THE Temuka Leader. TUESDAY, MAY 24, 1892. TRUTH OR FALSEHOOD.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2360, 24 May 1892, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. TUESDAY, MAY 24, 1892. TRUTH OR FALSEHOOD.

Ix moving the resolution for purchasing the shingle-shifting plant at the last meeting of the Harbor Board, Mr John Gibson said that (>OOO tons of sand or silt was collected at the end of the breakwater. Replying to this, Mr Jacob Hill Hill turned up a book containing a record of the soundings taken by the harbormaster. and showed that the depth of water was greater, if anything, now than it was two years ago. The chairman explained this discrepancy away by say ins that the silt had been removed. Mr Gibson said the silt was there ; the chairman said it had been removed ; but the soundings taken by the harbor master said in effect that no silt had accumulated there at all. When this state of things had been readied the engineer, who had been sitting at the other end of the room, came past the chairman mid all the other members and whispered 1111:0 Teschemaker’s ear, but what it was he said we are not in a position to say. Immediately, Mr Teschemaker got up and wanted the engineer to explain the matter, but the chairman, probably thinking the muddle had been stirred up enough already, replied that the engineer had nothing to do with it—that the soundings had been taken by the harbour master, _ It was Mr Teschemaker who originated the shingle-shifting scheme : it was he called <a private meeting, and it was at that private meeting it originated. Was it the engineer who put up Mr Teschemaker to call the private meeting ? The fact that the engineer ran across the room to Mr Teschemaker, and that Mr Teschemaker demanded a hearing for the engineer, is suggestive of some private understanding between the pair. Now let us remember that there was not a single word about dredging until recently. Mr Merchant in the first instance had nothing to say about it : Messrs Goodall and O’Connor breathed not a syllable about it; Messrs Napier, Bell, and Wilson, took not the slightest notice of it, and it was not even dreamt of, until the majority of the board found themselves driven into a corner. It was then that Mr Gibson discovered that the harbour was silting np : and it was only at the last meeting he announced that 0000 tons of silt had collected at the end of the breakwater. It was this same Mr Gibson who wished to speak to the country last board day ; it was he who said signatures had been obtained by false issues having been put before the ratepayers, no doubt measuring other, peoples’ capacity for invention by his

own. All we can say is that we do not believe a single word Mr Gibson has said. He thought he could not be detected in any statement he made as regards silt accumulation at the bottom of the sea. but the sounding book split on him, and the explanation of the chairman simply crushed him. This is the way the majority of the board is working, and no doubt it is by some means ot this kind that they have won over Mr Tripp to their side. We wish Air Tripp joy with them. It is the first time we found him in such company. Is it wonderful if Mr Flatman resigned ? He had always been accustomed to straightforwardness and he would not remain where it was not. The majority have won by the most shameless disgraceful conduct that public men have ever been guilty of. they have shown themselves to be capable of anything to carry their point. They first of all tried to frighten the people by attributing corrupt motives to their opponents, knowing full well they were not telling the truth ; they have now come to the silting up of the harbour, and have been contradicted by the soundings book. I urther comment is is unnecessary ; we leave them to their constituents.

HARBOR BOARD FINANCE. At the last meeting of the Harbor Board Mr Talbot said that after purchasing the new plant they would leave the board in as good a financial position as ever. He said the new vessel would cost £12,000, and the Mana could be sold for £12,000 so there would be no difference made in the financial position of the board. Let us see how far this is correct. The estimate of the new vessel is £BOOO, for the dredge and tug, with £3OOO, some say £3500, added for shingle shifting. That makes £11,900 at least. Now there is to be added to this the cost of sailing the vessel from England to New Zealand. The Mana cost £7OO for sailing; and £9OO for insurance, so we may at least add that sum to the estimate given above, and that makes £13,500. Now the next question we would like answered is : Has the board ever had anything done which did not cost more than the estimate? The Mana was estimated to cost about £IO,OOO, but she, cost £12,000. If on that principle—that is the principle of experience—we add £2OOO to the given estimate the price will reach £15,500 without taking into account the fees which must be paid to Mr John Darling, and the cost of cabling tenders. Now the Mana cost £12,000, and Mr Talbot wants to make the public believe that she will fetch that sum second-hand. The board expected to get' £2OOO for the Titan but they only got £2OO for her, that is one-tenth of their estimate. We sincerely hope that the Mana will sell better than the Titan did, but it is not reasonable to believe that she will fetch her original value. She is a second-hand article, and must be sold at a discount, and if she fetched £BOOO, we should say that the board would be very lucky to get it. Lut there is another view of the case. The board must wait until it can get a customer for the Mana, that may not be for years; it is not every day people want tugboats; and in'the meantime it must pay for the new vessel, Tim board lias in hand about £9OOO, and at the lowest calculation it must add £(>000 to this to pay for the new vessel. Where is the £OOOO to PPHIC from V Mr Morris said it could be sut by mortgaging the Mana, but that means £3OO a year interest. That would not be long eating a bole Into the value of the Mana ; and really there will be very little left to the new board to carry on with. THE RATEPAYERS, Messrs Manchester and Talbot at the last meeting of the Harbour Board -aid it had not been ascertained yet that the r«te,,ay«rs • t A - i uade--ghiftmg. P or were against 5... , U S ]lot ) je cool assurance tins cou. matched. At Makikilii, after heai,. 14 Messrs Manchester and Tescliemaker explain their side, only six hands were held up in favour of shingle-shifting. These hands belonged to Messrs Manchester and Tescliemaker, a cousin of Mr and three of Mr Tescliemaker's creatures a family vote as Mr Evans called it. At Pleasant Point, after hearing Messrs Acton and Morris, four hands were help up; at Geraldine, not a single lumd was held up, and at Temuka. Mr Talbot had not even the courage to hold his own hand up. Mr Talbot said he felt justified in doubting that the majority was against him because a majority of the Mount Peel Hoad Board bad approved of his conduct. Just so. He wrote to the Mount Peel Road Board begging of the members to approve of his conduct, and the majority did so, but he took good Care not to attend the meeting of ratepayers, held there, to which he was invited. If Mr Talbot and the majority of the board think the ratepayers are in their favour, why don’t they resign, and test it ? They thought very little of spending £IOOO on an experiment the other day ; they have not hesitated to order money to be spent on cablegrams from London, yet they will not spend some £lO or £ls on testing whether the ratepayers are in favour of them or not. The next election must take place next February; why not do as parliament often does, dissolve and test the question ? Simply because they know

that nine-tenths of the ratepayers are opposed to them ; yet they have the assurance to deny it. Let them try Mr Flatman's seat now ; there is a chance for them to test the matter, let them set up a shingle-shifter, and get him elected, and they shall not hear much more of the opposition to them. There is a clear open challenge to them, will they take it up ?