LAWRENCE TOWN COUNCIL,

Tuapeka Times, Volume VI, Issue 312, 13 December 1873, Page 3

LAWRENCE TOWN COUNCIL,

A special' meeting of -the Lawrence Town Council -was held on Thursday evening, to consider a letter which had been received irom Mr. A. Lawson, architect, relating to the Town Hall. There were present-: — Crs., Hay, Hayes, Hffl.-fcnd Armstrong. It transpired at the meeting that>a written request, signed by three Councillors, had been sent to the Mayor to call a meeting, but as he refused to do so, the said councillors called a meeting themselves, under a clause in the Ordinance . which gives th&n that power Cr. Armstrong t?as called toshe chair and opened tbe meeting by reading the clause of j the Ordinance iOipowering three councillors to call » public meeting of the Council, in the ' -event of the Mayor refuging to do so. He etid councillors had been called by circular, •and his ruling was that tbe meeting was in j •order— that It was a legal meeting. Cr. Mears, : who had just taken his Beat, ft&id be wished to lodge his protest <agamst the mbehing, as he ■ -considered -that it was not a public meeting j ■of the Council, being informally o&Hed, and not in accordance with tbe Act, The .prO tert wm recorded when Cr. Hears retired. Mr. -Lawsfln's letter wie then read. The thief feature of the letter was a recommendation to reduce' the extent of the building by 'ogtereleTenth, which would bring the total ■gflirtiuit. within the limit* observed by tbfei Council. On the motion of C*. Hay «econdeU"l by Cr. Htye* the' letter us received. j Cx: Ifvmfud he mi prepared to do one *f ttr«thmg^«tfc«tob^e *iecent Towl fitU «r-none«t«U. fie considered the way ,

the Council were acting in the matter derogatory to them as a public body. If the Council would not agree to shelve the question of a Town Hall altogether, which he certainly would pref ery^he would move that the lowest tender received accepted. There was no seconder to the motion* Cr v Hay moved that the lowest tender be accepted, subject, to the alteration proposed by Mr. Lawson. Cr. Hill seconded*. Cr. Hayes said that it plight be better not to decide upon anything at present, but wait for, a couple of days. He considered the Mayor had treated tho c e councillors who asked him to call a # meeting with great' Sftscourtesy, and very ungcntlemanly. Ho did not wish the Council to do anything as with a high hand. At the request of the chairman > the motion was not put, with the view of consulting the opinion of the absent members. Cr. Hay thought it was the Mayor who had shown discourtesy. A meeting of the Counjjl had been called, the necessary quorum had met, and now councillors were evidently afraid to proceed, The Council then adjourned till Friday, at 3 p.m., and the Town Clerk was instructed to give absent members of Council notice or the same. ■ At 3 o'clock yesterday, there being only four members present, the meeting was again adjourned till 8 o'clock, at which hour only two. councillors put in an, appearance.