TIMARU HARBOR BOARD.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2471, 2 March 1893, Page 2

TIMARU HARBOR BOARD.

The first meeting of of new Harbor Board was held last Tuesday. Present— Messrs Evans, Stumbles, Flatman, Talbot, Teschomaker, Manchester, Hill, Stuart, Sullivan, Rutherford, and Rhodes. CHAIRMAN. On the motion of Mr Evans, seconded by Mr Stumbles, Mr D. Stuart was elected chairman. INFORMALITY. Mr Jas. Meehan, a candidate at the election wrote bringing under the notice of the Board the fact that the nomination and election of a member for the Makikihi district took place outside the Tirnaru harbour district altogether; there was not even a polliug place in the district, and that, coupled with the time of the year at which the election was held, prevented two-thirds of the ratepayers from voting. There was some discussion on this letter, some members saying there ought to have been a polling place at Makikihi. Mr Manchester stated that the returning officer asked Mr Meehan to secure the use of the school there, and he would make it a polling place, but Mr Meehan did not do so. He also pointed out that an amending Act provided for a polling place being outside the election district. The letter to be acknowledged and the attention of the Waimate County Council and the returning officer be called to the complaint. THE WHARVES. After reading some correspondence, the engineer submitted his report on the wharves. He said the piles were in excellent condition, but some of the , braces requires repairing. The cost £32,000, and they would all have to be replaced within the next 20 years, so it was for the Board to consider what sum per annum they would set aside for that purpose. THE SEW TUG AND DREDGE. The following cablegrams from Mr

John Darling were read : deceived February 7th '• Zeta, Timaru. Work far advanced. Lobnitz refuses alteration. Pump guaranteed, accessible, durable, and work shingle equal any pump. Success absolutely certain. Price Welman'd not reduced. Strongly recommend cable approval, plana sent December." Pveceived February 17th—" Lobnitz absolutely guarantee their pump for shiugle under penalty clause. Mailing guarantee, contract mailed December.

Onmiot alter now. You must complete coutracfc Lobniti. Early delivery certain." Mr Evans did not see that they must complete Lobuitz's contract. There were specifications that the Board had signed, and Lobnitz should sign them also. It was noc business.

Two letters from the Board's solicitors relating to the cables were road, advising the Board to insist on their conditions. As far as the pump was concerned the Board had stipulated that it was to be a Welmau or equal to a Welman, and this appeared to be complied with. in reply to an enquiry Mr Marchant said the boats wouli be the same. The dilference in the specifications was that the Board provided for a good deal of detail, while t.e builders Avere more general, iu one case a good deal was left to the builders' discreton that in the other was stipulated for in black and white.

Mr Evans would insist upon the Board's specification's being adhered to. flie whole thing was done in a hurry ; it was a great mistake from beginning to end, and now they were in they must get out of it the best way they could.

Mr Hill asked what was the date of the last meeting of the Board, and was told February Bth. The telegrams and (Solicitors' letter received on the 7th, should, he said, have been laid on the table before the .Board on the Bth, but they were not. The whole business had been done sub rasa. Not one of the old members now on the Board knew anything at all about it. The secretary explained that the communications were not brought before the Board because, by a resolution, the chairman and Mr Gibson were instructed to execute a contract and see that a similar 0110 was executed by the contractor, and the solicitors th mght it was their responsibility to see it carried out. That w;;g the reason the telegram and letter were not road to the board.

Mr Hill contended that nothing should have been kept buck fruni the board.

Mr Evans moved and Mr Sullivan seconded—" That the finance committee be instructed and empowered to consult the board's solicitors with reference to to the legality or otherwise of the withdrawal of the Maun or other special funds towards the payment of the new tug dredge, and other doubtful legal actions of the late board, and report to next meeting."

Mr Evans said this would deal with the letter from the solicitors regarding the tug contract. It was very desirable to have everything on a legal footing, The inquiry could not do any harm ; arid they all had full confidence in theirsolicitors, who had pulled them through. gravo difficulties before. The specifications of tjip tug dredge contract werg very important, and the solicitors said the board's specifications must be signed. No one would accept such doings in his private business.

Mr Manchester asked for more details, the resolution was too general in "other special funds" and "other doubtful legal actions.?;'

Tho chairman pointed out that the x-' solution asked the solicitors to o.y their vwu work

Mr Hill would like to explain why he had not attended the later meetings of the standing committee. He and Mr Stumbles used to attend regularly till at one meeting Mr Gibson drew up a report with reference to the ordering of the dredge, which he (Mr Hill) refused to sign, and hi asked the chairman to enter his protest against it, as illegal, and Mr Stumbles did the same. The meeting was declared closed, and they went away. It appeared that Mr Gibson and the chairman then went to consult the solicitors, and instead of bringing up the report of the committee at the next meeting of the board they brought five or six isolations drawn up by the solicitors, to make their illegal action legal. From that time he never attended any meetings of the standing committee, feeling that he had been illuaed and unfairly treated, in business being done after he had left the meeting. The allocation of those funds, he contended, was illegal, and it was the duty of the committee to inquire into that. The money was still in the bank, he understood, on fixed deposit. There should have been notice given of a motion to rescind the former resolution, so that every member would have notice of the business. They deprived the Mana of her insurance fund. Suppose she went out and was lost; there would be a dead loss to the board. Mr Flatman asked the mover to erase the word " doubtfull." The word was obnoxious to some of the old members, and if there was anything " doubtful" the inpuiry would show it.

Mr Evans agreed to do so. Mr Talbot, referring to the motion, said they might expect that sort of thing perhaps. It was a direct insult to the board that had gone out. Nothing had been done; the money had not been sent away. A contract had been entered into, and the money must be found to meet it. What Mr Hill said about the Mana insurance fund being taken was wrong. It was not an insurance fund but a renewal fund, and if it went into a new boat it would be devoted to the purpose it was intended for. The motion, however, was quite in accordance with what they might have expected Mr Evans to do. It was excessively small. (Mr Evans : Mr Chairman !) To say that the late board had done things utterly doubtful and probably illegal was going out of their way altogether. (Mr Evans : But you are one of them too). Everything had been done under legal advice, and now they were going to ask the lawyers if their advice was correct. Not a penny had been touched that could not be rightly touched, and any member could give notice of motion to rescind the resolution at next meeting. But the money must be found in some way or other.

Mr Flatman did not agree with Mr Talbot that there was no necessity for this inquiry. They found that specifications had not been signed correctly (that was done on the other side), and they must see the necessity for any inquiry into that. Still, it would be wise, it would be better for them to forget the past, as the chairman had requested them to do. No doubt it was hard to do, but they should not come there to nag at each other, but to do the best they could for the future. (Hear, hear). He hoped they would support the chairman in his wish, and not come there to crow over enemies by jumping on them now they were in a minority. He trusted they would try to conduct the affairs of the. board in a gentlemanly manner. That, was his reason for asking Mr Evans to erase the word " doubtful." They had a perfect right to inquire into anything that appeared doubtful, and something had cropped up that seemed to demand inquiry. For his own part he had nothing to do with the past, in the way of faiflt- finding, whatever other membei'3 might have. Mr Manchester said that the resolution was so vague, and there was such a rakiog-up aspect about it that he did nof. approve of it. That was why he wanted the subjects of inquiry specified. It was too general a raking-up, as if nothing had been done right. The chairman: The specified points are the withdrawal of the Mana and other special funds, and the position of the Lobnitz contract. It was very necessary that the position of the contract should be ascertained. Mr Manchester: Here is the further « and other legal actions of the Board." Mr Teschemaker: If they are legal what does it matter ?

Mr Evans : Scratch out " legal," and leave it" other actions of the lato Board." Mr Manchester said it was curious that so much was said about " forgetting the past." He did not think that they should be afraid of the past. But the resolution expressed a general assumption that everything in the past had been done wrong; it prosupposed that the whole business of the Board had been illegal, wrong, doubtful If Mr Evans could specify anything, as had b3en done in reference to the funds and the contract. Cculd he specify anything else / He (M r Manchester,) objected to a general raking-up motion like that. The chairman again pointed out that the motion asked the solicitors to repot t upon work they had already done. He did not see the imputation that MiManchester saw iit it. It demanded information upon one very important matter, the Lobnitz contract; the Board certainly wanted information about that. But any contract entered into must be carried out.

Mr Toscheiitaker objected to the motion, but would vote for it if it specified the subjects of inquiry. (Mr Evans : Let it alone then ) The committee could do anything under that resolution. (Mr Evans : Most decidedly.) The motion as amended was then put and carried, Messrs Teschemaker, Talbot, and Manchester opposing.

4 GENERAL ENQIRY

Mr Rutherford moved and Mr Rhodes seconded, a motion drafted by Mr Evan a —" That a committee bo appointed compaising the whole of the members of the board for the object of making enquiry into ways and means and the most economical manner of working the port, to report to the next ordinary meeting." Messrs Talbot and 'j'osclieinaker objected to this resolution, but it iv>is can'ied. the meeting to bo next ftO-tUT' 1 "",. at 11 a.m. 'UAV OF IUEETI.NT;. It was resolved to hold ordinary u>eetings as < heretofore, on the "Wednesday in each month. HAKIiOK HAXP. A resolution was passed striking the harbor rate for the current year, at the same rate as last year, 3-KHhs of a penny in the £ : to bepayahlo in two sums, on ,\prU Ist and October Ist, this year. The" amounts to be levied on the respective local bodies are—Borough ■of Timaiu, £322 7m '-'d ; CJeraldino County, ,<3 r >:K> l'<}<: Id; Waitnate County, ;!■]]4B !-l; 0,1 ; Mackenzie County., .t-bO 0s 4d ; total, iWSO7 ]i>. i.d. A i'osoltxtion was carried asking for a .•i-Viirn allowing the number of days the ('li-vilji'.' hid been working, and the meet\,\Z terminated,