The Town Clerk.

Manawatu Herald, 7 April 1898, Page 2

The Town Clerk.

■ ♦ The Borough Council have not quite made up thair mind as to the kind of man they desire for a Town Clerk, and have therefore issued an adver. tisement inviting applications for a Clerk and another for a sort of Jack of all trades. It may appear a mistake to oppose any attempt to effect economy on the part of our public men, and we would be the last to complain did we not feel sure that the supposed economy of placing so many public duties upon the shoulders of one poor man can result in nothing bub loss and vexation. No man can even partially, carry everything out, much less excel in doing so, and some men's talents have one direction and some another. The amalgamation of offices has

been proposed under the idea that the inrceaaed salary , will be the means of inducing a larger number of applications, and it may have that effect, bufc the calibre of the applicants must needs be greatly lowered. One of the duties of the Town Clerk is to be the Treasurer of the Borough, and he must therefore be a fair accountant, on the other hand the duty of an Inspector of Nuisances is to search the most unsavoury spots in the Borough and to investigate the causes for such odours. The two duties are not likely to be attractive to the same class of man and excellence in the performance of the first duty is no guarantee of excellence in the performance of the latter duty. The present Councillors are well aware thafc when these two offices were held by the late Town Clerk the duties of Inspector of Nuisances were not efficiently carried out, being a job moat repugnant to the holder of that office, and his view was upheld by the Council, and less than six months ago they' severed the offices and appointed some other person Inspector of Nuisancos with marked benefit to the ratepayers. la the desire to obtain an (applicant from outside the Council purpose? rescind ing this appointment and thus place their action as opi>n to doubt. Thpn again the amalgam ilion of iho i.ffiop of Town Clerk and Librarian does not read so objectionable, and would not be were the person styled Librarian really one, but he i<? in fact simply a custodian of ihe Libmry building and id bound by ihtf duties of his f-ffice to clean out the b.i tiding each day, and also to mnke up he fi 63 and trim the lam^s! ;>rul .be value of his services, in eveiy capacity, can 1> • guaged when we mention his remuneration for this labour, besides giving some hours a day oi big person tl attention at the building is fixed at £10 a year with the use of what is ca led three room?. In mentioning free «\iu as an inducement for a responsible man to take such a position, we have but to advise every ratepayer who interests himself in Borough affairs to view the building and then to appreciate how such an inducement is likely to prove a draw to applicants who possess the chief qualifications most necessary in a person who fills the honourable position of Town Clerk. We are very much at variance with those who believe any good will result in this amalgamation of offices, and we think much mora good would have been done towards getting a satisfactory person for the position, had some of the multifarious duties now pieced upon the person who is to hold the offico of Town Glerk, as it is represented in the advertisement, had the duties been subdivided and the salary also lessened. The chief object sought is to obtain a thoroughly trustworthy and good accountant, rate-collector and clerk, duties which run together and in which one man might bo excellent, but to expect that he can be a good valuer of property and of rentals does not seem reasonable. It would be to the advantage for the smoother working of the Borough if the office of Valuer and Overseer of Works were appointed out to thosa who have a practical knowledge of these duties, and it has been brought under the notice of the Council by the late Town Clerk that the duties of Returning Officer for the elections did not fit in, since an alteration of the Election Act, with the duties of Town Clerk. The whole of the work of the Borough could be done at the same cost and very much better, by subdivision than by amalgamation. We may say that by the conditions of duties for applicants the Council are very much of this opinion as they admit the right of the Town Clerk to sublet the duty of caretaker of the Library, but the disadvantage lies in the fact that the responsibility rests on the shoulders of the Olerk which rightly should remain with the representatives of the ratepayers. It woul3 be to the interest of the Borough if ratepayers would express their opinions on tbeis very important question. _ •