THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, JULY 1, 1907. EXCHANGE OF SITES.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8476, 1 July 1907, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, JULY 1, 1907. EXCHANGE OF SITES.

The Trustees of the Masterton Trust Lands Trust, at their last meeting, discussed the question relating- to the exchange of sites between the Government and the Trustees. The matter is one of considerable importance to the Trust, and, consequently, to the town. It is to be hoped that all of the Trustees are fully conversant with the "history" of the question. For our own part, we believe that if the Trustees, as a united body, were to put the position exhaustively before the Government it is quite possible that they could get the Government to agree to the exchange without any payment by way of equality of value on the part of the Trustees. We do not propose to deal again with the various features of the question, but it is, perhaps, as well to point out that the Trustees have no power whatever to make any payment in connection with the exchange, and that if one empowering act —we refer to the Act of 1902 — has proved valueless, there is nothing to show that another empowering act may not be equally useless in assisting the exchange. One of the successful candidates at the recent election stated, in an address to the voters, that the Trustees had "missed their market." This Trustee, apparently, fully recognises that at one time the Trustees had "a market;"—can he explain how they missed it? Also, if the Trustees have "missed their market," why it should have been possible for them to miss it? Instead f hastily forming a deputation to wait upon the Minister for Justice, the Trustees would, probably, be moving more judiciously if they were to consult their solicitors in regard to the position. The Trustees, of course, have no power to compel the exchange upon any terms—and everyone knows that the Empowering Act of 1902 only gave the Trustees legal power to exchange—-but the circumstances that gave rise to the passing of that Act, and the intention of the Legislature when that Act was passed, are, in our opinion, well worthy of representation to the Government. We have no doubt that the Government only desires to deal

fairly with the Trustees,' who, instead of "missing their market," should make every effort to put the equitable position before the Government.

THE DRAINAGE OP THE BOROUGH.

The special meeting of the Masterton Borough Council, convened for tomorrow evening, for the purpose of considering the engineer's report on a scheme for the sewerage of the whole of the Borough, is one of very considerable importance. Dr. R. H. Makgill (District Health Officer) has informed the Council that there is need "for a complete re-organisa-tion," and it is this fact that the Borough Council hf.s to face. An extension of the drainage system in accordance with the requirements of the Borough, and necessary improvements in the present system, so far as it goes, involve the expenditure of a large sum of money. The Borough Engineer (Mr Douglas Dobson) has submitted an exhaustive report, and the cost of the work mentioned therein amounts to £26,775. But to that sum must be added the cost of land and other items, so that the Council have really to consider the expenditure of some £30,000 in connection with Borough drainage. The question of raising money to carry out whatever system may be decided upon has, also, to be considered, but it is not thought that there will be any difficulty in this respect, as when the appro/al of the scheme by the Health Department has been secured it should be possible to obtain the money from the Government on terms that the Borough Council could not negotiate in any other quarter.

AN ADVERTISING MATTER,

A question of some importance to country school teachers came up at the last meeting of the Education Board in Wellington, when it was proposed that local vacancies should be advertised in country papers. The cost of such a practice on the part of the Board woulrl be very modest, indeed it might prove an economical departure in view of the fact that the advertising rates of country newspapers are cheaper than those obtaining in the city. It is obviously of importance to country school .teachers that they should be aware when "local" vacancies occur, and there is no necessity that they should be put to the trouble and expense of scanning the advertising columns of city papers, when the vacancies can be advertised in papers which are, naturally, of more interest to country teachers. The result of the present system is that vacancies, of which there should be cognizance, are not generally known of in the backblocks, and this lack of knowledge, there is reason to fear, sometimes leads to loss of promotion.