GREATER CHRISTCHURCH.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11487, 21 January 1903, Page 7

GREATER CHRISTCHURCH.

MEETING IX THE CANTERBURY HALL.

The second public meeting in connection with the Greater Christclmrch movement, called by the Mayor of Christchurch, took place yesterday evening in the Canterbury Hall, but unlike the former meeting, the attendance those interested in the scheme was somewhat meagre. The Mayor of Chrietchurcli (Mr H. F. Wigraxn) occupied the chair, and lie •β-ivs supported on flic platform by a uumber of prominent citizens and members of the local Councils Supporters as well as opponents of the scheme were included in the audience, and some hostile criticism was directed against the movement. The 'Jhainnan, in his introductory remarks, aaid that he had received an apology from the Mayor of Lin wood, who regretted that he could not be present, although he should ha\e liked to take part in the meeting. He had called the meeting in response to a requisition in order that the question might be thoroughly threshed out from bath sides—the side ol the boroughs and that of the city. Many of those present would remember the monster meeting held in the Hal! last September. He got into rather hot water in consequence of that meeting, because he did not ask the suburban botoughs to come to the meeting. He could not ask the suburban Councillors very we,ll, bicause the meeting was called" to consider whether the boroughs should be invited t> join the city, and lie could not. therefore, usk the Boi</ugh Councillors to take part in that discussion, and that was why he did not ask them. However, the present meeting would remedy that defect, for all I the Borough Councillors h;id been asked At the last meeting also it was suggested afterwards that the meeting was cut and dried, that all the speeches and the speakers were prepared beforehand, and that there was no opportunity for free discussion. That was the case. The motion? and the speakers were prepared beforehand, but he wanted them to recollect who those speakers were. There was the President of the Chamber of Commerce, the President of the Industrial Association, the President of the Employers' As- | sociation, the President of the Trades' and Labour Council j there were also two members of the City Council, and his two immediate predecessors in office, Mr Rhodes and Mr Recce. He did not tttiiik that the people could have had a more representative meeting than that was. There were expressions of sympathy and support from the. city members of the House at the time, and also from many members of the Upper House, and the meeting had the support also of his Lordship Bishop Julius, and his Lordship Bishop Griiaes. There was one point he wished to touch upon particularly. He protested very etrongly against thq personal bitterness and animosity -which had been displayed over the question. (Loud applause.) It was most emphatically a question which should cull for goodwill on both sides. For instance, if four intelligent business men, met together to discuss the question of partnership, were to begin by calling each other bad names, would they still be considered sane and fairly intelligent business men* He did not think they would. That afternoon he had been going through the files of the local papers, and in those files he saw sruch expressions as the following-:.—

" Tin-pot dignity attached to the position of a suburban Councillor." In the same column the Councillors were described as "insignificant reactionaries," "a few unimportant nobodies," "trumpery procrastinating suburbanites." Iv another paper he saw that the Sydenham Councillors were "busy opposing the scheme, which -would deprive them of their little dung-hill." They were also described as " large as

frogs in a small puddle." He had other extracts, but he thought he had given

them enough. He did not think it could be wondered at that those gentlemen should protest against this, and should retaliate. He had heard it said by those opposed to the movement that the promoters were anxious to carry the movement through, In order to find a. marketfor their " white elephant." By the "white elephant" wae meant the Canterbury Hall. That was supposed to be one of the prime objects of the movement It had also been suggested that the city was hustling the modest borough into unffilling matrimony. The word " hustling" was not his word. It was the word used in the special report of the Sydenham Borough Council. Still, he wanted to point out that the courting had been going on for a year or two, arid he did not think there had been much, hustling about it. (Laughter.) He should also like to point out that a good deal had been eaid about backstairs and undue motives which did not appear on the surface, and remarks of that kind. It had even been suggested that the promoters of the movement in the dark recesses of their mincls had boom deeply laid plot to make St. A 1 bans pay for the channelling of the city. He proposed that that line of argument ehould be done away with, and altogether dropped. (Applause.) For his part he thoroughly believed in the lioneety and the fairness of the scheme. If he did not he would not go a yard towards it. (Applause.) He further believed that it would be of benefit, not on!/ to the city, but to the adjoining boroughs (Applause.) He thought it would be a fair thing if the supporters of. the movement tried to believe that their opponents were aa honest as they believed them to be badly informed. He was speaking of both sides, and he thought credit should b$ given for honesty of intention on both sides. For his own part, he would not,

if he could -help it, make an enemy of any one over the matter. He .wished to keep on good terms with the Mayors ot tlie other boroughs; in fact, he was on good terms with all of them, anS he wa» quite prepared to shake hands heartily with those gentlemen with whom he had been carrying on a little correspondence in the papers. He wished the meeting to be as informal as possible, and he had merely provided himself with a propc*£r and seconder of the main resolution, and the

matter was entirely in tlie hands of the meeting to carry on the discussion as they pleased. The only condition he would like to propose was that members of the suburban Borough Councils should have priority of speech. (Applause.)

I Mr W. Recce, -who was received witii applause, said <he thought he had eaid Jiis laet word on Greater Ohristchurch at bt. Albans the previous evening, but lie found that lie could not resist the temptation to move the motion that evening. He moved —"That this meeting approves the amalgamation of the cdty with the boroughs ot St. Albans, Linwood, and Sydenham, and will heartily support the earn*." The Mayor, Mr Recce continued, had told tnem something of the inception of the Greater Chrietetwrch echeme, and that it wae not an idea on the part of the city to attempt to win over the boroughs for any ulterior motives. The question had been growing for a great many years, and in the retiring addressee of several Mayors they had spoken hopefully of the scheme. It had been in the minds of the people not only of toe city but of the boroughs for many years, and wan something which had been looked forward to. All great ideas took pome time to mature, and some yearn had to elapse before the people were ripe for the fuifi!ment of them. It had fallen to the lot of Air Wigram to gather the strings together, and attempt to bring about, during his term of office. (Applause.) Mach bad been said regarding the class of men that would take office when amalgamation was accomplished, but he fancied that the description "best man - ' had been mitiundeistood. He took it that the only qualifications of the "best men' , were honesty and intelligence—(Applause)—and it mattered not whether a man was rich or poor if l>e possessed what had been called "tae stamp of God , « image," namely, hooeety, which, however, required intelligence, «o that it could be used to best

would vote for as Councillor of Greater Christchurch. (Applause.) It waa inrpoesible to go into details ne to the ea.via.ge to be effected by amalgamation, but be said, without fear of contradiction, tbat a definite and uniform scheme, arranged by intelligent officers of a Counajl, and agreed to by intelligent CounoJllore, would be more economical titan the working of the different Council*, however good they might be. Applause.) He (Mr lleece) had resided for many years in Sydenham, and for seven years in St. Albans, and lie found that the Councils of both boroughs had carried out their duties admirably, but neither the city nor the boroughs had carried out their functions in such a manner that it could not 1» improved upon. (Applause.) If amalgamated, the city and boroughs could j.v> in for improvements which would not only improve the city but enhance its importance commercially. Hβ knew of several nun of capital and enterprise who. when they saw tlie figures relating to the population of Christchurch, without, having actual knowledge of the city and it* suburbs, came to tiie- rouclusion that it wan. of little importance, and established their businesses in Wellington or Auckland. As to the question of the officer? ut present employed by the different Councils, there wa« no doubt th*t- all , the workmen would be retained. Regarding the question of representation, the speaker pointed out that a number of the metnbeis of the City Council did not live iv tha city, and if it came to a> question of tue city bringing pressure to bear on the suburbs, the representatives of the suburb" would have the advantage. It was not .I'question of numbers, however; one good man was worth a doztn who were not si> useful. (Applause.) The matter had bet-n fully considered by both sides, and he hoped that on Thursday the verdict of the people would be for 'Greater Christchurch. (Continued applause.) Mr G. T. Booth had very much pleasure in seconding the motion, and said there were ti few points which have conk* into prominence that he would say a few word* upon. It would eeem to a casual observer, whosfc only means of information regarding Greater (JluLsUhurch were the letters and

reports which ap]>eared in the newspapers, that the city and surrounding district* were distinct communities, with very tew,

i! any, interests m common. Ifuthing. of course, could be iurtlur from tlve trui , state of affairs. If the geographical boundaries were swept away there would »c considerable difficulty in ascertaining where L'hristchurch ended and Sydenham begun, whilst the interests of fhe city and suburbs were identical. The Sydenham working man tame to Christchurch for work, and the St. Albans capitalist, who wanted to get rid of his surplus cash, invested it in the city. If people wished to worship in a palatial place they oame to the city, and, as a matter of fact, no matter where they resided, the people of the surrounding boroughs lived most of their time in Christchurch, and all the time looked upon themselves as Christchurch men. This Greater Christchurch wae not a newthing—in fact it existed, 'and all that was wanted was tine removal of artificial restrictions and the sweeping away of certain forms, so that it would become Greater Christchurch in fact as well as in name. Hβ wished them to dismiss the idea that one i>art of the community was different and distinct from another—they were one community, and should have no artificial distinctions that they could do without. The other point he wished to dwell on was the fact that the accountant engaged by the Sydenham Borough Council to criticise and pull to pieces Mr Gundry's figures had shown result* .which were not very surprising. When be read the report he had been reminded of the mountain which was in labour, mid had brought forth a mouse. Hβ was a Sydenham man, and did not wish to criticise tue Council, wliich had taken a perfectly buei-ness-like step in obtaining a report on Mr Gundry's figures. He felt proud, and had his blood been capable of boiling, it would have done so, when the Chairman iread the epithets which had been, applied: to its Councillors. He had .seen Sydenham grow from an unhealthy, un paved, untrained and undesirable * locality to its present condition. The men who formed the borough had a big task in front 01 them, and all acquainted with the progress of the place during the past twenty-five or thirty years would agree that they had done their work well. He was convinced that the affairs of the borough had, upon the whole, been administered with distinct sagacity. He did not mean, therefore,-to unfavourably criticise the Sydenham Council, but thought the question was not altogether one of profit and; loss to be expressed in pounds, shillings, and pence, and the financial aspect should assume a less prominent position than had b#en the case. The time had come when they should take a forward Btep. (Applause.) The city had been enjoying certain conditions of civilisation, in which the surrounding boroughs had participated, but the time had now come when other schemes should be undertaken in order to get effective services for the whole district. He hod come to the conclusion that complete municipal amalgamation, with the interests of the different districts safeguarded, was the most effective meane of securing that the city should go ahead and maintain the position ii holds in New Zealand, and take its place among tue cities of the colony. (Applause.) Mr W. H. Seed", a Linwood Borough Councillor, wlio expressed disappointment at the attendance, said he had always supported Greater Obristchuroh because he thought it was a scheme to be desired. He supported it for three reasons—financial, administrative, and commercial. Both Mr Hulme and Mr Gundry !had shown that Christchurch was paying a much lesser rate than any of the suburbs, and from a financial point of view it would be of benefit to the people of the outlying districts to join in with the city. Linwood, in fact, had everything to gain by joining Clmetoburch. The average rate paid in the three suburbs was at the present time 3 42-Mth of a penny in the £1 on the unimproved value, while the city rate, after allowing for interest on the three loans, was only 2£d in the £1 on the unimproved value. If amalgamation took place, the average rate would bs 2 42-64 th of a penny in the £1. Financially, therefore, the boroughs had everything to gain by amalgamation. It had been mid that as soon as amalgamation took place, th* city would be going in for all kinde of new ideas, but nothing eoukl be done in the way of carrying out large public worke without the sanction of the ratepayer* (Applause.) The contention tliat the larger the city the bigter the rates was illogical and contrary to business facts. Sydenham people had made a point of tibe fact that they had contributed £2000 per yeaT for 20 years to the drainage rate. He did not know that that was to be deplored. To bis mind there was much to be thankful for that the City of Cbraeelrorca bad been drained, for had it not been he was afraid some would not have been there that night to advocate that most important movement. (Applause.) Personally, he was satisfied that the ratepayers' money was -wasted in having so many councils "and councillors. With a Greater Christcburch large works, such as a high pressure water supply for fire prevention, flushing, sewer connectioas, street watering, and general purposes, a complete drainage system, and the Waimakariri scheme would be carried out micocasfully. Richmond to-day was in a better condition than cv« it was before it joined the city, and if Richmond could receive such treatment it had, he did not think that the outside districts had much to fear. (Applause.) Personally, he thought that (broadminded men would be found who would ccc that jnstice was done, not only to the .ojitlying districts, but to the district a* a, whole. He, therefore, trusted that those present would record their vote on Taursdav ©ext a favour of amalgamation. (Applause.) Cr. Hyde (St. Albata) pointed out thai kerosene lamps were still u«ed in Richmond, Cr. Seed explained that in the absence of gas mains there were a few keroaw* lamps in use.

Cr. Hyde said they had the same trouble in St. Albans, but had soon got the Ga» Company to put down maim, and if the City Council were in any "way energetic the fime thing could be done in Richmond.. He was not in favour of amalgamation with the city. : . ..Sneakisu''^-<if*-*S»*>-''ii.*«i*-««»»-'•»•-»—«i»i-

to the re-valuation of the borough of St. 1 Albans, vfoereunder the rates would be reduced from 3d in the £ to l£d or ljd in tlie £. If amalgamated with the city, the rates •would be 3d in the £ at least- " Regarding representation, *he spoke of the large urea of the borough, and the possibility, under amalgamation of two men living, say, in the vicinity of the Carlton Hotel— { laughter) • —to represent them on the Greater C'hristohureh Council, whilst the rest of the district -would be unrepresented. He contended that the savings under amalgamation ■would be out-balanced by the increased cost of the management of the larger area. Or. Simpson (Christchurch) said he was afraid that his neighbour and St. Albans councillor, Mr Hyde, was to some extent hide-bound—(laughter and applause) —as to the ouestion before the meeting. Progress wukt only be attained by unanimity of idea and action, and not. by isolation. Mr T. n. Davey, M.H.R. (Mayor of St. Albans) said his Council had not sought to instinct the voters, but to place the facts beforo them, and allow them to decide for themselves. He was afraid that Or. Hyde had somewhat over-estimated the reduction of rates in St. Albans consequent on th« revaluation in the borough. He thought that next year's rates would probably be reduced by id or jd in the £. As to the advisable ih-ss of amalgamation, that- must be kft, to the people, and he hoped that when recording their votes they would not tliink too much of tlie anticipated increase of rates by l-64t.h of a penny, if they really thought amalgamation would be best for the community. Hβ u&ked t>lia Chairman if a person holding property in the city, St. Albans, and Linwood could record votes on the question in each borough. He considered that sufficient attention was not paid by the public to these important questions, and tire great apathy shown did not encourage public men to come forward and do the work of the public- He hoped all the electors would roil up on Thursday amd vote conscientiously. (Applause.) The Chairman said that he knew of no legal disability which would prevent a person holding property :i> the three districts recording their votes in each district. KegardTn--.' the morality of doing «■<> he would say nothing, but if Greater Chrisuhurcii tiiine ai>out such persons would only have one vote. (Applause.) Mr H. G. lul, M.H.R., said that the attendance was good and representative, considering the a-pathy exhibited towards municipal affairs. So far there liad -\ot. been any good arguments brought against amalgamation. There was nothing in the argument about the increase in the suburban Ksfces. Mr Hulme had confirmed Mr Gundry's statement that with amalgamation there would be a reduction of rates in Sydenham. In St. Albans the increase would amount to only 19-64ths of a penny in the- £, and he did not consider that was going to stand' in the way of amalgamation. (Applause.) The city voting list W'ua composed largely of people residing in the suburbs, who could only vote oi'ce. That waa considerably reducing the voting list in the city. The city land was nearly all built on, and the population could not bo increased to any great extent in the future. In 1896 the population in the city was 16,964, but in 1902 't had risen only to 17,558, an increase of 574. In the three suburbs during the same *■ time there hod been an increase of 2540 in population. What would happen would be that in the future all the voting power ■would be in the hands of the suburbs. (Applause.) That disposed of the fallacy that the voting poiDer would 1 be in the hands of the city. (Applause.) It (had been said that the suburbs, under amalgamation, ■would fee neglected, and all the money would be spent in the centre. As it wae only four of the City Councillors resided in the city. Three resided in St. Albans, three in Linwood, and one in Richmond. Under (greater Gbxistchureh it waa only natural to suppose that these gentlemen would look after the districts wherein they resided. Thai disposed of the argument that the suburbs would be neglected. The main arguments against tihe proposal were those of representation and the increase of nates. "Both of these had been exploded. Then the cry was raised , that the scheme •would 1 no£ work well, for the reason that the district would be too large. This objection iras laughauie, for the area comprised in Nelson, or Palmerston North, or Simmer, was larger than that proposed to bo comprised in Greater Christchuroh. It 'had also been eaid that the rates would increase with a larger city. In Wellington, however, the general xate was lid, and, the •whole of the rates came to a trifle over 3d.' That was an answer to the last objection. In the Old Country the system of rating was altogether different, so the rates there could not be compared with those in New Zealand. Suburban people took a delight in the beauty epote of Christchurch, which were .maintained by the city. Why should they not be in a position to cay that those epots were theirs? The fire prevention argument could also he used with some effect io support of amalgamation. At present the suburbs had to receive assistance from the city, but under amalgamation there would be only one system for the whole district. (Applause.) The fire brigade stations in the suburbs Trould be wanted in any. caee, also tlie preeent public 'buildings. (Applause.) Speak- ' ing as a ratepayer of Sydenham, he should vote for the proposal, and would .do his utmost to induce everybody to da likewise. (Applause.) Mr E. Gohns, president of the Trades' and Labour Council, eaid that with a Greater Chrisfcohurvh the best men in. Wie community would come forward , as Councillors, and it wae probable that the candidates would express their views when seeking election. He- believed that Greater Chrietchurch was sound in principle, and would be adopted by those borougte on Thursday. (Applause.) With a Greater Cfcrietchurch larger public works could be carried out, and there would not be the necessity for so many Boards each dabbling in the ratepayers' money. For instance, with Greater Christchurch there would be no necessity for the Tramway Board. A good fire prevention plant wae essential, and such could only be obtained by amalgamation. (Applause.) He trusted thai r>n Friday morning we should have a Greater Christchurch.

Mr Lafferty pointed out that Sydenham, in addition to paying £40,000 towards the city drainage had done its duty in improving its own borough' At the* last public meeting he had asked a question, but he was refu-sed a reply on the ground that he was not a city ratepayer. In spite «f that, however, two speakers, neither ef whom were city ratepayers, delivered •ddresses. The eubuibs would not object to amalgamation provided they would derive some benefit therefrom.

The Chairni.ui explained that on the last occasion', Mr GoJ«:s had spoken as President of the Trades" and Labour Council, and Mr Booth had spoken as President of the Eui|soyers' A-sociation. When these gentlemen were' asked to speak, it was not considered whether they were |»tepayers tr iiot, and they were" invited simply as presidents of tbeir Associations. (Applause). Toe motiou was thej> put and carried Unanimously. Mr F. VVayraouth sai-d that as a ratepayer of Christchureh aud St. Albane, he iiad much pleasure in moving a vote of thanks to the Chairman for calling the meeting, and the manner in -which ii© had presided over it. The motion vras carried by acclamation. The Chairman, in acknowledging tU© vote of thanks, reminded the audience' that they should "strike out the bottom line" , on Thursday".