,,,the officials, and no proper supervision was exorcised: over thorn by the Council. • It is scarcely worth while commenting on the deficiencies of former servants of the Corporation. Their’carelessness; incapacity,-- and - ignorance of their duties' will not in the future affect the ratepayers. It is the system that permitted' such a state’of things asthat which formed'the subject of investigation that most concerns the ratepayers. We sincerely ,trust : ,that, the labors of the Investigation', ;Committeo will result in securing tfiat horiceforth tlio Corporation business shall no|;be conducted in a hole-and-corner fashion ; that the .. Council shall .that. Acts, of Parliament,, conditions' ! of' contracts, are not ignored : oitber wilfully Ar -through ignorance, and that ;above ralL. the;Council! shall not abrogate its functions’ in dealing Withithb; money of the ratepayers, - If-this israc-; oomplished, it.iwiU be a highly dssirablo.

reformation in this municipal world of ours. There is every, probability that in the future the, powers of the Corporation will be largely extended;, and as the interests at stake will consequently be greater, it is, necessary that the utmost confidence should b,e felt in the efficiency and integrity of municipal bodies. Tha report of the Investigation Committee will bo found in anothea column, and as the City Council has yet to discuss it, we refrain from further comment;