EGMONT COUNTY COUNCIL.

Taranaki Daily News, 15 April 1916, Page 3

EGMONT COUNTY COUNCIL.

THE MONTHLY .MEETING, ■ Tlie Egmont County Council met at Opunake yesterday. Present: Crs. M. Fleming (chairman), R. W. J. McNeill, \V. li. Wright, M, J. Macßeynolds, J. Young, T. Harvey and S. Campbell. FOREMEN'S REPORTS, Tile foremen reported:— j Oeo Riding (northern division). —During the past month the staff in this division had been employed at general surface work, carting out maintenance metal, cleaning water-tables, ditches and outlets, etc. The roads treated were t'lie Eltham, Oeo, Opunake-Stratford, Watino and Auroa. Oeo Riding (southern division). —During the month the hands had been engaged principally on Contract No. "280, ! Main South road, laying down 35 chains with pit metal, which has set down very well, considering it has not been rolled. They had also put in a culvert at the junction of Skeet and Putiki roads, and filled it out to a width of thirty feet. Watino road: The worst part of this road had been patched with fifty yards of crushed metal. There were stiil between forty and fifty yards of boulder stone not broken, which would keep this I road passable through the winter. Oeo road lower: The Council's attention was drawn to the state of this road from the Waimate West boundary towards the Main South road. There were about twelve chains that had never been formed and another ten not metalled. The foreman recommended forming and metalling with crushed metal. Rahotu Riding (southern) and Opunake Riding.—During tlie past month the staff had been engaged at blinding, banking-up, trimming cuttings, watertabling, and general bridge repairing on Main South and Eltham roads. Te Namu road culvert: The half cost of this culvert having been refused by the l'arihaka Road Roavd, the foreman asked whether lie should proceed witti same. He recommended tarring and sanding all main bridge deckings. Rahotu Riding (northern).—During the past month the staff had been employed with crushing contracts that are in progress in this division, spreading crushed metal, counter-sinking, blinding and carting water for road-making. The crusher was worked on 21 '/> days. ,iaving crushed 1428 cubic "''yards of metal. The crushing plant was idle lor three days with a break-down, Great difficulty had been met with in getting the crusher to run satisfactorily, the set screw having broken on four occasions. Contract No. 29.1: W. IT. Julian lias delivered tile 120 yards of shingle for the Waiweranui bridge, and I would recommend a progress payment of 75 per cent, on same. Contract No. 28-2: M. Coffey has delivered 1428 yards of crushed metnl on this contract, and the foreman recommended a progress payment of 75 per cent, for amount delivered. Bridge Foreman—During last month the culvert at the top of the Aiiroa road has been repaired, and the timber and bridge gear has been moved out to Die Waiweranui bridge after some considerable delay. I consulted five different people before I could get it moved. I would advise to sell any timber left in the future, as it entails greater expense to have it moved any distance than would ue required to buy new timber. A start lias been made with the construction of the Waiweranui bridge. The reports were adopted. ANZAC DAY. The Under-Secretary for Internal Affairs forwarded a copy of the arrangements suggested bv the Government for celebrating Anzac Day on Tuesday, 25th inst. The letter suggested that a halfholiday should be observed and memorial services should be held, anything in the nature of sports being regarded as unsuitable. It was further suggested that the occasion might be used for recruiting. It was decided to grant the staff of the Council a half-holiday. ABOLISHMENT OF TOLL-GATES. The clerk of the Taieri County Council forwarded a resolution of the Council petitioning the Government to limit the power of municipal councils to erect toll gates and collect bridge tolls by prohibiting the erection of toll-gates or the collection of bridge tolls without the sanction of the Clovernor-in-Council. Cr. Wright thought the Council should support the resolution, and lie asked for some indication as. to what action the Council was going to take in regard to Mr. C. A. Wilkinson's Bill to abolish tnll-gates. Ho moved that the Council should notify Mr. Wilkinson that it would support him in his endeavor to get toll-gates abolished, and at the same time the Egmont Council s-liould bs asked to pay a reasonable subsidy to the Taranki County Council for the traffic passing into the Taranaki County. The resolution was carried. THE AUROA ROAD. The bad state of the Auroa road was referred to in a communication forwarded by the ratepayers to the Eltham County Council recently, and this body forwarded the letter on to the Egmont County Council, adding: "This is a boundary road, and in fairness to this Council's ratepayers the time lias long since arrived when some proper control of this road must be arranged in the interest of. the settlers concerned." The letter added that the Eltham Council] was prepared to do its half of the road in a proper way, and it was hoped the j Egmont Councii would do likewise. The chairman agreed that the road was in a bad state. The Eltham county people had agreed to raise a loan to do their part, but it appeared the Egmont county ratepayers concerned would not agree to raise a loan. He suggested, however, that the matter should be put before the settlers to see if they were prepared to raise a loan. A councillor: Settlers want good roads, but they don't want to pay for them. After some further discussion it was decided to call a meeting of settlers on the Auroa road and ask them to raise a loan for re-forming the road. GENERAL. The clerk reported that, according to the Government balance-sheet, the Council's financial position at March 31, 1010, was:—Oeo Riding, debit £4(ifi; Rahotu Northern and Southern Ridings, debit >£24"o; Opunake Riding, credit £303. This was the position as shown by a new system introduced by the Government, while according to the old system the position was: Oeo Riding, debit £85!); Ra'hotu Southern Riding, debit £518; Rahotu Northern Riding, debit £1119; Opunake Riding, debit £BO. In regain' to the collection of Native rates, correspondence was received to (he effect that ths claims recently made by the Council had not been received by the authorities at Wellington, and consequently the monies could not be paid over. The clerk said the claims had been forwarded, and he could prove ♦hii, while ia any case 'he had received

an acknowledgment from Wellington. He pointed out that the matter was an important one, as about £2OOO was involved. It was decided to again approach the Department, ami if there is no result the matter will he placed in the hands of the Council's solicitor Cr. McNeill reported that thett'aimate County Council was milking good progress towards putting in order its portion of the Oeo Road, and if tin* weather kept fine the work should be completed in a few days. Be thought the Egmont Council should attend to it? portion of the road up to the Waimate Council's boundai'v. About twenty chains of the road required metalling.— It was decided to call tenders for metalling t'lio road. ■lt was decided to raise £IOOO for tlif construction of a' new Puniho bridge, a work which was reported to be urgently required. The tender of H. Munro wt 5s 4d n yard was accepted for the supply of sfio yards of crushed boulder-stone oil the Main South road and 55") yards on the Eltliam road.