MAYORAL HONOURS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1421, 23 April 1912, Page 6

MAYORAL HONOURS.

CITY AND SUBURBS. MR. JOHN SMITH'S.CAMPAIGN. TOWN HALL ADDRESS. The Acting-Mayor (Councillor John Bmith) addressed a meeting of between sixty and seventy electors in the Town Hnll'Concert Chamber last night. Ho had an attentive and sympathetic hearing. The Hon. C. M. Luke, M.L.C., who presided, referred- to Mr. Smith's twentyBoven years of service in the City-Coun-cil. :Ho had repeatedly admired Mr. Smith's devotion to public duty. He (Mr. Luke) was not a member of the Citizens' League. When he (Mr. Luke) was Mayor, there was no more diligent and 'devoted councillor at tho table .than Mr. Smith.

The candidate remarked at the outset that he had decided to stand Wore the Citizens'"League asked him to do so, and had indeed written out an advertisement of his candidature. -Ho claimed' to bo as well qualified as anybody for tho position of-Mayor; and it was not likely that he would have any duties more arduous than those ho had discharged as Acting-Mayor during tho last nine months. He' had been a councillor during the inception of oil the important public works of the city, except tho waterworks. There were no largo works in prospect just now, but he thought the rates would have to -be kept up to tho saino amount as they were now to meet tho liabilities.

Ho thought tho public had every reason to be satisfied with tho purchase of land at Lyall Bay, where there would be one of the finest seaside recreation grounds in the Dominion, and the trams would have to carrv the bulk of the city population to Lyall Bay on holidays. It would therefore be necessary to connect up the Constable Street line with Kilbirnie. This would relievo the overcrowding on tho Hataitai cars to a great extent. He would support any scheme that would enable residents of all parts to ride on the trams without excessive crowding. The expenditure on the Zoo had admittedly increased a good deal, but the animal's were very well looked after, and he regretted that the Legislature had prevented a charge being made at any time for • admission. Ho denied a statement that the council had not done its duty for technical The fire insurance companies and the Government ought to contribute to the upkeep of the fire brigade, and had tho fire board system been retained in Wellington, the ratepayers would have saved thousands of pounds. Ho foreshadowed the construction of. additional public conveniences, clearing of gorso on the Town Belt, and other improvements, and claimed a share of the credit for tho installation of the" system of' high-level reservoirs. ' .

Negotiations for, the purchase of land for street widening were also referred'to by' Mr. Smith, who said Hint the only difficulty ..in view in the widening of Willis Street up to Manners Street was tho corner section where the existence of licensed premises complicated the question/of value'. He considered that Mr. Biss had'been very unfair to the officers of the council in. implying that thoy were not capable of carrying out'their work without the constant supervision of the Mayor and council. :vln conclusion, Mr. Smith said he felt that ho really deserved the honour of being Mayor of the city for 12 months. He bad nothing to say against the other candidates, but nono of 'them had Buch claims as he had. (Applause,) •A motion of ,thanK3 aiid confidence was moved by' Mr. M. Murdoch, seconded by Mr. W. Light, "and spoken to by Mr. F. fl'ownsend, and carried unanimously.

MR. BISS AT NEWTOWN. THE TRAMWAYS DEPRECIATION FUND. ■ . Mr. A. S. Biss addressed the city electors in-the Newtown Library hall last evening. Mr. B. Datvson acted ns chairman." Mr. •Biss said that ho had gladly accepted, an invitation to deliver a second address at Newtown,; because a number uf matters calling for reference and reply had arisen since ho opened his'campaign there'a week previously. Councillor L. M'Kcnzie had accused him of casting a shir (in his address at Brooklyn) upon the officer* of the City Corporation, and praising up the City Engineer (Mr. Morton). ' Mr. Biss denied that anything he had said could possibly bear such a construction. What he had said was that a Mayor should not be - easy-going, but very thorough and a perfect administrator, because one who was not an administrator himself could not efficiently over-look-the administration of others.

Home of.the supporters of his. opponents, Mr. Biss continued, had "twisted" a reference he had made to the hall in j which he' was then speaking. It had been : mid that he had advocated banding over i the hall for musc;im purposes. What he ] liad said was that it the hall were required for museum purposes, the people i of Newtown must bo provided with an- j other hall befoTe they were deprived of i this one. ■ ' . ' i Some of his opponents'had said that ■ the practice of using tramway ileprccin- ; tion fund;) for new wirks had been • (started by Sir. Hislop, and had been , continued by Dr. Neiviium and Mr. Wil- i ford. It hnd been insinuated that the i Speaker (having been a mcinbor of the Tramways Committee when the deprecia- : t.ion funds were established) had endorsed ■ the existing policy in regard to depreciation funds. As a matter of fact, it was duo to Councillor Shirtclift'e and himselt that the.Tramways Committee .consented to establish the depreciation funds. Tho question of investing the. did not crop up until two years afterwards. He then pointed out that it was quite a common thins for a commercial firm to use its depreciation fund for the extension of its business, ft did not follow that because he had acquiesced in the use of the depreciation fund at that time that he had intended the policy to stand for nil time. He had assumed that everyone thoroughly understood that when the time came to replace plant. tho money would have to bo there to replace it. Even if there was justification for the Mavor and Tramway Committee having failed.to provide for this depreciation, there Was surely no excuse for pigeonholing a report by the engineer (in the month of May last), in which he stated that funds would shortly be required for •the. replacement and renewal of parts of tho tramway equipment. This report had been held over from, the month of Mav, 1911, until April, 1912. The matter was brought out generally because atten- ; tion was drawn to it during the Mayoral I campaign. The neglect of this ■ report Supplied proof positive that things had been slack, and those at tho head of affairs were to blame for tho slackness. • Mr. Biss dealt with the subjects of fire control and technical education, ou the ' lines of his previous addresses. On the subject of his "retirement." he said that ho had refused to retire becauso a very large number of people had told him that they desired to seo someone who was young and energetic in tho position of Mayor. It was considered that there had been a failure in the past to anticipate the future, and that the council ' had tended to overlook the fact that tha time when things l were slack was a good time to build your house. There was one personal matter, Mr. Biss remarked, to which he felt compelled to refer. Tt had been suggested that he was personally interested in having the sinking funds invested in mortgage. Anything liko this was- to him abvHofutely revolting, and lie considered that the man who would start a rumour like that was not fit to belong to the community. Anyone should know that the Sinking Fund Commissioners were responsible for the investment of sinking funds. The officers at the head of the various municipal departments. Mr. Biss contended, should be solely responsible for tha employment or dismissal of subordinates. If elected he would absolutely decline to make the Mayor's office a labour bureau. ■Mr.- Biss was not asked to reply to any" questions, but was unanimously accorded a. vote of thanks and confidence. MR. WRIGHT'S MEETINGS, HIS CLAIMS FOB SUPPORT. Mr: E. A. "Wright addressed two wellattended meetings Inst evening. Referring to the controversy at present raging between two of the Mayoral candidates a 5 to who should retire, Mr. Wright eaid that he w.ts the first roan definitely to declare himself as a, candidate. He paid that, if all things were equal, the electors should bear this in mind. He knew that many electors jrero in. .dosbt

its to-the man for should vote. As far as lie could judge, he believed that he was the strongest; ninil in the field, and in.that belief ho inviUul the electors to 'support him. Ho could nut help noticing the curious fnet that in HHXt.JIr. llks. «Yk> was then a member of tho City Couuiil, and the Hon. T. W. Hislop, who wav -Mayor of the city, were <il' variance over tho quesiion of sinking funds. .Mr. fliss condemned the methods then udopttxL by Mr. Hislop, ami still did so. l'et Mr, Hislop was now one of the nominators of Mr. Hiss. Dealing with the objection Hint; ho lacked municipal experience, Mr. M'right said that in view of the action of tho corporation, in allowing the tramway depreciation fund to be borrowed without interest, he was glad that ho lacked V\ ellington municipal experience. Hobelwjved that the most important work for -. tho. ensuing vear. would be to place the tramway system in <i sounder financial position. Unless this was done, tho tramways would continue to show a loss. Mr. Wright ndvocated a policy of cautious progress and the adoption of sound business methods. It was idle, he said, to talk about fresh municipal enterprises unless efficient management of existing enterprises could bo secured. Many things were needed in different parts of tho city. Parks and reserves must be developed, and he hoped that, in tho near future, tho city would possess a National Art Gallery.

MR. M'LAREN. TWO OPEN-AIR' MEETINGS. Mr. D. M'Laren, continuing his Mnyorol campaign, addressed open-air meetings last night outside tho Brooklyn and Berhamporp State schools. He dealt, at each place, with the planks of the Labour platform, and pointed out that one after another of these had come into practical effect. For instance, when he entered the council ill' 1901, there were numerous public, works that were carried out under tho contract system. He advocated the. substitution of day .labour, and at first ho could only get one or two supporters in the council, but now day labour was tho accepted policy, and had been repeatedly recommended by the City Engineer, with the proviso that he should not bo interfered with in tho selection of the workmen. Ho (Mr. M'Laren) was entirely opposed to tho use of influence and patronage in filling the service, and held that all the work should be open, to free and fair competition. Ho had always supported tho idea of encouraging local industries, because keeping our manufacturing enterprises active and the workers employed was beneficial to the citizens as a whole. He advocated the policy of establishing public markets, and held that the rent of the market reserve, which was £926 this year, should bo ear-marked for that purpose, instead of being placed to the credit of the district fund.

Tho candidate also dealt with several other matters on the lines of his previous speeches, and at the close of each address he received a hearty vote of thanks and confidence.

MIRAMAR. SPEEQH BY MR, M'LEOD. In furtherance of his candidature for the Mayoralty of Miramar, Mr. H. N. M'l/eod addressed last night a well attended meeting at the tea-rooms, Seatoun. Councillor Bowie presided, in the absence of the Mayor (Mr. J. Brodie), who had been unexpectedly called away from town. The candidate contrasted.the early condition of Seatoun with its present developed state, and paid a tribute to those who had so changed its aspect by tho planting of trees and generally beautifying that portion of the borough: He also paid a tribute to the strenuous-work done by members of. the. council, includ-, ing the present Mayor (Mr. Brodie) and Senior Councillor Richnrds, the other contestant for the Mayoralty. The candidate also outlined his policy of a vigorous improvement in the electric car service, advocating possible extensions and greater facilities, and a reduction in official charges. He was in favour of extending the reading of settled areas at Seatoun, Miramar North, etc., that had been without formed roads ever since the borough, was started. He also favoured the rapid extension and economical supervision of drainage, water, and street lighting, and liu strongly advocated the power scheme'arid a cnreful scrutiny of its application. He thought industries should be encouraged as much as possible to establish themselves in the bori Vote, of thanks and confidence was accorded to Mr. M'J-eod,, on tho motion of Mr. Clark, seconded by Mr. Eagar. _ Candidates for tho two vacancies in the council also addressed tho meeting. EASTBOURNE. MR. HOBBS'S FIRST SPEECH. : Mr W. liobbs, who is opposing the sitting Mayor, Mr. H. W. Shortt, for the' Mayoralty of Eastbourne, delivered the 'opening, address of his campaign last night. x „ , ', He stated his main reason for entering tho contest as ' follows:—"It must be patent to all electors that a continuous administration is not in the best interests of the district. The infusion of new blood with new ideas would bo a benefit, and act as a stimulus to tho council. He thought Sthat tho best engineering skill should be applied in any work undertaken, and in this regard he thought small boroughs near the capital city should have the bonefit of .the city engineering staff at a nominal cost. At present there were too many small governing local bodies with high charges for administrative purposes alone. His opponent had claimed credit for an improved ferry service across the harbour. If he claimed credit for everything good that the company did, perhaps he would accept responsibility for the increased fares. Passengers and residents of Eastbourne were now paying a modest increase of nbout .£750 per annum tor a sli"htly improved service. An increase to casual passengers would not be felt so much, but to overtax the pioneers of tht district and permanent residents was a suicidal policv. Had he been Mayor when the Ferry Company offered tho three best steamers of its fleet to the council for sale, he would have called a meeting ol the ratepayers, and certainly ho would have called a meeting of the residents when the company imposed the increase of from 20 to 30 per cant, in fares, without altering the fares on the Seatoun run. This would have brought' forward some very definite resolutions, which would have helped to bring about a better understanding. The effect of the recent impost was that many were leaving the place. He thought three night boats from town per week instead of the newly-estab- \ lished nightly service would have sufficed, but a boat from the bay to town at 9.15 p.m. would be very acceptable, especially during tho summer months. He thought the borough should not lose its independence by loading .itself with debt, but the time had arrived when a water supply should be secured. Ho had never been really opposed to a water service, but Mr. Shortt's schemes had been open to tho objections that the cost ot the tunnel was too heavy, and tho pressure not sufficient. If the engineer engaged by tho borough thought a supply from the near side of the hills would be inadequate for many years to come, he would certainlv favour the more copious supply from Gollan's Valley. These and other matters would have his attention if lie were elected, and he could claim to have fair experience in matters municipal.

PETONE. ADDRESS BY ME. J. PIPER. Mr. J. Piper, who is contesting the Petone Mayoralty with Mr. J. VY.-ATEwan (present MaVor), gave his final address at St. Augustine's Hall, Petone,' last, evening.

Mr. Piper said that the financial position of the borough compared favourably with any other borough of its size or age, and he claimed equal oredit with the Mayor fbr keeping down the expenditure. As regards the esplanade he was still in favour, as he had always been, of an improvement scheme, but ho did not think it wise that funds for the purpose, should be transferred from the gas works account. Ho would rather sec that account put on a sound condition first, in order to provide for renewals and extensions. Ho quite agreed with Hie proposal to asphalt streels in instalments from year to year. The footpaths, bowever, required more urgent attention. -As regards sanilary inspection, this should b<y undertaken on a more systematic and complete scale. He was in favour of rating on unimproved values, day labour on nil works wWo practicable, and th» ! trading depntmftnt of the. wjuioil boina

put under the control of one responsible ufliccr. 'i'ho candidate was accorded a vole of thank's and confidence.

LOWER HUTT. THE MAYOR ON FINANCE. Tn amplification of his remarks on tho affairs of the Lower Hutt Borough, made at last Tuesday's meeting, Mr. E. I'. Bunny (Mayor) stated that when he took office three years ago it was nrees-ary to raise a. loan of .£2:2,0(111 to complete the drainage svstem. The first amount raised was £10,000, and he as .Mayor had taken tho initiatory steps to secure the loan from the Government. He obtained that money at 3! per cent., which included sinking fund". As the result, of that arrangement, in 11 years the whole amount would be wiped out without tho ratepayers being railed upon to provide a penny of the capital. Probably no loan had been secured at a cheaper rate in the Dominion. Soon after the promise was given the old system of issuing Government loans was dropped, and through an error tho Treason- had not provided for tho loan. This was rectified by a short Act of Parliament empowering tho Treasurv to issue the loan on the promised terms. The next .£IO,OOO was procured -at 4 7-8 per cent,, repaying with a sinking fund in 3G years, and two other sums of £l<KHHono at 3i per cent., and one at 4 7-8 per cent.—not one penny of which capital would have to he found by tho ratepavers. Mr Bunny claimed that ho had done his <tutv to the ratepayers in securing ,£II,OOO at 31 per cent, and £11,000 at 4 7-8 per cent., without calling on the ratepavers. A number of loans amounting to £20,300 fell due in 1910-11, and ho and Councilor Hawthorn had secured tho, sum at 4{ per cent- one-half per cent, of which provided for a.sinking fund. , . No provision had been made for sinking funds before he tool: office. That provision had been one of his first institutions as Mayor, and from a return furnished by the Public Trustee the sinking funds stood as follows on March 31, 1912: Account sinking' fund on ,£20,300 loan, £103 Is. 5d.; on .£9500 loan, £264 6s. lOd.; on .252,000 loan, .£1231 13s. sd. In three years the total accrued sinking funds stood at .£I6OO, which, as years went on, would increase and become a very substantial amount. At ther beginning of the year the debit balance of tho general account stood at .£BOOO. When the estimates were considered by the council the state of that account had not been lost sight of. Many works had to be provided for,-and had they all been carried out the debit would have stood at i'Bloo at tho end of the year. The general account, instead of being in debit ,£BOOO, at the end of March last was .£(600, showing that a saving of .£4OO had been effected. In 1908-9 the gas account was in debit '£180; 1909-10 it was £234; while in 191011 the debit had been reduced to £240, and £20 had been provided for sinking fund. For the vear 1911-12 ended March 31, tho sinking fund stood at £247, while the account was in credit (£2B) for the first time. The library account was in a similar condition, and from being in debt £127 the debit had reduced almost to tho vanishing point, as only the sum of £10 10s. had to be provided last year.