SPECIAL MEETING OF THE COOK COUNTY COUNCIL.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1264, 1 February 1883, Page 2

SPECIAL MEETING OF THE COOK COUNTY COUNCIL.

A SPECIAL meeting of the Cook County Council was held tu-day at the Council Chambers. After waiting the usual halfhour the following members of the Council were present:—The Chairman, W. Chambers, Esq., and Messrs J. W. Johnson and W. Cl irke. The butchering interest was represented by Messrs. Maynard, Aislabie, Thelwall, Gray, and Weston. The Chairman said that they had met this morning to confer with the trade with reference to the quest ion of slaughter-houses. lie was in favor of having a public slaughterhouse erected, as he considered this would be by far the best system. Unfortunately, however, the funds at the di&posal of the Council would nut admit of such an outlay. If such had been the case he won hl be glad to see this system brought into force. Complaints had been made as to the state of certain slaughter-houses. The following is one of those sent:— To the Worshipful the Chairman and Members of the Council of the Cuuuty of Cook. The humble petition of the undersigned residents and householders in the said Cujuty, aud in the township of Gisborne, sheweth, — ]. 'l'hat your petitioners are all residents in the County of Cook, whose dwellings and properties are contiguous and adjacent to the Lytton Road and the banks of theTaruheru River, in- the township of Gisborne. 2 That your petitioners have heard that one John Maynard intends to apply to your worshipful Council fur a license to slaughter cattle on a site at the north end of the Lytton Road, on the banks of the Taruheru R i ver. 3- That your petitioners are well assured that the slaughtering of cattle, and the existence of a slaughter-yard at that spot, or at .-.ny place adjacent thereto, will be greatly prejudicial to the health and comfort of your petitioners and their families, and of all persons who may reside in or about the western portion of the township of Gisborne. 4. That the prevailing westerly winds passing over the slaughter-yard must, of necessity, affect the health of the people residing in that locality, and especially of the patients confined in the Poverty Bay Hospital. 5. That the erection of a slaughter-yard in th.it position will depreciate the value of all property, and become a nuisance to the public. 6 And your petitioners further would request that no license for a sluighter-yard, or anything of the same nature, be granted bv your woi shipful Council, unless it be situated in such a locality as will render it unprejudicial to the public health and comfort. 7. Lastly, your petitioners would respectfully suggest that a site in some suitable locality should be marked out for a general slaughtering house, and that all slaughtering and work of a like character, should be confined to that particular spot.

.And your petitionora will aver pray; The above is signed by Mr Montague H. Smith and 13 others. Mr Maynard pointed out that the Slaughter House in question was not the one for which he nnw applied for a license. He did not think there was any nuisance, but if the Council granted the application for the new license, the premises could never become, a nuisance to any one, as it would be one mile from the town boundary. Mr Weston made a complaint to the effect that his nasal organs on returning from town were seriously affected by the effluvium sent forth from the Slaughter House of Mr J. H. Aislabie, at Makaraka. Mr Aislabie said he intended to I'emove to some other site, and he would guarantee the yards would be kept in good order, Mr Thelwall said that he had made several enquiries upon this subject, and he had ascertained that Slaughter Houses, both at home and in the colonies were licensed in the very heart of cities, under proper supervision. He had al«o learned that public Slaughter Houses Mere fast going out of date, and that it was becoming the rule to license the premises of the batcher, so long as strict supervision could be made. Fur his part he considered that public Slaughter Houses were unworkable, and only led to numerous squabbles amongst those interested. Or. Clarke called attention to the fact that the returns were surely wrong, judging from the number of beasts alleged to have been slaughtered. Mr Maynard said there could be no object in withholding the number of animals slaughtered.

After some further discussion it was agreed that a general authority be given to the butchers to go on slaughtering until the next meeting of the Council, when the question would be fully gone into. The meeting then adjourned.