What was the immediate reaction of the councillors to Mr Bucks evidence?
McGill unzipped his satchel and drew forth a flat notebook. As is my habit, I took notes immediately after the meeting. I can read here exactly what was said. He selected a page and stared at Eric Peterson where he sat next to Lyall. Mr Eric Petersons exact words were, Turi Buck is an ignorant old black man. He knows nothing he never has and he never will.
There was pandemonium in the Press gallery.
The hall errupted in a babble of noise and Harrison hammered in vain on the rostrum but the crash of his gavel was lost in the uproar. When, at last, he could make himself heard, he said in anger, This hearing is adjourned until further notice and until those present can control themselves.
NINE
Turi Buck is an ignorant old black man. He knows nothing he never has and he never will.
The words hung heavily in an embarrassed silence in the residents lounge of the Hotel DArchiac which did duty as a council chamber. At last Matthew Houghton coughed nervously, and said, Theres no call for that sort of talk, Eric
Ballard was angry. I should bloody well think not.
John Peterson, who was standing, put his hand on his brothers shoulder. Eric, if you cant talk sense youd better keep your big mouth shut. Youre starting to behave like Charlie. He looked at Turi. My apologies.
Maybe youd better let Eric make his own apologies, said Ballard tightly.
Eric went red in the face but said nothing. John Peterson ignored Ballard and addressed himself to McGill. So youve come up with past avalanches, and now you say theres going to be another.
I have not said that.
Then what are you saying? demanded Houghton.
McGill spread his hands. Who cares if a few thousand tons of snow falls off a mountain? Its happening all the time in the Southern Alps. But if someone is standing underneath at the time then its downright dangerous.
Thats the position youre in. You have a potential hazard here.
Not an actual hazard? queried John Peterson.
I can tell you more after another series of tests. But Ill tell you this the hazard isnt getting any less.
Peterson said, It seems pretty flimsy to me. From the line youre shooting it seems to me that you want us to spend a lot of money because of something that may never happen.
Theres something I dont understand, said Houghton. If there have been avalanches in the past, why werent the houses knocked down? My house was the second one built in the valley; my grandfather built it in 1850, two years after the Otago Settlement.
Ballard said, Lets have a look at the map. He pushed the map across the table to Houghton. Matt, I want you to cast your mind back, say, twenty years before all the houses were built when the mine started. I want you to mark all the houses you can remember. He handed Houghton a pen.
Well, theres my house there, and Turi Bucks house but we know why thats still there. And theres the Cunningham house, and the Pearman house
and the Jackson place and the old Fisher house, said Mrs Samson.
Slowly Houghton marked them all and then leaned back. Ballard said, Dont forget the church and the school and Petersons store.
Houghton scratched more crosses on the map, and Ballard said, Just look at it. All those buildings are well scattered and if you look at the terrain youll see that every one of them is protected against falls from the western slope to a greater or lesser degree. He picked up the pen. But we do know there was another building the Bailey house. He marked its position on the map. Thats gone now.
Mrs Samson said, What are you getting at?
When the settlers first came here, back in the middle of last century, they didnt bother overmuch about keeping records, so we dont know a lot about houses destroyed. We only know about the Bailey house because of Turi. My bet is that the houses Matt has just marked are the survivors.
Phil Warrick said, That makes sense. If a man had a house knocked down he wouldnt rebuild in the same place. Not if he had any brains.
Or if he survived, said McGill. The Baileys didnt. He put his hand flat on the map. Those houses survived because the builders were lucky or knew what they were about. But now youve got a whole township here not just a few scattered houses. Thats where the hazard comes in.
So what are you asking us to do? asked John Peterson.
I want you to accept the fact that avalanche hazard exists thats the first step and all follows from that. So youll have to take the necessary precautions, first in the short term and, later, in the long term. You must notify the appropriate authority outside the valley that a hazard exists. Then you must be ready for it if it comes. You must have rescue gear stored in safe places where it can be got at in case of disaster. And youll have to have men trained to use that equipment. And youll have to have contingency planning in case it becomes necessary to evacuate the town. I can help in advising on a lot of that.
Eric Peterson said, My brother is right. It seems to me that youre asking us to spend a lot of money guarding against something which might never happen. If we have to train men we have to pay them; if we have to have equipment we have to pay for it. Where do we get the money?
Quentin laughed bitterly. You havent heard anything yet. Wait until you hear about the long-term precautions. His finger stabbed out. If this man has his way the mine will shut down.
What the hell! John Peterson stared at Ballard. What foolish talk is this?
Ask McGill how much it will cost to protect the mine, said Quentin. At the last meeting we had they were talking in millions of dollars and we all know the company wont stand for that.
Not to protect the mine, snapped Ballard. To protect the town. In a case like this youll get a government grant.
Eric Peterson laughed shortly. Everyone knows that government grants dont cover everything not by a long chalk. We learned that when we were extending the school. And you are talking in millions of dollars, not in thousands. He looked up at his brother. Guess how much the town rates will be next year if this damn silly caper carries on.
Ballard said, How much is your life worth, Eric?
Thats a hell of a question! But Ill give you a short answer. My life is worth that of one of my brothers that much and no more.
Theres no call for that, said Houghton quickly.
Well, he brought it up, said Eric. In any case, according to him, Im safe. He tapped the map. My place is one of the survivors.
Not any more, said Ballard. Not since the trees were cut down on the west slope. Did you do that, Eric?
What the hell has that got to do with anything?
The only reason the store survived in 1943 was because of the trees. Now theyre gone theres nothing between you and the snow. You made a bad bargain there.
Eric stood up. Too right I made a bad bargain, or rather, my old man did. You know damned well that when your mother sold him the property she cheated him of the mineral rights. Oh, she was bloody clever, wasnt she? She even kept hold of that bit of land at the bottom where the mine is now just enough land to put up the crushing mill to work the ore she gets out of our land.
Ballard rubbed his eyes. Thats not the way it was, Eric. It was my father who separated the mineral rights from the property. He did it in his will. Your father didnt buy the land for five years after that. 1948, wasnt it?
The hell with it! said Eric. She still gets the gold.
No, she doesnt, said Ballard. She doesnt hold the mineral rights.
Pull the other one, scoffed Eric. Youre all Ballards.
Matt Houghton drummed his fingers on the table. We seem to have left the subject. He glanced nervously at Eric.
Yes, said McGill. I dont know what this is all about but I dont think it has anything to do with snow on a hillside. But those missing trees do; theres nothing left to bind the snow.
Eric shrugged and sat down again. Its a lousy piece of land, anyway. Too bloody steep for cattle, and I couldnt even get in the hay crop this year.
McGills head jerked up. What hay crop? he said sharply.
What do you care?
Youd better tell me. What happened to your hay crop?
John Peterson rolled his eyes towards the ceiling. For Gods sake, Eric! Indulge his curiosity. Then perhaps we can get this meeting over. Ive got things to do.
Eric shrugged. First it was the rain the crop was sodden, so we couldnt take it in. I thought wed have a dry spell, but we didnt it rained right in to the winter, so I gave it up. It was rotting in the fields, anyway.
And you just left it, said McGill. And its still there uncut. Is that it?
Thats right, said Eric, and added touchily, But whats it got to do with you Im damned if I know.
McGill speared him with a long stare. So you cut down the trees, which is bad enough. Then you leave uncut grass, which is worse. Long, wet grass on a hillside is just about the slipperiest stuff there is. The chances of an avalanche have just gone up considerably.
Warrick said, It was slippery, I know. I tried to get up there during the rain myself. After the third try I gave up.
What am I? Some kind of public enemy? demanded Eric. Who the hell is this joker to come with his accusations?
Im not accusing anyone of anything except maybe short-sightedness, said McGill. The first sign of potentially dangerous terrain is a mountain with snow on it; and you have one right on your doorstep but none of you seems to have seen it.
Dr McGill is right, said Ballard.
Eric Peterson lunged to his feet. Anyone called Ballard is the last person to accuse me of anything at all, he said with a jagged edge to his voice. Anyone with a yellow
Thats enough, cut in Mrs Samson sharply. Whats past is gone.
Whats this about? asked Warrick, looking from Ballard to Eric Peterson. He wore a baffled look, as of a man who feels he is missing the obvious.
Matt Houghton looked bleak. Its old history and nothing to do with the subject here.
McGill stood up. Gentlemen, you have my report. Its there on the table before you written up in technical language, and Ive explained what it means in words of one syllable. I can do nothing more. I shall leave you to your deliberations.
Where are you going? asked Houghton.
To do some work.
Where can we get hold of you if we need further information?
At Mr Ballards house, said McGill. Or up on the west slope it needs further investigation. But dont send anyone up there to find me. In fact, no one should be allowed on that slope from now on. Its damned dangerous.
He left the meeting.
TEN
Ian Ballard swam another length of the pool and then climbed out. He walked to the canvas chair where he had left his towel and began to rub himself down. It was good to relax after spending all day at the Inquiry. He poured himself a beer and checked his watch before slipping it on to his wrist.
Mike McGill came sauntering across the lawn and held out an envelope. Business as usual. Old Harrison must have got over his tantrum. This will be your notification to attend; Ive had mine.
Ballard opened the envelope. McGill was right; the letter was from Reed, the Secretary to the Commission. He dropped it on the grass next to his chair, and said, So we go on. What comes next in the evidence?
The first avalanche, I suppose. McGill grinned and spread a newspaper before Ballard. Eric has got his name in print.
Ballard looked at the black headline bannered across the front page:
IGNORANT BLACK MAN JIBE
He shook his head. Hes not going to like that.
McGill chuckled. Think hell come after me with a gun?
Eric wont but Charlie might, said Ballard soberly. Hes crazy enough to do it.
McGill laughed and sat down on the grass. Got yourself a lawyer yet?
No.
Youd better start looking.
Ive discovered I have an unsuspected talent, said Ballard. I can defend myself very well.
You did all right with Turi, and you got Lyall to walk out on a limb before you sawed it off. Not bad going for a novice.
Mr Ballard? Ballard looked up and saw the young man from the hotel office. A telegram just came. I thought it might be important so I brought it right out.
Thanks. Ballard ripped open the envelope. Its a cablegram from England. He scanned it rapidly and frowned. Now why should ?
Trouble?
Not really. Ballard handed the cable to McGill. Why should a man suddenly fly half way across the world to see me?
Who is Stenning?
A friend of my grandfather. Ballard looked at the pool abstractedly.
McGill began calculating. He says hes leaving on the night flight. It doesnt really matter whether he comes east or west, its still about forty hours to Auckland. Then hell have to catch an internal flight down to here. Say two full days that means Saturday afternoon.
The Commission wont sit on Saturday. Ill meet Stenning at the airport.
Youd better have a message awaiting him at Auckland so you can arrange to meet him here.
Ballard nodded. Old Ben said something about Stenning the last time I saw him. He said that if anything were to happen to him or the company then I should get in touch with Stenning. Then he said to forget it because Stenning would get in touch with me fast enough. It seems as though he really meant it.
Who is Stenning, apart from being your grandfathers friend?
Hes a lawyer.
Then hes arriving just in time, said McGill. Just the man you need.