RATING WAITOMO COUNTY.

King Country Chronicle, Volume I, Issue 18, 22 February 1907, Page 3

RATING WAITOMO COUNTY.

TO THE EDITOR. SIR, —Mr Lusk, in referring to the rating of the County, admits that the amount collected is but sufficient to about pay office expenses and leaves but little for the true functions of a local body, in the direction of providing improved roading facilities. The advisability of obtaining loans at such a youthful age of the County is to many somewhat doubtful. Our interests are not yet centred. Each year adds to our settlement and progress, also.to our wants, and we may find that our daily and greater wants are different.in a year or two. Dairy factories will come into existence, and metalling in their immediate vicinity will be essential to their success, and the necessary purely local loans mean fairly heavy rates. Mr Lusk says road making can only be done by loan money and not out of rates, but surely the loan that was proposed to be raised was a mere nothing to what the Government is, and has been spending on roading in this district every year. How would the expending of that proposed loan have improved the condition of the roads in other parts Of the County than Mairoa ? It is, I understand, usual to first obtain the Treasury's provisional approval of a loan before going to the expense of taking a poll, etc., and apparently loans, the granting of which _ are dependent on Government subsidies, are not readily assented to. I have to thank "Go Steady " for some information as the regards amount of revenue, and I would like to tell him at once that I do not want to pay one penny more in rates than is necessary, but if a slip blocks a road, or a bridge approach or ford is impassable, or a stock track wants opening, I would liked it attended to at once, and such requests cannot be granted unless L and my neighbours pay rates. If we had £I2OO of rates and £SOO Government subsidy and a revenue of, say, another £I2OO (I have no data) from thirds we should be able to attend to our immediate wants, and I am firmly convinced that the amount expended for salary of a County Engineer would be most profitable. He would in the course of time, prepare estimates for important metalling and other works, which could be done out of loans, when the general rate could be reduced if necessary. A County that can fill the Te Kuiti saleyards like it does, can pay rates, and " Go Steady " should remember that our backblocker's greatest tax is bad roads. Legislation has provided for the collecting of Native rates, and if it is unsatisfactory or unworkable Parliament should be approached to get it altered. If the ratepayers could pay a 2d rate for loan purposes for 41 years, they could surely pay a 2%d rate for general purposes, fill such time as the Council deem it more than sufficient. —I am, etc., I RATEPAYER.