LEST WE FORGET.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 14 March 1901, Page 4

LEST WE FORGET.

(To the Editor.)

Sin, —The duly-qualified electors of Grcymonth will shortly be called upon to exercise their privilege under the new Municipal Corporation Act in returning eight members and a Mayor to represent them in the Borough Council. The electors must not forget, especially the ratepayers portion of them, that the Borough is in a transition state, and great care should be exercised in returning gentlemen who will not bo bound to any party or clique, but will do their best for the economical working of the Borough, especially as it is not outside the bounds of probability, that a new loan will have to be raised in order to carry out what the £40,000 one was supposed to complete. In the action of the Government over its refusal to advance the money in order to convert the present bank overdraft, so as to reduce the rate of interest payable to the bank, a sullicient indication is shown that the Council can expect but little assistance from the Government should it require it. In fact it is not at all improbable, but that the Government will find itself at its wits-end, in consequence of its extra expenditure over Imperialism, etc., to meet its demands without resorting to increased taxation, and this I think will be the fate of the Borough if the new Council is not exceedingly careful. It is one thing to plunge a Bor nigh into pecuniary difficulties, but it is another to prevent it or to retrench sufficiently so that it will not press heavily on the ratepayers.

In order that such a contingency should not arise, one of the first duties of the new Council should be to seriously consider the financial position of the Borough, and ascertain with the knowledge and experience already gained regarding the expenditure on works in progress whether the negotiated loan is sufficient to carry out the scheme proposed. I somehow think it is not, and the ratepayers will be called upon to pay a heavy rating bill, which it will tax the ingenuity of the Council to deal with.

Another matter that will have to bo dealt with is that of the new town hall, as it is pretty evident that the present almost moribund Council is not prepared to face the music in this direction—especially in the matter of sites. Mr. Hannan, the Borough Council’s legal adviser, says that the consent of the electors to be obtained by a plebiscite is not necessary —in fact, it did not rest with the electors at all. The only thing was for the Council to decide that a town hall should be built, select a site, proceed with the building and snap their fingers at the ratepayers. The Council, however, in view of the coming elections, refused to accept the responsibility and resolved to waive their rights in this respect and that it will rest with the electors themselves.

This brings us to the question of sites and about this there is some mystery. Is the site to be confined to Boundary street and Mackay street, or will _ suggestions be invited for other sites . J There is one thing certain that the question of finance will have to be considered and the electors would never sanction the expenditure of a large sum of money in purchasing a site, or a site surrounded with legfil nud natural difficulties. Yet the situation must be central and the building, though not naturally an expensive one, should be a credit to the town. Another site has been mentioned and which is already in the possession of the Borough, viz.: the Tamui street frontage of the gasworks section, and no purchase money required. It is central, accessible, and outside of the icacli of floods. A 1 these things should be considered, and electors should take care that, if possible, gentlemen should be returned whose actions and status arc such as to put them outside of the supposition of jobbery or of wanting axes to grind. In connection with the town hall, is it not strange that- the necessity should have arisen for the removal of the Borough Council’s offices from the Harbor office. Is increased work the real reason or merely an assigned oner That lying jade,- Humor, says it was a case of dog in the manger, or Yours, oh-., W.J.A.