SCHOOL WATER AGAIN.

Levin Daily Chronicle, 24 January 1918, Page 3

SCHOOL WATER AGAIN.

i The Town Clerk (Mr 13. 11. Gardener) reported to Monday's meeting of the Borough Council that rather a peculiar position had a risen in regard to the supply of water to the school. Some time ago (he committee waited on the Council and asked that the annual charge of £10 be reduced to £5. The request, was agreed to and immediately the charge was reduced a> cheque for £5 was paid in hy the Committee. Jitst be- , fore Christmas however, he had j received another cheque for £5 ■ direct from the Education Board attached to the original account ! which lie had sent to the Commitj tee. He had sent a receipt for this amount to the Board. The j position was that, though the Council had reduced the charge j lo £5 it had received payment of £10. They had received £5 from j a source which they were led to believe strongly objected to pay j anything for water. "I suppose possession is nine points of the law," concluded Mr Gardener. The Mayor said the position was one that personally he did not ; like. He was distinctly under ! the impression that the School Committee had got the best of the Council in this matter. The Council had allowed its sympathies to run way with its judgment. The original charge was a just and reasonable one. The Boroujyli remitted £5 which, it seeffied, the Committee was better able to afford. At the interview he asked the question as to what special grant the Committee was likely to reoeive. The answer was somewhat evasive and was that owing to the peculiar way of assessment the. Committee would

benefit very little- But a table published in the press showed what, these assessments really meant, to the various Committees, and taking Levin as a school with n attendance of from 550 to 600 scholars it appeared that the ex. tra annual grant would be ,£l4. This should enable the Committee to meet its obligations and was quite different from the 15s per quarter mentioned by Mr Thomson. Under the circumstances they should ask the School Committee for an explanation. The attitude the speaker and Cr. Parker took up was that pressure should be brought to bear on the Government for adequate grants before the Committee came to a private source and asked for reductions for services that they were getting good value for. "We have been practically had in this matter," said the Mayor.

Cr Broome, a member of the School Committee, said the statement of the chairman of the Committee in regard to the amount of the assessment was, he believed, quije correct. It was based on the number of-scholars certainly, but they "had to have a certain amount of floor space, and it really resolved itself into the amount of room available. The space was inadequate at Levin and the amount of tlie special grant had been carefully worked out at £3 per annum for Levin. If there had been an error it had been unintentional. It was quite unexpected that the Board would pay anything towards the water rate as they had previously refused to do so. He could honestly say . the Committee had not been trying to get at the Council in any way.

Cr. Mackenzie said that he could boar out from his knowledge of School Committee finances, what Cr. Broome said in regard to the method, of assessing the special grant.

The Town Clerk said he had written to the Board asking to whom lie was to look in future for the water rate —the Committee of the Board. The Mayor suggested that the Committee might very well leave the £10 charge as it was this year. His ru"'Brestion that the Committee be asked for an explanation of the circumstances was agreed to.

Committee Chairman's Letter.

(To the Editor). Sir.—l understand the question of the water charge for the School came in for another discussion at the last Council meeting. I would like to ask the public to suspend judgment until such time as the real facts can be placed before them.- tip to the time of writing I have had no official communication from the Council in reference to the matter. lam etc, W. Thomson, Chairman L.D.H. School.