MAINTENANCE OF ROADS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXIV, Issue XXIV, 26 April 1902, Page 2

MAINTENANCE OF ROADS.

INTEBESTING TO LOCAL BODIES. PEB PBESS ASSOCIATION. Timaru, April 24. Mr. W. S. Short, under the Governor's commission, is now holding an inquiry into the claims made by the Levels County Council under section 8, of the Public Works Act, 1900, against the Geraidine, Mackai zie, and Waimate Counties fur contributions towards the cast of upkrep of L veto roads used by ratepayers of those counties, The claims are fur shares ranging from to |of the cosn of putting the roads in good order and the totiN are Mackenzie £l7O, Geraidine £386, Waimate £ 1026. The Levels engineer i stated that the amounts were made upJ before t-h« Ht? fbois and should be larger now. Evidence in the Geraldice and Mackenzie case*, which overlap, has occupied three d*ys,36 witucssis being examined. Evidence as to the arooußfc of eutside. traffio through the Levels County was very conflicting and, except, for tallies at Arowhenua bridge, was generally a rough estimate. The traffic chiefly complained of in these cases was wool waggons and travelling ■ sheep. Mr. Rolleston, counsel for Mackenzie, intimated that he will argue that wool traffic includes as provided for by section 138 of the Act of 1894, that sheep traffio is not included in the definitions of traffic; that claims of | and 1-6 are not evidence of " large " u e of roads for which the A't provides. Counsel for Geraidine adopts these objections and adds tha". trie claims should have been nude against Timaru and Temuka Boroughs and the several Road Boards in Geraidine County, as those bodies and not the County Council are responsible fur the roads. Counsel argue law prints tomorrow, This is a double commission, the second dealing with the claim that the Waimate share of the maintenance of two bridges over the boundary river Fareora should be increased from a half to In the meantime the commissioner inspects the various toads. I