"THE LAY OF THE BRIDGES."

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXVIII, Issue 7988, 17 March 1906, Page 5

"THE LAY OF THE BRIDGES."

A REPLY. (To the Editor). Sir,—Someone, who has sufficient modesty to describe himself as "Juvenal," has recently contributed to your paper what I presume is a poem. I make thia presumption, J may say, through being extremely ignorant of the laws of prosody. But poerr. or "lay," or whatever it is, I assume that a common worker like myself, provided he can make his lelter sufficiently interesting, has a right to reply, and I hope your sense of juetice will enable you to publish the letter I nm writing. I do not know whether your space is valuable, or whether you have many readers; in fact, Sir, I know precious little about you, and I may bay that I ceased to crawl forty odd years ago, and i don't think I could do so again, oven if I were inclined to try. Poets, no doubt, like idiots, are born; bat I think the greatest idiots are' those who grin and gape and jabber while the interests of their town—> their own interests— are fooltd away, while "Juvenal" pipes hia I merry lay. Nero played his harp, and but indifferently, while KoffiS i was burning. The performance was, no doubt, unique; but there is nothing unique about the village j poet, and the position is, Sir, that I behind the feeble jokes of the local 1 wit, men. who have promised to look after the interests of the town, incapable, and let us hope ashamed, shelter themselves. Mr Darnell would dam a river, aud Mr Renall would develop a lake, while that interesting publio spirit, Mr T. G. Hoar, would dispense with the services of the Borough Engineer. It seems to me, Sir, that tnese men that 1 have mentioned want to do something, but they don't know quite what they want to do it for. As a matter of fact, 1 suppose, there is no town woise off than Masterton for men of public spirit and com-mon-sense combined. Every person in Masterton, who has given tbe question the slightest thought, knows that certain work could be carried out in connection with the VVaipoua Bridges that would be of grest benefit to the town. Every holder of properly, in Upper Queen Street is fully aware that improvement of tbe "Northern approach" would add to the value of his property. Every ratepayer is fully aware that the municipal benefits of Masterton are being sold for a song —(but bad as it is, not one of Juvenal's lays, thank Beaven)—to the residents of Lansdowne, who have "bested" our Municipal Fathers. A few years ago the "Outer Ward" was cut off, but to-day you find j:he high pressure water supply for several miles along the Upper Plain road, and gas, no doubt, will be there before long. Of oourse, the moral of it all is that it is better to live outside the Borough than within it. So much for Mr Daniell, Mr Renall and "l'om" Hoar. Is it not reasonable to question the wisdom of the Borough Council in cutting off the "Outer Ward." I do not know what the average value per acre of that land was at the time the severance occurred, but I ,do know that, to-day it is valued at an immensely Higher price. Has it paid the Borough Council to cut off the "Outer Ward?" To pay one's neighbours' debts is no doubt a good Christian prinoiple, but to pay one's neighbours' rates seems to be a little absurd. In regard to Lansdowne, a well-populated suburb, where the atmosphere is said to be extremely healthy and where building is proceeding every day, the Borough authorities, if they were worth their salt, would have taken care that Lansdowne became a part of Masterton. As it is, Lansdowne baa secured various municipal benefits, and it now turns up its un-aristo-oratio nose at the ratepayers in Masterton,' who have been placed in a deplorable position by men like "Tom" Hoar. Sir, I can see no point in- "Juvenal's'! foolery. If Mr Renall or Mr Daniell are going to do anything for the town, they must come down.from the clouds and \pppioach the ratepayers with reasonable suggestions, at the same time safe-guarding the ratepayers' interests by vigoiously calling their attention to the need of united and effective action where tbe interests of the town are concerned. Damming a river and budding a Jake may be very pleasant ijaatters for cogitation on Sunday afternoon, especially if the tea is not too strong, but the northern approach, as it has been termed, is simply a disgrace. Of Gourse, I as aware that tbe Waipoua Bridge is not wiihin the boundary of the Borough, but what I want to know is wh,en the Borough Council is likely to wake up and look after the interests of the town in a broad-minded manner. Even that poor, limp, lame body, the Chamber •of Commerce, recoanises that "the northern approach" is unsatisfactory, out the Borough Council would sooner give away the birthrights of the people than either bring the bridges within the Bor ough area or agitato for the County Council to authorise an expenditure, which any. respectable County Council would have authorised years ago.—l am, etc., A WORKER.