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South Canterbury Times, Issue 2882, 21 June 1882, Page 2

A memorial is being extensively signed for presentation to His Excellency the Governor, asking that a cemetery reserve of about five acres on the Wai-iti road may not be sold. It may bo as well for us to point out how the necessity for this petition has arisen. It appears that on the 11th February, 1859, this reserve (No. 140) was sot aside by the Superintendent of the Province for a Cemetery Reserve. It was never used for that purpose, however, nor does it appear suitable for it. It is far too small, and it is surrounded with dwellings. “ That the present cemetery is largo enough ” for the requirements of the town, though set forth by the memorialists* dons not appear to us to have any particular bearing on the matter. Having shown the nnsuitablcncss of the reserve for cemetery purposes the memorialists proceed to point out, with some show of reason, that the southern portions of the town arc well supplied witk recreation reserves. They have a large and excellent Park. The northern portion, on the other

hand, has no such recreation ground, and they ask that the five acres referred to be permanently set aside for that purpose. They are urged to make this request by the fact that the land has, somehow or;another, become vested in the Cemetery Commissioners, who are believed to be on the point of selling it for building purposes. It appears from the representation pf the memorialists that a petition to the same effect as this one, was sent op-in December 1878; end another in August 1879. The prayer of the petitioners was granted, but the necessary conveyancing was never done to constitute the reserve a recreation ground. The memorialists therefore ask that the matter be finally settled at once. The prayer scents a very reasonable one, and we wish the petitioners success. Public Recreation reserves form a very good feature of a town, and it can hardly be wrong to grant the Northerners something of a similar privilege to that enjoyed by the Southerners. The Member for Timaru Is introducing a Bill to legalise the sale of this reserve, and the appropriation of the proceeds by the Cemetery Board, The Bill has been introduced at the instigation of the Board, but we feel confident that when Mr Turnbull knows the feeling of the public on the subject, and the injustice it proposes to inflict on a large section of his constituents, by alienating from them the only reserve they have within a radius of over a mile, he will pause in in the work of spoliation. A Bill to alter the purpose of the reserve, from its present one to one for recreation, purposes, is what a very large majority of the public require. ,