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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 1015, 22 December 1881, Page 2

It is fervently to be hoped that the new Mayor will economise the time of the Councillors, as well as pay respect to the patience of those of the public who are, we almost wrote, condemned to sit at the Borough Council meetings. On Tuesday night last it is not too much to say that, although the Council sat from 7 p.m. to 12.30 a.m. little or no real business was done. We do not object to the Councillors possessing a large talking power, but it is absurd for them to exercise it on every possible occasion. Besides, the practice of continually jumping up and down, and trespassing with a dozen different ideas, in about as many minutes, will never permit of a Councillor concentrating his ideas on any given subject. It is not expected that our are all orators; but thoso who are should set the example of speaking once only, and of talking as little as possible. We do not make these remarks in a captious spirit, but merely as onlookers, and we will give an example of our meaning. Amongst other instances on Tuesday evening a letter was received from the Government on an ordinary departmental subject, but still one which, if it provoked further discussion, that was not the time to make it. The Council was informed, simply, that it could not have a site at the rear of the Government buildings to build offices on ; but the indignant feelings of Councillors overcame them, and they degenerated into protests and conversational recriminations for exactly twenty-three minutes, ending, at last, with an animated expression of doubt as to the exact date of the original survey of the township. It was a relief to hear the Chairman state, at 11.15 p.m., that “we had better proceed to businessbut Mr Bennett will do much better if he orders Councillors off to their homes before that hour of the night. The new Mayor has been excellent at “ drill ” in his time, and we look to him once more to “ lick his men into shape.”