MR HINE'S WHANGAMOMONA MEETING.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 86, 24 November 1911, Page 5

MR HINE'S WHANGAMOMONA MEETING.

(To the Editor “Stratford Post.”) Sir,—-Mr Hine, in his reference at Tariki to the “Daily Ncavs’ ” report of his Whangamoi'aoha meeting, is correct in tAvo respects—lst, there Avas no difficulty in getting a chairman, and secondly the chairman’s ruling declared Mr Glceson’s amendment Inst, as stated by Mr Bine, but the meeting questioned the chairman’s ruling, asking for a division. Tins request Avas not acceded to, nor was the resolution embodying a vote of thanks to Mr Hine put to tig; meeting, Avliicii closed unsatisfactory to every one in consequence. In your Monday’s issue reference is made to a challenge and its acceptance. FolloAving are the facts: —Mr Hine, in dealing Avith £5,000,000 loan, gave figures shoAving the cost of raising the loan, and stating that he Avould withdraw from the contest if the figures Avere sJioavii to be Avrong. lat once accepted the challenge, knowing that full information had not reached the Dominion from the High Commissioner, and Mr Hine under interrogation at once remoA'ed misconception by stating that his figures Avere taken from the prospectus issued pi’ior to the loan being undenvritton or placed on the market in London, and there of course the matter ended. But Mr Hine Avas unfair, and inaccurate in dealing Avith public Avorks appropriations and expenditure, giving the bare amounts of the Parliamentary appropriations made in November and tne expenditure on the 31st March folloAving. When questioned as to Avhether he had taken into account the total of the grants offered to the local bodies of New Zealand, ho said what he complained of Avas the dilatoriness of the. Minister of Public Works in dealing with the expenditure, and that neither in his time on Stratford County Council nor in that of his questioner—myself, had grants been expended by the Council and, further, that notice of i the appropriations did not reach the local bodies until after the Ist January folloAving authorisation. These statements are erroneous, both for the years 1910-11 and 1911-12. Take the latter year as an illustration : The appropriations Avere before Parliament in tiie latter half of October. On the 16th of that month the local bodies of the Dominion received circular letters from Wellington notifying the proposed appropriations,. and on the 28th October the District Engineer, Taranaki, sent out confirmatory notices. In the previous year these notices left Wellington on the 15th November, and the confirmatory notices Avere sent from Ncav Plymouth on 19th November. These statements are from County records—they negative Mr Mine’s utterances; they are open to every ratepayer’s inspection ; they involve for the current year for Whangamomona Council alone a sum of £6448, and they illustrate hot the Minister’s dilatoriness but his solicitous anviety for prompt expenditure, and, further, the Minister, in an autograph letter, dated 21st February, 1910, • points out that the terms of the authorities issued are identical with those used throughout the Dominion for many years. Again, in regard to Mr Mine’s statements respecting expenditure of grants: He surely cannot have forgotten tho £llOO grant spent by Stratford County Council in rebuilding bridges near Strathmore, and the £2OO grant spent in re-decking bridges at Whangamomona, and, further, the cost of administering the expenditure of these grants came out of county revenue and not out of the grants. All over the Dominion there is a multiplication of such instances, and Mr Riuo is sufficiently astute to be gAVare that criticism, Avhich does not take cognisance fully of all the facts involved, fails to be destructive and is umvorthy of himself, —I am, etc., W. A . McGUTCH AN. AVhangainomonu, Nov., 1911.