The Temuka Leader THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 1880.

Temuka Leader, Issue 227, 22 January 1880, Page 2

The Temuka Leader THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 1880.

The meetings of the Geraldine County Council since tne Act was brought into force are not reassuring as to its future success. That the necessity for the Act being brought in was urgent is clearly proved by the amount of work it has already on hand to start with A little longer delay, and a complete muddle of the public business would have been the result. ’ he slaughter licese business, for instance, offered at no remote period to become disorganised The Slaughterhouse Ordinance, like tna County Council Otdinance, is a perfect jumble. Had not the Council taken it in hand, numerous lawsuits would have resulted. Clause 27 says;—“Any person can slaughter his own stock to the extent of two bullocks a week for sale, ‘f he pleases, without a license ; if over two bullocks a week he must keep a book.” It dues no: say (hat tie must pay -a license, or come m.dcr the control of the inspector ; nor doss it say bow many sheep or pigs (if any) ho can daughter. !■: ’ury be n hundred, perhaps ikwowno, -a-r. J 0n;,.;, ;0,3 the —;,il

T.:B >1 , lIS ' |S ilg.liljKt th wb-iK- s rit of tin* Aft, hence the possibility of » Bu..c * of Magistr ilu-; ru dug th.it tin* shuuditer r must pay afi i-. Thunks to t.l»e C •nncil, th t ci use is row git over b_> a fixed lic'iise f t ;i fixed nunihir of Log- m* said c ■ fct ■ to two bulm.-ks a week, or ten sai l'- c-tllu a week by paying i smn nf L*2 p r annum in advance, a'd others to pay a license of L 5 in advance, Tims the m itb r "s set at re ;t, and the duties of L ,e inspector will now be more fully devoted to tiie interests of pub do health, the interests of stocxovvnc *s, and the detection of theft. This and the appointing of a representative to the Tima.ru High S bool may be said to he about all the bushie-s that has been done during a sederunt of four or five hours of two days’ sittings. A good deal of unseemly wrangling look pi we over a resolution passed at the first limed" iug of (be first C uinc'l, to the effect that all future meetings sh mid be hold in Tcinnka. To the surprise of th i nor \ hern members of the Gunnell, a motion was tallied hy the MouutC mk member —“That the former resolution be rescinded, and that Timaru be the place of meeting’> This has been the p dicy nf all those in terested in tlv> welfare of Tmmni ever since the Cum tie i Act became law. Mr E. Wakefield did his best to upset the Goraldiae County, evidently for the very reason that lit cmild not get the meetings to bo held in Titnarn. Other reasons were oste i dbly put forward, such as discontent with the Chairman, etc. Toe action of that g -ntleman, however, hy his promptly resigning in order to allow the county a trial, and test the sincerity of Mr Wakefield, destroyed that argument ; but the remedy proved worse than the disease. A Chairman to Mr Wakefi Id’s fancy w.s duly elected ; and what then ? Did Mr Wakefield then allow the county to proceed unmolested? Our readers can judge ! During the last session of Assembly, he showed (very barely) the cloven foot; and what was the result ? The same as is always the result of crooked proceedings : disgrace to the i’ triguespuid a complete destroying of all confidence between the mischief-maker and those who had trusted him as their “ friend.” Toe Thuaru gentleman not taking warning from the downfall of a funner manoeuvre!*, proceeded to follow up the same course, and, we predict, with the same result following. They may be able to remove the meetings to Timaru, although it is contrary to the spirit a >d warding of the A-t, which says that the Council,“whe : more convenient ” “may ” meet out of the county.

It w as [ reposed and secomed by members who live in Timaru —“ That all future meetings be held in Timaru.” The

reasons given are —Because it is the capital of South Canterbury ; that it is more convenient to a majority of the mem a era and that offices and officers can be more easily obtained than in Temuka. Would it not have been better for mover and seconder to have put the truth in plain English :

“ We want this resolution carried because it wi’i help Timaru to secure its supr macy, and help to destroy the growth of rival inland towns. A proof of this c, ntralising policy was given iy a member at the first sitting. A certain member spoke in favour of a small bridge over a certain sheet of water in the McKenzie Country ~sa necessity, t! Oh,” says asouthern member, that would draw the traffic away from Timaru to Oainaru.” Here is patriotism for you ; thi s boats the Hon. Member for Geraldine hollow. The McKenzie Country must not have a bridge because it might injure tlre traffic of Timarn. Temuka or Geraldine must not have the meetings held there, because it would detract from the influence of Timaru. Unfortunately the Chairman, feeling himself secure m his mountain fastnesses, cares not, apparently, for the interests of tire inland townships. Wc do not insinuate that that genllemai will act inconsistently ; but it is:a striking coincidence that ho happens to be quite independent of the success of die interior of the country. Unfortunately, there has arisen a jealousy of Temuka by the other townships in tiro northern part of the country. Why this should he we are at a loss to discover, as wo cannot point to a single instance whore Temuka his tried to detract from the influence of those townships. As for ourselves, we have always advocated that tbe inland towns should hand together, to protect themselves against being swallowed up by Timaru.

As proof of the sincerity of our statement, we will add that we would advocate the county meetings being held at Winchester or Geraldine as readily as Temuka, because their interests are the same. We hold, inoveover, that it is illegal to hold meetings out of the county, because it can be clearly shown that it is uot m me convenient, nor even so convenient for the majority of members to hold the meetings in Timaru.- Take (he member for Mount Peel, for instance : lie would have to travel thirty miles to Timaru ; (he Geraldine member would have to travel from twenty-five to thirty miles to Timaru ; and the two Temuka representatives would have to travel twelve miles each. Two other members live in or rear Aiimu’ii, auu one ten miles off. Now four members (fcho majority) would have, ,oi.o; them, to travel about r-iehty I ■oei ■> '-.of' our * at 'limaru. wi.j.o f,ho

>hrce members, amongst them, would |i ,vo to travel only tun or twelve mile*. NoeO we add more to p o’e that it is illegal to hoi I meeting•< out o r the con ty, tiecanse this is only perui't'ed wlieu P i>; more convenient to do so, which is not (lie -use, so far ns the G ra'dine County Conn il is concernel? L-t ns suppose, for a moment, that it is decided to hohl the meetings in Timaru, and wli t then ?—The mxt stop wouM he to move for another member for Mount C ok ; and the able Chairman of the ( u ci! being by bis deserved suers •. as a sheep farmer quite indepeudetu of tesu ts, has hinted that he would not be ng :.nsf sii'di a motion. Again wo say— What then? Two members for Mount Co. k w--mid-balance the county, and all that would he thou wanting would be to elect a Chairman residing in Timaru, which woul I soon be a necessity, and what (hen? Four members and the Chairman, with In's influence ; also Clerk, Treasurer, and other officers living in Timaru, and how would the interests of Geraldine, Winchester and Temuka b ‘ treated ? The Board of Works’ proceedings woul 1 then he repeated in a tenfold more detrimental form.

Wo deny the right of Mount C >ok having i. nothin- member, unless Geraldine has am'her also. If wc are to go by acreage or nnmb'T of sheep belonging to a riding, then Mount Conk shoidd have three mom bers, and Mount Pul two ; but we presume the number of human t inhab tants h 's sour thing to do with it ; if so, Mount (Junk has no claim. This, however, is not the wav a question is argued in the Council. A meaib ’r of a riding north of Ti mini throws in his lot with the South rn members in this, as in o’lmr matters. So far as the connt} T has yet proceeded, the consequence is that, as the Council is now constituted, the Tim mu members may bring forward any motion they like, with the certainty of swa nping line Geraldine and Temuka representative, and vTtnally make the Geraldine County Council a Timaru institution. B fore this question of removing the meetings of the Council to Timaru is decided—which, wo are sorry to say, lies entirely in the hands of the Chairman—we would advise that a plebiscite of the e'ectors within the county be taken. This is a mode not unfrequeutly adopted in Timaru ; surely its faithful sons would not opens- this course to determine the will of th i people. We go farther, and say that the C lainnan is not entitled to use Ids pow-T against the wish of the majority of the Council and pmplo. It would be well, however, for the people to bestir themselves before the rmx' mooting cornea on on February 19th, and not allow themselves to he k inded over td'ndfo!d to the destruction of their i ter -sts. Timaru raises a groat h c.vl against L;, t eiton and Dunedin fur their comr.di ing policy, but, when it comes to its turn, it shows the same s; irit in a much more uncharitable way.