TE AWAMUTU.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1818, 1 March 1884, Page 2

TE AWAMUTU.

The Wai pa County Council has voted a sum of £220 fur works on the Te AwamutuKihikihi road, and £70 for work in Kihikihi. This is a cheap way of bidding for popularity. It is extremely generous of the council to give us a small portion of our rates to repair the roads in our disti ict, a district fiom which the council demes a larger annual revenue than £220. But before effecting the repairs, or in other words expending the money voted, the council requires that we should still further tax ourselves asifwe arealready not taxed enough. What has become of .ill the money the council received fiom this district? land fund, rates &c. Now that tardy justice is to be done it is announced with a flourish of trumpets. The council says it will be generous to us, and spend half the Government grant on this road above. We can do very well without such generosity ; let us have the amount of our iates received by the council in one year expended on the work and the council can .spend the grant in some pet distiict. It amounts, to this, the council draws targe sums from this district in rates, the money is expended elsewhere, ard when we want some veiy necessary works done we must consent to still further tax om selves before our wants are attended to. It is time this wretched farce of playing at local self-government was put an end to, and highway boards allowed to spend their own rates and govern themselves. The impression is gaining ground each day that there should be nothing between the highway boards and the government, and when this comes to be fully recognised by the ratepayers, County Counj cils will go the way of all such effete in'-titu- | tions. It is to be hoped the ratepayers will not allow themselves to be hoodwinked by specious ar o 'umenls, but will, on the 18th inst., record their votes against any further taxation. The plans of the proposed works aie at the office of the engineer, Hamilton. Why could they nob In seen nearer home ? Persons interested will have to travel 20 miles because of a fad of that extremely wise body, the Waipa County Council. At a meeting of the licensing commissioners, Mr J. H. Mandeno was elected chairman. Messrs Ooulthar.i and Graham had their mill insured in the New Zealand Company for £300. All the saws, belting, and a good many tools were completely destroyed,, but the engine is not so much damaged a« at first supposed. The fire originated under the boiler, as the part of the building over the engine tvas a mass of flames when the fire was discoveied. A considerable quantity of dry timber was stacked quite close to the building, but fortuuately that escaped. — (Own Correspondent.)