Correspondence.

Colonist, Issue 133, 28 January 1859, Page 2

Correspondence.

MULTUM IN PARVO.

• [•■ To the Editor of the Colonist. '" Sir, —I have no time.'. this week toY, make a few observations ou' the lengthy and injudicious letter in the Examiner, signed "J. L. Bailey," and shall simply ask— If one man can perform the multifarious duties of a Secretary to a Board of Works, "to conduct all the correspondence, to attend the meetings of the Board and record tho minutes, to collect the rate, and a hundred other things;" also,-the somewhat onerous duties of a reporter and collector of news to our oldest newspaper; also, to act as Secretary to a Local Board of Education; and also to find time to attend to the duties, of the numerous committees of which he is a member ; could not another, unencumbered by some half-score of these offices, perform the simple duties of surveyor (which includes that of overseer, or seeing that the work b& done 'properly), and secretary ? IPSE DIXIT.

To the Ratepayers, who . did not attend the Public Meeting held at the Odd Fellows' Hall on the Zist instant. y Gentlemen, —Finding that my name'has been rather freely handled in the colunins of the Examiner, under the signature of " J. L. Bailey," I beg to make a few remarks with respect to that effusion. • • yy "- J. L. Bailey says, in allusion to the Board of Works, "no one complains of any abuse of that power," &c. I complained of it at the meeting, and stated that the Board had rated me and others unfairly; and I now say the Board abuses their power by distraining on the property of one person who neglected to pay the rate, and not distraining on the remainder of the defaulters. . And I also state they have abused their powers by expending more of the public monies in salaries than they should have done. The Board abuses their power by attempting to act as architects and engineers to public works that none of them understand, which is evident by Collingwood-street Bridge, i.e., a platform upon slight boxes of stones; a wretched pretence of a culvert in Haven-road; and also a wooden culvert in Nile-street, leading water into a drain through a private road and property. J. L. Bailey says, " the most irreconcilable part of Mr. Hill's speech is this, that * the Board should have gone into agrand land reclaiming scheme in the Haven-road, at the cost of several thousand pounds; but omitted to state where the money was to come from.'" I said the money was to come from the same source as J. L. Bailey says in a line or two further down his letter, " feeling assured that reclaiming a few acres would more than repay expenses." My grand "scheme" was to reclaim 11 acres. ' I again urge the Board have improved the roads near their own dwellings. Look at Bridge and Trafalgar streets ; no less than four of the late Board were interested in those improvements. Look at Collingwood-street, near the Bridge';-., the gravel is put down one side the horse road instead of down the centre, thereby not giving fair play to others, for the side of the' road that is gravelled adjoins property of a late member of the Board. Five then, of the late Board, to my knowledge, are unduly benefitted in roads near tlieir dwellings, while one of the members,*who scarcely ever attended, and could not look after his interest, has still a bad road to his residence—Brook-street to wit. . . '

I am, gentlemen, respectfully, I. M. HILL.

To the Editor of the Colonist.

Sra, —My name having appeared amongst others, concerning a public meeting at the Court House, which meeting was adjourned to the Odd Fellpws' Hall, on Friday last, and terminated by successfully carrying a very important resolution by a large majority, I regret that my occupation would not allow me to take an active part in either of those meetings; but I, as well as the bulk of the other inhabitants, cordially approve of the objects for which, those meetings were called, viz., not to vilify the Board either' personally or collectively; but, throwing aside all personal feelings, nay, at the risk of sacrificing friendships, come forward boldly and state what we believe to be a public grievauce, and get that grievance redressed as quickly as possible. I am quite sure that a very moderate tax is not the grievance; a paid secretary is not the grievance; but it is the misapplication of the proceeds of taxation, palpable as it must he to.every ratepayer. The extensive powers given to' the Board are also objected to; but jthe Board of Works is scarcely to be blamed for it, they are rather to be thanked for their gratuitous exertions; and so long as they confined their efforts to drainage and roadmaking, were fairly entitled to the gratitude of the people—and they bad it too. But when they commenced bridging over a mountain torrent, whose banks notoriously give way and shift with every flood, and have already spent a hundred or two, and contemplate spending hundreds more, of money raised by special and general taxation for the same object—(Who will say it is necessary ?) —when that Board is asking for tenders (and presenting premiums for designs) to carry such work up—Who will say it is not time,to speak put and write out on the subject, and, by that me#ns stop the erection of the -6350 cart bridge, ere it has a chance of being swept away by the foaming torrent in as sweeping a. style as their secretary's letter iv the Examiner this morning. Ido not, as I said before, blame the. Board. That is a very wooden thing, and it has lately proved itself capable of withstanding very heavy blows; everything in fact, but the cold, heedless waterfloods of the river Maitai.

We must rest the blame, if any, and I must be pardoned for saying so, on the carpenters who planed and erected such a Board—l mean the Provincial Council—for instituting so unreasonable a comparison as this town with corporate ones a century old in Britain, with no mountain torrents, roads already long formed, and level land to deal with, to boot. Wise men change their minds, and I doubt ..not that the Council will see the wisdom of repealing the Act, substituting one with less" extensive and le3s arbitrary powers, having (as I should say) a clever engineer, with town and country- for his operating field, with Boards of Control over the funds aud management, &c, whose qualifications for membership should be a fair.; amount of prudence and common sense, combined with an earnest - regard for the wellbeing of the district. Their inventive powers will not then be taxed, neither; will engineering abilities be expected, but a careful and jealous eye on the public funds will be the first matter of course expectation of the rate-payers. John Bull, especially in the character of tax-

payer in a new colony, has a right to grumble, and grumble lie will when he sees that he does not get his "quid pro quo " (moneys worth), and thinks it is hardly graceful on the part of the secretary to taunt him with such pedantic quotations as " Ipse dixit" Yours &c, JOHN BULL.