THE PIAKO COUNTY RATE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2060, 19 September 1885, Page 2

THE PIAKO COUNTY RATE.

Ar the meeting of the Piako Count} Gdiincil .it Ciniliiidge on Thiii-.il.iy afteino.ni, on the motion of Ci. Chepmell, seconded by Ci. J. C. Futli, it was agieed to t>tnke a genual uto of ,'d m the £ on .ill the lateablo piopeity m the count}'. — Ci. M.icle.m said he voted foi tin* l.ite condiLioti.illy J'li.it Loiulition w.l th it .ill the iimiilj ) 1 ened theieby uiu^t bo --punt in • educing the coniii'ilV liabilities -Cr. v-toni'l said hi' should certaiuh Mippoit Ci MaclOiin in what he had s.ud. -Ci. .Muiphy thought the Arohi gold i-ld would soiui give the council a good income, which would save them fiom th ■ necssity of evei levying anothiT rate. — Mr 1"'. H.ilcombe, in m.igiT of the Th 1.1 es Valley Lmd Com puny, wis in attend me •, tin) again piotcsted against the striking of the rate. To him the whole thing seemed extraordinary. About si* months alter publishing their balance sheet they t-tnke a rate, without even laying n btutement before the ratepayers to enlighten them a-> to the necessity of a 1 ate, or anything ctae. It was a most unusual thing for a council to do. No hope was even held out to the ratepayeis that any of the nioiivy raised would be spent in improving the ro.idi in their respective distncts. It was all very well for the emmcillois who lepiescnted Te Arohato talk as they did. Those people whose districts had been neglected 111 the past, and who had no piospcct of faring any better in the immediate futuip, looked at the matter in a difleient light. — Ci. Maclean .said when Mi Halcombe last addicted the council on this subject he thought it was unfair that none of the money to be raised by the rate should be spent 111 tho Pateteie district, and enl.uged on tho amount of money spent by the company which he lepiesented in making roads and bridges thioughout thuir property. — Mi Halcombo did not seem to lemember that other companies in other di.stncts had paid heavier rates than Patetore, and had reoeiml less benefit. In fact they had not only paid county lates, but highway rates had also been levied. And if tho Pateteie company were at present making roads, &c, they wero doing nothing more than other companies had had to do. The company to which he (Cr. Maclean) belonged had paid several hundreds of pounds yearly for highway lates alone, as well as heavy county rates. — Mr Halcombo said as far as his company were concerned they preferred to pay rates so long as they received the usual benefit fiom .so doing. If they paid highway nites the money would be &pent wheie it was 1 used. Again highway lates always cm led with them .1 consideration from thn Government. Cr. Maclean said Mr Firth had paid a lot of highway rates, but had never had any consideration from tho (Joveininent in the way of a subsidy. Mi Halcombe thought that was Mr Firth's own fault.— Cr. Macltmsaid no man in the county had more opposed tho htrikmg of tliM rate thin ha He only supported it now because it was a matter of m-'ces^ty. —Mr Halcoinbc said that was all seiy well, but they (tlm p u ties whom he represented) wpio not iespon-<ible for tli.it necessity, and the position the council seemed to h.no got into.— Cr. Chepmell suggested that the people of Paieteio have their district m.tdu a road board distuct. Tho staking of this rate would fall more heauly on his dis. twet than any other in the county. — Cr,

Willi.uns s.ud th.it Rich and Williams had paid more in rates foi then little Richmond piopoity th.in the whole of I'.iteteie — .Mr H.tlcotnliu thought it w.is quite uowble but then it may h.i\o h id Miniuthintf done to it - Tlio iiiotion w.is thun |)iit and earned, (Ji. Buinikill only dii^cntini''. \li C. Tuck was appointed collector of the i.ito.