EESEAKCH COMMITTEES. 541 



suburban subdivision be submitted to a specially-appointed 

 official or board for approval, and that without such approval 

 no sale or lease be valid. That the official or board veto the 

 plan if any of the foregoing stipulations be not complied with, 

 and further require that a satisfactory scheme of surface- 

 drainage, sewerage, and water-supply be submitted for future 

 reahsation, such scheme to show contour-levels and all natural 

 features. 



We therefore suggest that the above, if approved and in- 

 dorsed, be forwarded to the Premier of each Australasian 

 Colony by the flonorary Secretary, urging on behalf of the 

 Association that the question be carefully considered. 



We append a copy of the paper on " The Laying-out of 

 Towns" by Mr. John Sulman, which was the proximate cause 

 of the appointment of the Committee, and also the contri- 

 butions by Professor Kernot and Mr. J. M. Coane on the sub- 

 ject. These contain many suggestions which we venture to 

 deem worthy of attention, but yet scarcely such as would com- 

 mand a united expression of opinion or recommendation on 

 the part of the Committee. 



1. A Paper on the Laying-oiU of Towns read before Section J of tJte 

 Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science at Melbonriie 

 University, in January, 1890. By John Sulman, F.R.I. B. A., Archi- 

 tect. (See p. 730 of Report of Second Meeting.) 



3. Letter from Mr. J. M. Coane, President Vict. Inst, of Surveyors. 

 I MAY say that in considering the matter of the laying-out 

 of towns I have chiefly paid attention to the sanitary aspect of 

 the question, believing that in fairly easy ground the rect- 

 angular system offers the greatest advantages ; while in hilly 

 places, if the natural contours be studied with a view to satis- 

 factory drainage and easy road-gradients, it will generally be 

 found that the result, from an aesthetic point of view, will be 

 fairly good. The whole question seems to resolve itself practi- 

 cally into two divisions: (1) the selection of sites and laying- 

 out of Government townships in a new country by the Govern- 

 ment ; (2) the subdivision of alienated land by private owners 

 for residential and business purposes. 



Work under the first head naturally falls to the chief of the 

 Survey Department, who, in choosing the sites, has to be guided 

 by a variety of considerations, most of which are well under- 

 stood and acted on. The very important question of the 

 suitability of the site as regards natural configuration, how- 

 ever, seems to have been very frequently overlooked, and towns 

 have been located in situations utterly bad, and impossible to 

 drain at a reasonable cost, while near at hand were sites 



