The Wairarapa Daily. WEDNESDAY, JULY 19, 1882. THE ROAD BOARDS BILL, 1882.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 4, Issue 1129, 19 July 1882, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. WEDNESDAY, JULY 19, 1882. THE ROAD BOARDS BILL, 1882.

Tiir above Bill, to which Major Atkinson Ims given liis name, is' so full of virtues and faults that its passage through Parliament will be a very hard travail. The present House of Eeprosentatives is eminently fitted for legislating 011 such questions, but wp fear that the .Major is embodying in his Bill his own exalted sentiments rather than the collective wisdom of M.H.R.'s from country districts. The measure is to be commended inasmuch . as it proposes to substitute one uniform Act in place of some forty Provincial measures which are now in i existence. It is also to be admired for those of its provisions which are intended to bring the boundaries of Counties and Eoad Districts into harmony. The weak point of the Bill is . an attempt to cheapen by Act' of Parliament the cost of administering Road Districts. The first economy in this direction is singularly enough to authorise the payment of salaries to chairmen of Boards. We fail to see the exact advantage to be derived from this innovation, but possibly it will suffice if the Major himself discovers it. Another reduction to be effected is the doing away with that very admirable safeguard, the Local' Elections Act, and introducing in place of it the primitive custom of open voting. We shall be very much surprised if this change is generally welcomed even though it leads to dirt cheap elections. Another proposal is singularly simple, viz., that the Provincial. Auditors shall audit all the Eoad Board accounts. Experience in this district has proved that this kind of audit is an utter, farce and a nuisance, The law provides for the periodical publication of the accounts of certain local bodies, but owing to the dilatoriness of the Provincial auditors or probably the difficulty of their being in ten places simultaneously, the law,, is' regularly and systematically broken. It is said that the audit when, after many days it is obtained, is utterly valueless as a check on improper expenditure, but is merely a guarantee of a proper observance of red-tapeism in accounts, Those who are familiar with the Working of Highway Boards in the Wellington provincial district must bo well aware thai extravagant administration is not by any means a characteristic of them, The Boards have, wo fear, asked the Government for bread and got a stone in the Major's Bill. Some of the Boards 110 doubt pride themselves that their working expenses are only perhaps five per cent on their revenue, and will scarcely thank the. Government for shewing them how to carry on for' 4 or 4| per cent by the introduction of inferior methods of election and by sub-' stituting inefficient for efficient methods of publication. We think that by-the time this Roads Bill gets• througiit the House it will- be'So battered ; that its own father will hardly recognise it. •

The: Turkish route; is inierrapted beyond TJusrah. K..'\'y'<,-■.... The Masterion'Foresters hold an ordi* nary meeting td'-moirrow evening.-

Last ; evening the "Borough Counoil voted 120 in aid of the funds of the Mosterton -Fire Brigade. This' i>rant will enable the brigade to.clear off* all liabilities to date*

Mr Adauu and his young daughter were ootniniiled Id lrial for conspiracy at Wellington 10-day, ,% ■ \ \ About 7.35 last evening a chimney: at Mr Nicol's residonce was observed to, be. burning and the liro bell alarm. A.few members'of tho.. brigade turned out, but the. ignited flue I was put' out almostinstantaneously, i"

• Wo w ere plonsod to : notice a ;Bomq'whal general' expression of opinioivinf; fa'vqr of a loan at the meeting of.; the•'-,Masterton] Borough Council • • last, ■ ovening. Oirancillora cannot do justice to ratepayers wiihottt resorting to one,-. ....'..

■.At the KM. Court, Greytown, yesterday, Peter Linn was brought, before Messrs'Revanß and Spratt, J.'P.'s, on a charge of having stolen on the 18th- of September last, a horse, saddle and bridle, the properly of Fritz Schluter, who was then in prison on a ohargo of distilling whiskey. The evidence was very voluminous, amUho caso occupied the | Couvt for a considerable time, when it was adjourned till Tuesday fortnight for the production of a witness who was not in attendance, Bail was allowed. 'i >' . The Legislative Council has thrown out that very crude production of the Lowor House " the Bight Hours Bill." .;;. An advertisement of the National Ere and Marine Insurane Company of New Zealand appears in another column.

• Applications aro invited for several appomtmentsiindor the Education Board. The first of a series of. grand. popular concerts fpr the 'benefit of the Institute and Debating Society will bo givon next Tuesday evening. Great energy ia being displayed in organising tho affair which will no doubt be successful from all points of view.

Constublo Fleming and Leahy are out aftor some deserters from H.M.S., Nelson who have been i raced to this district. > The directors of the Gieytown Butter and Choeae Factory Company meet on' Monday next at 10.30. a.m.- to consider tenders, for additions to I'aKtury building, &C.' ." • ; Considerable alarm \yas created in .Grey, town, last evening-through one of the Institute chimuoys catching fire, Luckily everything about was in a damp 'state, otherwise' a serious flio might have been the'result, as large flakes of burning soot were blown about in all directions.■•• ;■

Messrs F. H, Wood & Co., sold the.tim ber, &c, of the old Waiohineßridgeyeator. day, tho whole lot realizing about i!3O.

The Greytown Footballers are requested to roll up for practice to-morrow afternoon, as it is probable the second fifteen to play Wellington on the 29th will be selected after the practice. We are sorry to hear that a young lady, the youngest daughter ot Mr 0. A. Vallance, fractured her leg just übovo the ancle ou Monday lust by a slip when alighting from a buggy at Otahiao. Prompt medical aid was secured,'and the patient is doing as well as possible under tho circumstances.

; 'Mr J. .Bennett has been trying experiments as to the time when s|ock may ho safely placed on land 'which'has prcviviously been laid down wilb- poisoned grain, He has ascertained that the poison nfter it has luiii a is innocuous. A young lons.c.- which he: fed with it after this interval displayed no symptoms of discomfort. A meeting, of the Finance .Oominitlee of the Maalefton'li'ire Brigade', was hold yesterday. Present—Messrs . Paytou, (Chairman), Gray, and iluir. Abaliiice shout for presentation to the Borough Council, wits submitted by the' Secretary and approved, Six new uniforms were ordered to 'lie-procured. The other business was merely of a routine character. At tho Supreme Court in banco this morning his Houor refused tho application of Mr DeLatour lo be admitted ns a barrister of the Supreme Court, Tho discussion on tho .lotiie Rule question will ho resuined on Friday rioxt by the Masterlon Debating Society. There was a good attendance at Messrs Lowes and lorns stock sale to-day. Steers were sold at prices ranging from 17s Cd to £Q. Qom were disposed of at from £3, hacks at M, porkers at 15s and sucking pigs at 6s. The sale of Mr Pulleys buggies and horses was proceeding when we went to press, and there was a satisfactory competition' for each lot. The highest price obtained for a double bugn'y wis $9 lth;;-Mr T; Hill being the ftiirchaser. : N

We have pleasure to announce the, arrival of 6vo cases direct from the Duneden Woollen Factory, containing mens' and boys' clothing, lo the ordet: of Eapp and Hare, Emporium. Two c-'S/'s Colonial made men's: and hoys' boots to the order of lapp and Hare. Three crates of.crockery.direst from Home,; specially' selected for Eapp and Hare, Emporium, MastertOn.—fADVT.!'' '"\ •'■