MELBOURNE CITY METHODS

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 44, 16 November 1926, Page 10

MELBOURNE CITY METHODS

A GIANT SEWAGE FARM ENDEAVOURS TO CONTROL . MILK SUPPLY A TALK WITH COUNCILLOR W. COCKBILL Visiting Wellington at the’ present time is Mr. Cockbill, a member of the Melbourne City Council. 'lhat bodyconsists of twenty-four members (councillors and one alderman from each of eight wards), and so smoothly is the flow of municipal affairs in Melbourne that although there is an election, each year (as against every two in Wellington) there is as often as not no need, for an election in lialf the wards, because, according to the visitor, if A than proves himself to be capable of performing his duties conscientiously, he is not opposed at the next election. On the occasion of the last election eight of the members were returned unopposed. In -Melbourne there is no election of Lord Mayor, states Mr. Cockbill. He is elected by th? aidermen and member's of the City Council, for - there is a distinction between the two. The council, after the election; elect one aiderman for each of the eight wards of the metropolitan area, and if ■ such men prove themselves worthy of the trust reposed in them, they are. more than likely able to retain their status indefinitely. Only the council itself may disrate an aiderman, and when so dis-

-ted lie mav stand again for the counI as an ordinary member, but the fact that be has been disrated would count against his being returned.. There, too, the Lord Mayor does not preside over any of the commitees but is ex officio a member of them all. He, however, does not attend them as a general rule, unless there is something he is particularly interested in. Even the shaping of estimates and the raising of loans for new capital works are arranged by the chairman of the finance committee, and all new works—that is all works outside legitimate maintenance —are carried out with loan moneys. None of the ordinary revenue is expended on new works of any’ kind. A Social Office. Aiderman Morell is at present Lord Mayor of Melbourne, and his duties, mostly of a social character, prohibit him taking a very active part in the closer administration of the everyday affairs of the city. He receives a ceremonial allowance of £l5OO a year, but that sum does not nearly cover what he is called upon to spend in the course of hrs year of office. He is. always elected as Lord Mayor elect on October 5, and is sworn in as Lord Mayor on November 5. Then there is held the Lord Mayor’s dinner, to which probably a thousand citizens are invited, which the Lord Mayor pays for out of his own pocket. The Lady Mayoress must be prepared to figure at social appointments every day and almost every evening of the year. Every day, almost, someone, and frequently many, arrive from England,. America, and all parts of Australia bearing credentials which entitle the visitor to hospitality, and it is such duties that occupy an enormous amount of time. A 30,000. Acre Sewage Farm. The Melbourne Council has not so many functions to perform as has the City Council of Wellington, for the tramways are a Government concern, and the water supply and sewage are controlled by the Metropolitan Board of Work on which the City Council has representation. It is this board that manages the great model sewage farm at Werribee, 25 miles from Melbourne, which is the pride of the State. The sewage of the city first finds its way down to a point near the mouth of the. Yarra, where there is a. big pumping station that pumps the fluid to a sufficient height to allow it to gravitate the twenty-five miles to Werribee. There it passes through big cages, and is permitted to flood out through the required channels without any further treatment. The sewage farm consists of nearly 30,000 acres of land, which means the creation of the finest grazing ground in Victoria, and is used for no other purpose buffo fatten cattle and breed pure-bred 'Herefords and Shorthorns. The farm, says Mr. Cockville, creates no nuisance. Bv manipulating- the channels and appliances the blocks of land , can be dealt with in rotation as required. The farm is a source of considerable revenue to the board, and is regarded as one of the city’s best assets. Melbourne to Have Municipal Milk Supply. Whilst in Wellington Mr. Cockville has been interesting himself in the milk system, and states that the more, he sees of it the better he likes it. The Melbourne Council are to favour of the introduction of a system on the lines of the one in Wellington, Since Mr. R. Herron, of Wellington, visited Melbourne and reported on the mjlk supply, the council has decided definitely on the adoption of the system, and is at present awaiting Parliamentary sanction before proceeding. There was some doubt as to what the attitude of the farmers would be in respect of the spring glut, when there was always far more milk available than the city could consume, and it was thought that with the council onlv taking a small proportion of their output at such a time a great deal of the milk would have to be given to the pigs or used in some other wav not as profitable, but Mr. Cockville’ considers that if the same course is adopted in Melbourne as here, namelv, to utilise the whole of the tnilk available at all seasons of the year, even if it has to be turned into butter and cheese, there will be little or no opposition to the Bill Mr. Cockville mentions the great courtesv and many considerations, he has received in Wellington, and amidst that lie has profited a great deal by his visit. He is now leaving for Auckland to attend the A. and P. Show there, before returning to his own country.