MUNICIPALISATION OF MILK DELIVERY

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3070, 4 May 1917, Page 7

MUNICIPALISATION OF MILK DELIVERY

MAYOII DISCUSSES THE POSITION

It has been erroneously announced, apropos the City Council's determination to municipalise ffio delivery of milk within tho city, that the sourco of_ tho city's milk supply is to bo municipalised. Tho-Mayor stated yesterday that tlio question of tho purchaso of dairy farms had nofc yet entored into tho scopo of tho council's consideration. Tiio proposal was simply to buy tho milk from tho dairy farmers, and act as vendors monopolistically; i.e., the council did-not wish to see its ends defeated by- allowing others to deliver milk within tho city. That is as far as tho council has Rono. At tho present limo it is advertising for tho man—"the City Milk Manager"—who wiTf rloviso a scheme and delivery that will meet tlio ends tlio council lias in vi'ow. So far fflis.man has not appcurcii, iind until ho does tho delivery will no dotiTi't bo maintained as ak present.

Evidently tho very biff question of supplying a city with milk has been Rivflti some tliouglili by tlio Mayor, for during his speech on Wednesday ho referred to what is really the chief matter involved—tho prompt payment for Iho milk by the people. The. Mayor mentioned the coupon system as a possible solution. AVhon asked yesterday lo expand oil his proposal oC a coupon system for tine payment of milk, Iho Mayor said ho thought that something oE the ltmcl would be needed' in order to economise in bookkeeping, and ensure an immediato return for the milk the council bad already paid for. Ho did nofc very well sec liow a city could run the business on fiio credit R.vstem, as it would entail ;iu involved system of accounts, necessitating t.lie establishment) of a big department. What should he aimed at was a. cash .system, such an tho one suggested whereby a person would purchase so many coupons at a. time, or perhaps a ticket that would be clipped, so that each time ;i pint or a quart, of milk was delivered a- coupon would tie collected or a ticket clipped. Tlio oliject would bo to deliver pure milk at as low a price as was possible, and that it, could be sold at a lower rale than was charged, to-day ' was without doubt, us the one big business would replace a multiplicity of small ones, and instead of half a dozen milkmen traversing tbe same street, each would have bis defined round. In short, tbe milk would be systematically distributed. Economies, too, could be nd'ected in the'running charges by the uso of motor vehicles, instead of carts and horses (at least to convey , the milk to depots in tlio various districts, if not used in a dnor-tc-door delivery.