COUNTY MATTERS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXIII, Issue 7, 20 April 1901, Page 2

COUNTY MATTERS.

MEETING AT INGI,KW(X

Bbtwbrn eighty <ml ninUy person*— the mnjority r/uepiyns - iHUnded the public mo-ting atlnglrwood last night, e jnvoned by the far* County Chuirmsn vo tiiM-utis (l»i n'-y matter?. Mr Henry Hwvn pr. f-\C H l, m,\ tliere were also p.osont Alo*-i-g p,.; Mi McDonald. i. .nil,, Hopson and Mortom (candi- ? a /w r -» M °v a lUdiDe )' and Mr °- la j (Woitara). Mr Okey h. id the poaitieu of the Council had been wde such that it was impassible to do business, owiDg to • section of members continually bringing forward on the tellqufstion. Alchoui-h Mr Price lavauivd abolishing tolls be Still thought Rorau other tax necessary, and to adopt tbu whee!-tix in lieu of tolls Ho therefore recognised that the revenue, without tdla or a wheel-tax was aoc sufficient to keep the roads i% repair. Having failed to abolish tolL this party now desired to get «*>ro gates evocted, so tlwt peop e wouM gat siekom.d of them, and would rissup and demand their abolition. The policy of the las* Council was to keep the tolhj on for another two years, when he oxpocted that the pertible road-makinf plant would be in working order, as the Id crushing pWt w«s worn-out and entailed tco much carting. Handbroken metal wai admittedly the hes*, but labour was unobtainable. There, were two or three bridges which must. almost certainly collapse within tfce> next year or too. Tolls must he kep 1 ; on if the rebuilding of these bridges was to be as the cost entailed was ,£ISOO. Referring to ratesL Mr Okey said the overdraft was greatly increased by the delay in payment of rates; as, for instince, en 31st March. (lass year) it stood at £IBOO, and oa 31st Dfombji', before ratas began to> come in, it had reached 44(500. The new plant would fcave to be paid for out of overdraft, if things did not altor, and the Council as a body did no* wKh to sue the business drift iuto that state. Ho wantod people to bear with tolls far another two years, or else put somothing in their place. The avwge yearly expenditure was£?soo, which would be increased by the 11 miles of the Junction Road lately vestd in the Council, L» B t yMr ft was attompt*.! to -Horace the revenue as follows: Riemjy, £6017 ; chad. table aid, 4417; admioist rat ion, 4678; total, 47112; and to divece 4750 to reduction of overdraft. Instead, the ridings overspent 4693 (of which Mo* took 4223), and Liabilities for contract* amounted to 4558. Haitara showed a credit of £3lB, but liabilities totalled €Bl5, out of which 4200 was set uside for a bridge near Sentry Hill. Of recent expsaditure Opunake had swallowed up a good deal, as that end if tha district, bad Lco.i neglected by the Council for some years. Instead ef the 4750 only 467 remained for reduc'ioo of overdraft, with liabilities, for woi ka in hand, of 42244. Thus it was impossible to do with less then the present revenue. The increased cost of labour and materials had also to be con. sidered.

Mr. Okey than gave a forecast of the position of the Council at tit* end of two yeirs, when he hoped to be able to dispense with tolls. First yearReceipt : General |d. rate .£5500, tolls £2OOO, o:her§oui-oeh £IOOO, total £BSOO ; expenditure : general ,£7250; machinery £ISOO, total, £8750. Second year—Receipts : general |<L rate £6OOO, tolls £2OOO. other source* £IOOO, total £9OOO ; oxjeiiditure r debit bslance £250, uoum-A £7250 bridges £ISOO, total £9OOO. In the third year, without t,»l «, the position •*ot'li U : General |4,, rat* £6OOO, carriers' licanses (s.y) £250, other ■seufOf-i £IOOO, total £7250 ; expenditure : general £7250. ■> ita improved read machinery paid for, and £ISOO >straordinary expenditure on bridge* met, this revenue, Mr. Okey thought, should suffice. Tba speaker then described the muddled state, of the County affairs, wheo Mr. Prices Council weut eat of office, and he reiterated that the ratepayers could not now afford ta i uo any risks in maintaining the road*. The iocreated ti-Bffi.) was such now tb*t the loss of a single day's milk supply in Taranaki would suffice to put all the road&in repair. The lare Council bad managed pret y well, as one f« t would *how, viz., on 31>t March, 1895, thftoverdratt wiss £3470, ::n.l ou sunedate, 190Q, it itooU-, £I7OO. 11,. mis sorry Mr. Hoiroc'.H '.an not * candidate again a& !»•: w,.k. well up in finuic.ial matters, Miuugh he (Mr. Okty) could cot agree j with his financial pioposals in respect I of b.idg^s.

Mr. Okey answered a number of questions, and Mr. Pries then took the platform. His principal pUnk was the. ab litt'on of the toll-gates. Ail the other candidates then addressed the mating in turn, ana! each considered that until the. County finances wme on a s uud footing it would bo un*iso to da away with toll gUfS.

A resolution was carried, on the motion of Mr G. S. Kennedy, reconded by Mr K. Old, " That m«,e- opinio* of ihisimeMiiit it is advisable U coninuo the tolls for another year " Votes o? thanks to Mr Okoy and' to the Chan mas* closed t,ho proceeding at 20 minutes to 11 o'cloek.

[Tho remainder oi our report is unavoidably held over.]