GERALDINE COUNTY COUNCIL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2059, 14 June 1890, Page 2

GERALDINE COUNTY COUNCIL.

The Greraldma County Council met ° D n ,. Wednesday, present Messrs Baltour (chairman), Mackay, Moore, Howell, Qmnn, and Barker. The chairman reported that the Levels Eoad on Tuesday agreed to take charge qf the Tengawai bridge in respect of small repairs on behalf of the council. During the month, before instructions had reached the Lejrels Board, he was informed of a dangerous spot in the fridge, and he asked the road board's overseer to attend to it at once.

The chairman alsp read the following I memo. :—The Pareora bridge case, I am informed, will not be taken by tbe Supreme Court at Ohristchurch till the Ist of next month. The chairman of the Qeraldine Eoad Board some time ago wrote to me requesting a popy of the resolutions passed at the recent conference in Ohristchurch to b,e spnt to him, to be placed before a meeting of ratepayers at G(-eraldine, and which was done. A meeting of ratepayers was held at Geraldine last week, and these resolutions were considered. I wish particularly to refer to the first resolution passed at this meeting referring to the fjrst resolution passed at the conference in Ohristchurch re water-races, which is as follows, yiz.: "That in the opinion of the conference it was desirabfe that a separate Act be obtained dealing exclusirely with water-races and irrigation, and that such Act should | be on the lines suggested by Mrl

Joynt iu a letter to the county council; that copies of the proposed Bill should be supplied to the various county councils, and their assistance sought ia gettiag the same passed." After some discussion, the following resolution was passed by the G-eraldine meeting: " That no extended powers ot rating be given to the county council prior to takiDg the vote of all the ratepayers in the districts in which the rate is to be struck." The Geraldine ratepayers appear to have assumed that we desire to get extended powers of rating re. water-racea, This is not the case, nor is there anything to warrant such an assumption in the resolution passed at the conference, and which I have just read, but the ratepayers seemed to think that there must be something in the proposed " Water-Supply Act" in that direction. This proposed Act was carefully considered at the council's meeting a fortnight ago, and you will agrae with me that there is not one word of extended powers of voting in it. The Act is intended to simplify the whole question of water-supply, and to make it more workable than it is at present, but the question of rating and borrowing is scarcely the same as now. There is nothing in the Act having reference to the RangitataOrari case, it being all of general application. I was authorised at the last meeting of the council to see if anything can be done to provide for our particular case in reference to the vexed question of the money ewing by the Eangitata-Orari water-supply district to the general fund. The ratepayers themselves acknowledge that, at any rate, the amount actually expended for works done is due, though they object to the law costs. I think that in the event of the waterrace district requiring considerable extension some portion of the debt might be repaid, and that an amendment to the proposed Act to that effect might be got, nor would it entail any more cost or rates on the existing district, nor yet on the extended portion than it would have to pay for the water in any case. Mr Moore said after he had explained what the Bill really meant the resolution passed at G-eraldine was altered.

In reply to Mr Howell, Mr Moore said that the meeting was not a representative one. When the meeting opened there were twenty or thirty present. When the resolution re"specting the bridges was carried it was late. Many had left, and he did not think there were more than a dozen country ratepayers present. Mr Howell hoped that would be made public, and referred to a letter written by Mr Tripp, in which he stated that the law costs in the hilcock case were £1075. That was surely wrong. The law costs of the case were £6OB lis 6d; payment for work done, £466 10s 4d

The Woodbury ranger reported that it was a common practice at Woodbury village for the people to block the race to flood their sections.

The resolutions passed at the Geraldine meeting were briefly discussed. On a resolution relating to charitable aid Mr Moore stated that Mr Flatman referred to the large amount of county rate uncollected ; he objected to paying interest on overdraft for the convenience of those who did not pay promptly.

The secretary stated that he had collected one-third of the rate within six months, which he considered better than usual. Instructions to sue for unpaid rates were given at the previous meeting.

On the resolution respecting bridges, agreeiag to pay a rate for keeping up the bridges, Mr Quian doubted whether the meeting was a truly representative one.

Mr Barker thought the meeting made a good point in saying that the council did not pay any attention to the opinion of their legal adyiiers, Mr Howell said the Supreme Oour fc would settle the question of the councils duty accqrding to the law, and, if it went against the council, then all the counties might combine to obtain an alteration of the law. In fact, the conference had already agreed to seel? that alteration.

Special orders were signed increasing the harbor rate for the year, and striking an additional rate of onesixteenth of a penny in the pound on thp Raqgitata water-supply district for interest on sppplementary loan Other special orders were made delegating the collecting of the harbor rate to the smaller local bodies within the county, and striking maintenance rates in the Orari-Waihi water district of 2£d per acre, and in the G-eraldine Flat district of 3d per acre. Mr Moore said the ratepayers of the Geraldine Flat district had asked him whether they could not be freed from the maintenance rate if they agreed to keep the races in order themselves +f the council could not do this it might be well to obtain power in the new Bill.

Mr Howell said they would call for tenders, and a ratepayer could take the work as cheaply as he liked under arrangement with the others, but the council must have some one person in charge of them.

Mr Marchant stated that the contractor for the Geraldine Flat races was four months over contract time The penalty was $lO a week- ™' contractor said he could not get men m harvest time, and thft W f Y W ° Uld nofc aocoSt for the whole four months, and the work was not finished yet No t,ce

had been given him when the contract time had expired that he was required to finish in six weeks, and that after that time penalties would be enforced. Accounts amounting to £24-0 2s 4d were passed for payment, and the council rose.