552 proceedings of section h. 



Institute of Local Government Engineers of Australia. 



The development of local government in some of the larger 

 States has encouraged the professional men engaged under its 

 administration to also associate themselves, and to take up a posi- 

 tion that has to be recognised both by the Commonwealth and 

 the State Governments. The recent conference held in Melbourne 

 oi representatives of this, the last-formed association, has been 

 of signal advantage to all concerned, has given ^n impetus to the 

 fruition of the ideals of the specialist, and has enabled the handling 

 nf pressing social and communal needs in such concrete shape as 

 will both benefit the community and build up the status of the 

 shire engineer. 



One eminently patriotic and practical step was well taken up. 

 1 refer to the assistance rendered the military authorities in the 

 preparation of military maps of the more important districts 

 affected by the strategical defence of this country. 



From my own experience I knew how utterly inadequate the 

 topographical branch of the defence services had proved, and 

 that unless the local government engineers had not voluntarily 

 from time to time turned to, and with their technical and prac- 

 tical field knowledge transformed the ordinary parish and land 

 office maps into contoured ones, omitting all useless information 

 and giving all as to physical features and other requisites of purely 

 military maps, the field work of many of the regiments and 

 brigades would be only so much waste time, and the authorities 

 would not have possessed, as they do now, a series of maps that 

 ii:iay some day, for aught we know, be of the greatest value. 



We have here, i think, a good opportunity of developing 

 along right lines. The general engagement by local government 

 bodies of qualified engineers in particular is the surest means of 

 providing that such opportunities shall not be lost. It is satis- 

 factory, at any rate, that the legislation of the various States is 

 being shaped to compel such engagejnents ; and besides this, I am 

 tuld there is a reciprocal inclination on the part of the shires 

 to fall in with these intentions, and to engage qualified service. 

 Our institutes should do everything in their power to encourage 

 the good work. The field for the operations of the local govern- 

 ment engineer is ever enlarging and becoming more and closely 

 associated with the well-being of the community. 



Municipal Government. 

 Closely allied to all this is the municipal government of our 

 cities and towns with the problem of water supply, in a country 

 not too well endowed in this respect, also sanitation, lighting, 

 town planning, public recreation, control of building construction, 

 and the yet undetermined control in matters of appearance and 

 design. 



