LOCAL ELECTIONS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2441, 21 April 1915, Page 8

LOCAL ELECTIONS

CANDIDATES' SPEECHES LOCALLOAN ADVOCATED Four candidates on the selected tioket of the Greater Wellington Municipal Electors' Association addressed the electors at tie Churchroom, Maranui. Mr. G. E. Evans ocoupied the chair, and introduced the candidates. , Mr. R. A. Wright, M.P. (candidate Ifor both Council and Harbour Board), referred to.the fact that the City Council's programme of new works Lad been •embarrassed through the impossibility of raising. a loan owing to the war. 'It seemed to him that an effort should fee made to raise a loan locally, if that : jcould be done at a reasonable rate of iinfcerest. it was quite impossible to tarry on necessary new works out of jthe general revenue. Referring to the Harbour Board's complaint fiat the ioouncil. charged tho board too much for ,water; lie pointed out that the board Was _ ungenerous in this matter. The hoard possessed an enormous amount of property-that paid nothing itei'the council in the way of rates. XJn'der these circumstances it was unfair for the board to threaten to purchase a catchment area of its own. He was loppdsed to the board wasting its .revenue'on another'water scheme.

Mr.. Norwood said tiat every candiHate for municipal honours should have, civic ideals, and . endeavour to carry iout those ideals as opportunity-' -was afforded: Ila favoured, tne running of ithe tramway system to develop the suburbs, • and l incidentally l - eulogised the latest time-table issued -by the Deparfc■jnent. A shrewd busiijess policy would improve the tramway revenue, and as profits increased the revenue should be .used'to cheapen fares to the. outlying ''districts...'. He urged that double lines should •bo laid down everywhere The single.lines were an utter failure. Ha Vfchooight feeder buses should be utilised 5n new districts.

Mr. Robert Hall said he • thought it i (was a pity that Lyall Bay had not a Jocal candidate .standing on this occasion, but he was sure that it would "not in consequence be, treated unjustly. He was in favour of tepid or hot-water ba,ths, uniform tram fares to the suburbs,, a traffic tunnel to Hataitai, and |the planting of the hills with trees. He .was- not against Labour, but was op* 'posed to revolutionaries. Mr. A. Leigh Hunt (candidate for the Harbour Board) pointed out that the tward was quite as important as tha council. . Although it could increaso the rates of the citizens, yet if it increased* its charges at the port the increase (would be passed on to the people. Therefore' men should be elected to the (board who would pursue a careful polHey, eliminating waste, and preventing ias far as possible, any increase in the [ivharf charges. ; A' vote if thanks Was passed to the Candidates, and a similar compliment paid' to the chairman. WADESTOWN MEETINC.

~ HARBOUR BOARD FINANCES. Further meetings were held last night Hinder the auspices of the Greater Wellington Town Planning and . Municipal [Electors' Association. At Wadestown !Mr. A.R. Atkinson presided, and the Bew speakers were Messrs. H. G. Hill, (Harbour Board candidate, and Mr. W. E. P. Biu-ber, City Council candidate. Mr. Hill stated that he was standing ias a, candidate for the Harbour Board at the Tecjuest of a number of wellOtnown. citizeus, who considered that it iwas essential in such a big business as the Harbour Board to have men with (business experience, particularly in connection with finance. . Coming to the question of the working of the Harbour Board, he stated that at was more than likely that increased' charges would be jjassed on to the public, unless some other means of producing revenue could ibe found. The average profit, Mr. Hill : stated, for the three years 1911, 1912, and 1913 was £12,854, and the loss for i 1914 £3549, so that correctly speaking the loss in revenue for last year was U516,403. It would thus be seen that ttlae present condition of affairs could not go on indefinitely, and that the new iboard would be faced with the problem fJ f increasing the revenue. The chairman of the Harbour Board was reported rto havo stated in a recent interview that ihe was in favour of fixing the charges of inward and outward wharfage on the .value of the goods, and quoted the rail■jway and Customs as analogous cases. Blr. Hill stated that he was 'opposed ab-solutely-to' any such system. In his -opinion we would have to look for increased revenue from other sources, and Sn endeavouring to find out tho best means of producing revenue, he stated Ji« had carefully studied the Harbour 'Board's latest financial statement. From this it would be seen that there was a. ■surplus of asset over liabilities amounting to over half a million pounds. This surplus had been produced either by on© or two means, i.e., the expenditure of revenue or writing up of the assets. The point Sir. Hill desired to make clear was: Is the Harbour^Board getting in its charges directly-or indirectly an equivalent to interest on the amount ef this surplus? On looking into the figures," Mr. Hill stated that the statement of assets show that the Te Aro Reclamation and the Waterloo Quay Reclamation were valued at £296,565, while the revenue they produced to the City was only £404, and it was no wonder that the secretary drew attention to such a-'tremendous amount of ' the board's capital lying unproductive. Taking interest on the sum that the board is paying, namely, 4} per cent., the capital invested in those two reclamations only should yield £12,614, or, after deducting what they now produce, an additional revenue ,to the board of over £12,000 per annum. If elected, Mr. Hill stated it would be his endeavour to see that the reclaimed land and other unoccupied portions of the board's property was made as productive as possible. • The candidate-considered that further eoonomies could be_ practised in connection'with the handling of cargo, etc., an, the wharves. He contended that an up-to-date system of tramlines should connect each wharf, especially seeing ihe length of Wellington's waterfront. Regarding the future p< liey of tho hoard, Mr. Hill was firm in his conviction that the Rimutaka deviation ani the East Coast line should never be lost. Bight -of, in view of the competition of other ports. Unless we were careful in the expenditure and assisted in opening Tip new country in order to produce new revenue, we would find that a deficit would face the board as the years go

by. Looking at the position as a whole, Mr. .Hill stated that he considered the time was ripa for reorganising the Ear. lour Board management. Ths country did not intend the chairman «f the board to 6pend so much of his timo on board business, especially when the remuneration was only £200 per annum, and it would b# in the interests of tho port to appoint a general manager responsible to the board, so that tha elixirman of the board would then be an executive officer, and not administrative The chairman, Mr. A. It. Atkinson, referred to Wilton's Bush, and at the conclusion of the addresses several questions were asked on this matter. It was contended "that tno council had not done enough for one of the best scenic assets in the city, and it was pointed out in Teply that no doubt more would be done when. funds became available in.tho future. Mr. "W. H. P. Barber, a candidate for the council, spoko at length on of the council during the J.MJU.,

and outlined the progress that had been made in many directions. He also touched on the matter of Wilton's Bush. Messrs. W. H. Bennett and J. E. Jenkinson spoke along the lines of their previous addresses. LABOUR CANDIDATES. MEETING AT NEWTOWN. Labour nominees for the forthcoming local elections addressed a meeting ill St. Thomas's Hall, Newtown, last night. Mr. W. Murdoch presided, and thcro was an, attendance of about 35.

Mr. J. Read, a candidate lor the City Council, was the first speaker, and he opened by making several references to tlie Greater Wellington Municipal and Town Planning Association, the nominated members of which, he said, could not understand the needs of the people. The Labour Party nominees intended to do their best to make things easier for the working people. He criticised the action of the council in not having coped with the adul-terated-milk problem, and said that the Labour.Party throughout the world were the originators of the municipal milk supply •• The speaker confined his remarks almost entirely to the pure milk question; and emphasised the importance of the matter. If the municipality took over the milk supply, he said, it should'not be so interested in making a profit as in giving the people a pure article.

Mr. W. T. Young, a City Council and Harbour Board candidate, urged the electors to "strike at the ballotbox" and send their representatives to the various public offices. The speaker went on to deal with Harbour Board affairs, and replied to some remarks of Mr. Leigh"Hunt. An attack on the last five years' figures, he contended, had been made because the chairman had risen from the ranks of Labour. Mr. Hunt - made special reference to the loss of £3500 last year, and inferred that a : lack of efficiency along the waterfront had been in part responsible. He also criticised the appliances on the Wellington Wharf, and the speaker contended there was no wharf in any port of Australasia with appliances any way near to the Wellington appliances. Mr. Young attributed the loss of last year in part to the fact that during the_ year, -part of which was the strike period, there was a falling-off of 176 vessels, and 87,614 tons on the figures of 1913. There was also a decrease in the gross revenue of £10,548 on the 'figures of 1913, while there had been an increase for working account and interest of £1415. There had been an increase along the waterfront despite the falling off of vessels. That was caused by the incompetent men employed during the strike, who got a much greater monetary consideration than was granted to the ordinary competent waterside worker. Another thing contributing to the loss of the year was the increase of £5325 for repairs and maintenance, caused by the damage done by the incompetent men employed. There had also been a decrease in pressing wool, etc., of £4227, wharf and shed contracts excess, 1913 ; £10,805, and grant to Farmers' and Citizens' Defence Committee ef £100, which he held was wrong. If things had gone right the profit should have been £16,709. Dealing with City Council affairs, he held that the city should have proper hot water and tepid swimming baths. Mr. R. A. Simpson, a candidate for the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, said that he had made a close study of the milk supply question, and he criticised the method adopted by the board in past years. "The state of affaire had been one of the greatest scandals in the world," he contended.

Mr. C. H. Chapman, Mayoral candidate. dealt with the general reason why the working class people should support Labour nominees. The Labour Representation Committee, he said, was the most representative Labour body that had ever been organised in the city, and the candidates standing were selected b.y that body, to which they were answerable. , The other nominees for the Mayoralty could not be said to represent tho Labour class. Oil the other tickets t'he members were apparently at loggerheads amongst themselves. but the Labour nominees were absolutely unanimous. Tho speaker went on to deal with tramway finances, and said that there was no reason for increased fares or shorter sections. The Labour Party intended, that an inquiry should bo made into the anomalies connected with the sections. Further, if the Labour nominees were returned to the council, an attempt would be made

to increase the wages of the lower-paid employees. Mr. G. Bruce, a Harbour Board candidate, said that he was not a business man, but he was a practical, waterside worker, and he held that he was better qualified than most of the candidates for a seat on the board. He wa3 standing in tho interests of tho working classes, for tho board was the largest employer of labour in the city, and it was very necessary that the interests of those employees should be safeguarded.' He contended that the Harbour Board was not run in the interests of the people, but in the interests of the shipping companies. . A vote of thanks was carried to the chair. MIRAMAR BOROUGH. Mr. Frederic I'ownsend, being the candidate nominated for the office of Mayor of the Borough of Miramar, was declared; elected. Mr. Townsend was nominated by Messrs. D. F. Skinner, i\ L. Marshall, I l '. R. H. Mildennall. :Nine.candidates have been nominated for the office of councillor for the Borough of Miramar a 6 follows: — George F;. Edwards,, nominated by J. M. Campbell and J. Marshall. William HI Green', nominated by H. A. SmitH.and W. Magill. Henry Hawthorn, nominated by S. M: Stone and H. E. Richaids. Edith' Huntley, nominated by S. H. Underwood and H. Hawthorn. John H. Owen, nominated by H. E. Richards and A. P. Smith. Stanley M. Stone, nominated by W. E. Hull, C. B. Bowie, G: Day, and H. A. Smith.

Michael Tracy, nominated by J. G. "Williams and A. E. Clarke. Sydney H. Underwood, nominated by T. W. Boon, C. B. Bowie, and W. J. Stevens. The number of vacancies is sis. ONSLOW NOMINATIONS. The present Mayor of Onslow (Mr. C. C. Crump), who was nominated by J. N. Grant, D. A. Bannister, H. E. Anderson. It. E. Flaws, and J. field, was the only candidate for the position, and lie has been elected unopposed lor a further term. For tie three councillors in each ward the following nominations wore rereived: — KHANDALLAH WARD. Ernest Charles AJderson, nominated by E. S. Stafford, Charles M'Arthur, T. S. Youug, and J. G. darkness. Harry Evelyn Anderson, nominated by H. A. Kirkcaldie, P. 11. Bourke, and Koland Luke.

Alfred Ernest Budd ; nominated by S. P. Curtis, A. J. Daniel, G. Living, M. P. Cameron, and G. AYorsfold. James Murray Dale, nominated by J. Creighton, S. C. G. \ickors, J. 11. Richardson, H. Ah earn, and J. G. Burt. Ernest Hobbs, nominated by I'\ C. Buddie, W. A. E. Butt, J. TJ. France. J. H. Meadowcroft, 11. Whittaker, and A. S. Morgan. James Gordon Smith, nominated by W. Hutchihgs, J. Keith, and R. A. Nicol. KAIWARBA WARD. Charles Bowden, nominated by W, H. IJirrisA and Cable.

Patrick Cavanagh, nominated by C. Bowden and H. J. Hall. James Caldwell Gardner, nominated by H. J. Hall and J. W. Newport. Alfred William Cobham Palmer, nominated by W. H. Harris and W. Dixon. NGAIO WARD. Will Appleton, nominated by 0. Memo, W. H. Walker, it. W. Purkis, and JE. Hicks. Henry Brenton-Rule, nominated by J. K. Scrimgeour and 0. Gidall. Louis Alfred Browne, nominated by 3. Walton, W. Watts, G. W. Darvall, and E. Hicks. Birger Lynneberg, nominated by G. M'Arthur and G. W. Darvall. LOWER HUTT NOMINATIONS.

The following nominations Have been received of Mr. William Nicholson, Town Clerk, Lower Hutt. Hospital and Charitable Aid Board. Mr. H. Baldwin. Mayoralty. Mr. H. Baldwin. Borough Council, Mr. S. Clendon. Mr. John Ball. Mr. Arch. J. Hobbs. Dr.' Purdy. Nominations close at noon to-day. PAHIATUA MAYORALTY. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) Pahlatua, April 20. For the Mayoralty. Mr. if. D. C. Crewe was returned upopposed. There are eighteen candidates for nine seats ou the council. ASSOCIATION TICKET. Greater Wellington Town Planning and Municpal Electors' Association candidates speak as follow: —Ta-night_ at 8 o'clock: Roseueath School —L. M'Kenzie, Robert Hail, (J. H. Norwood (Council) ; William Cable (Harbour Board): chairman, Mr. T. Ward. Brooklyn and Vogeltown, Masonic Hall —Speakers, George Frost (chairman), W. H. P. Barber, L'en M'Kenzie, J. E. Jenkinson (Council); H. G. Hill (Harbour Board). Thursday: Northland Methodist School —J. Godber, W. H. Bennett, Robert Hall (Council candidates), R. A. Wright (Council and Harbour Board) ; chairman, Mr. L. George. Hataitai Bowling green pavilioii—W. H. P. Barber, C. H. Norwood (Council candidates); H. G. Bill (Harbour Board); chairman, A. Leigh Hunt (Harbour Board candidate).

HALF-HOLIDAY QUESTION. WEDNESDAY LEAGUE MEETS. A meeting of the Wednesday HalfHoliday Defence League was held on Monday evening at Messrs. George and George's offices, Cuba Street, at which Mr. H. Seaton presided. There were a good number of shopkeepers and supporters present. A very satisfactory report was presented by the secretary. The canvass of the City and suburbs was being actively pushed and in every quarter encouraging reports were received from the various canvassers. Financial assistance was freely forthcoming and the secretary predicted that the poll would be far from an easy walk-over claimed by the Saturday supporters. It was stated that _ the prevailing impression that the signing of the petition recently carried round the electorate, was bihding, was' being dispelled, and on second thought: many were reconsidering the question. A further meeting will be held at the same time and place on Friday evening next.

Mr. W. T. Hildreth announces himself as an Independent candidate for the City Council and Harbour Board. Sir. Hildreth, who has resided in Wellington for 37 years, has a municipal "past," having been a councillor for Four years, a member of the Harbour Board for three years, and Mayor of Karori for one year. • The ladies favourable to a return of Mr. J. P. Luke as Mayor are requested to meet Mrs. J. P. Luke on. Friday afternoon next at Godber's Rooms, Courtenay Place, at 3 o'clock, to make arrangements for the forthcoming election. Residents of the City of Wellington entitled to vote at the election of councillors for the Borough of lliramar arc reminded that there will be no pollingbooths in the city. The most convenient place at which to vote wiU bo the council office at the power station. "Co-night's Electors' Association meetings in connection with the City Council and Harbour Board contests are at Roseneath (in the school) and at the Masonic Hall, Brooklyn. _ Four interesting addresses are promised on civic topics, including matters of importance to the district in which the meetings are being held.