Engineer Assailed

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 262, 26 January 1928, Page 11

Engineer Assailed

WAIHOU BRIDGE CONTRACT ALLEGED FAULTS DENIED (Prom Our Oicu Correspondent) TE AROHA, To-daA One of the liveliest meetings of the To Aroha Borough Council took place last evening. Mr. Jones, engineer, c-f Auckland, for the new traffic bridge, was present to answer charges made by the clerk of works, Mr. James, that **tlie bridge was a botch of a job,*’ and had other alleged defects in construeMr. Jones stoutly denied the statements by the clerk of works, and dt - dared them to be untrue. At this stage the time limit of the meeting expired, and the Mayor appealed for an extension of time in order to give Mr. Jones a fair opportunity to defend himself. This was opposed by Councillor Carroll, and so the meeting terminated. Councillors prepared to retire, when the Mayor called out that as Mr. Jones repeatedly came from Auckland to defend the statements, and had never had a chance of doing so, he had asked Mr. .Tones to make a statement to the Press. Mr Jones said the whole trouble arose over the picture theatre construction. when the wind blew one wall over, and he was called in as enginee: for the council to adjust the same This remark, referring to an old sorr caused much excitement, and the air was electrified, several councillors interjecting simultaneously. Couneillolr Carroll considered the reference an insinuation against himself, and said: “It is an outrageous lie! Is that straight enough for you” The meeting became very turbulent and as the Mayor was making a final appeal for fairness for Mr. Jones, councillors gradually dispersed. Much excitement prevailed. Councillor Carroll’s notice of motion in regard to charges made by the engineer against the clerk of works was again thrown out on a point of order, on account of it not having been dated. Councillor Carroll agniu lodged the notice for consideration in eight days.