The Tuapeka Times. SATURDAY, JULY 11, 1868. "Measures, not Men."

Tuapeka Times, Volume I, Issue 22, 11 July 1868, Page 2

The Tuapeka Times. SATURDAY, JULY 11, 1868. " Measures, not Men."

A letter appears in another column from a Waipofi miner, signed "Cheppy," on the subject of the Warden, which it would be well for the Government to consider. We have on several occasions written upon this matter, and we have done so from a knowledge of the great inconvenience to which miners in and around Waipori have been put from the want of a Resident Warden, or at least a "Resident Clerk and Gold Receiver. In a recent number of this journal we enumerated the large amount of work in progress at Waipori, the numerous water races at work and in" course of construction, the carrying capacity of which will number 220 heads of water, and the large addition which will undoubtedly be made to the Escort when.the races were completed and at work, and, as a matter of course, a corresponding increase of work for the Warden of the district. " It would be useless, nay, it would be unfair, to complain against the Warden, as it is absolutely impossible for any man with a multiplicity of duties, such as rest on his shoulders, to perform his work to the satisfaction of all. Between j his offices of Warden, Coroner, I Registrar, &c, our worthy Magis- j trate must feel himself to be, on many occasions, " between the de'il i and the deep sea," to use an old Scotch phrase. To-day he is away to Tuapeka Mouth to hold an in- I quest ; to-morrow he must go to Waipori ; on the following day several important cases must be heard in Court; the day following he is off to Waitahuna ; and any spare hours that he can snatch from j his onerous duties are occupied at the Blue Spur, Weatherstones, Tuapeka Flat, or perhaps at a further ! distance away, hearing, with the greatest patience, a petty dispute which some litigious miner would not arrange amicably. Now, we must candidly say, it is" quite im- j possible that all these duties oan be satisfactorily performed by one man. We cannot blame the Warden ; nor can we find fault with Waipori miners for their justly bitter complaints against the present arrangement. We know for a fact that the last day the Warden went to Waipori he was ten hours in the saddle, on account of the impassable state of the roads ; and we shall leave our readers to fancy what time this left for business. Something, without doubt, must be done by the Government towards either relieving the Warden of his Waipori duties, or alleviating those duties by the appointment of a Resident Clerk and Gold Receiver. The Commissioners who were appointed to enquire into the management of the Goldfields seem to have been fully impressed with the vast amount of work devolving upon the Warden, as they recommended an addition to the staff, in the form of a clerk, to act as Assistant Gold Receiver; and regarding Waipori, they recommended that the Warden should " still continue to hold a Court there at least once a fortnight." We would recommend, not at least once a fortnight, but at least once a week ; and until some such arrangement is made the work of the district will never be overtaken and carried on satisfactorily. We would strongly recommend the miners of Waipori to petition the Government for a Resident Gold Receiver and Clerk, as a formidable petition has always its good effect in obtaining the desired object. Judging from the past conduct of the Government, no spontaneous action need be expected from it ; and nothing but deep probing will j produce the desired result.