The Globe. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1877.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 1047, 2 November 1877, Page 2

The Globe. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1877.

In compliance with a requisition sent to him, the Chairman of the Avon Eoad Board convened a meeting of the ratepayers of the Avon district last evening in the Knightstown Institute, St. Albans, to consider the Board of Health Amendment Act now before Parliament. The following resolutions were carried: — That no Act be allowed'to pass the General Assembly in which a taxing power is asked for, without haying been "first submitted to those to be taxed. That this meeting requests the immediate withdrawal of the Public Health Amendment Bill, now before the House, and that any sum due on that account may be defrayed by the different Boards constituting the drainage district. That the proviso to clause 14 Public Health Act, which constitutes the Christchurch Drainage Board the Local Board of Health for the drainage district be repealed, and that each Borough and Eoad Board shall exercise the powers of the Board of Health, joining where necessary for special objects. That the action of the Drainage Board is, and has been, in direct opposition to the wishes of the district, and they no longer possess the confidence of the ratepayers, therefore this meeting positively refuses to accept the scheme of Mr Carruthers or any other engineer for the drainage district, unless it shall be for surface drainage only, and that any scheme whatever before being accepted, shall first be submitted to the ratepayers. That the chairman be requested to forward the resolutions 1,2, and 3 to the Hon. J. T. Peacock and the Colonial Secretary; and Kos. 1,2, 3, and 4 to the Drainage Board, with a request that the spirit thereof be accepted and carried out by the Grovernment and Drainage Board. These resolutions, it will be observed, deal with two entirely different questions. The first three have reference to the Amended Local Board of Health Act now before Parliament, and the next one with the conduct of the Drainage Board. It is the first question which immediately concerns us at present, and with which we propose to deal in this article. To the first resolution no possible objection can be taken. It is certainly most desirable that no Act should be allowed to pass the Assembly in which a taxing power is asked for, without having heen first submitted to those to be taxed. Had more care been taken to have the provisions of the Bill under discussion made widely known before it was introduced the present agitation might have been avoided. It is true that in consequence of some remarks by us, Mr. Hobbs wrote to the newspapers in August; last, explaining what the Board of Health really wanted. But had common produce been exercised, the Bill after being drafted would have been made public, when amendments would have been suggested, and the Bill shorn of its objectionable features. Whether justly or not, the public have got hold of the idea that any legislation with which Mr. Hobbs has to do must be looked upon with suspicion. Into

whether there are grounds for such a notion, we do not intend at present to inquire; but that the district is in clanger of being left to the reign of disease and death for twelve months, because he is Chairman of the Board of Health, we have very little doubt. The second and third resolutions may be discussed together. They virtually propose that we shall go back to the state of things which existed before the Act of 1875 was passed. The supporters of these resolutions appear to be under the impression that the Koad Boards are quite competent to manage health matters, and, therefore, that there is no necessity for placing them in the hands of any other body. Those gentlemen must be strangely forgetful of past experience. For years it was the cry that the Eoad Boards did nothing—that they allowed health matters to remain untouched, until public opinion demanded a change. We hope the inhabitants of the suburbs will calmly consider the question before them. If those agitators are allowed to have their way, we shall go back to a state of things truly deplorable. Were it possible to have sanitary matters attended to by the Boards the cost would be great, in consequence of divided responsibility. But past experience tells us that most probably the work would not be done. The jurisdiction of the suburban Eoad Boards extends a considerable distance into the country; and so the inhabitants of the larger portion of each district have little sympathy with the requirements of the thickly populated suburbs of the city. To them well metalled roads and cleared out watercourses are more important than a necessarily expensive system of housedrainage and the removal of nightsoil. We hope, therefore, the inhabitants of St. Albans, Knightstown, Avonville, Phillipstown, Waltham, &c, will refuse to listen to the clap-trap of a certain class of agitators, and insist on knowing how the health of their homes is to be looked after, before joining in the crusade against the Local Board of Health. It is urged that the Drainage Board does not properly represent their interests. If it does not, it is quite certain that the Eoad Boards are still less representative of the requirements of the suburbs in sanitary matters. Yet it is of the utmost importance that these districts should be rendered healthy ; far more important indeed than that the roads should be nicely metalled and the footpaths kept in order. We hope therefore that the inhabitants of the districts outside the town belt will rise up in defence of their homes, and refuse to be instructed in their duties by his Worship the Mayor of Christchurch and other interested parties.