MUNICIPAL PICTURES.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 1206, 10 February 1914, Page 2

MUNICIPAL PICTURES.

STILL PAYING SPLENDIDLY. That the municipal picture enterprise is still a splendid paying concern was proved beyond any shadow of a doubt by figures produced at last night’s Council meeting. The matter was brought up during the discussion in connection with the operator’s wages, by Cr Coley remarking that the best way would be to let the hall straight out, and thus save all the trouble to the Council. The Mayor said that when the municipal picture show got to the point that the Council could not make more than by letting the building, then they should let it and save all the trouble, but until that stage was reached they should certainly continue running their own pictures. That the hall was paying was shown by the fact that alter paying legal expenses of over this year, there was, according to the Treasurer’s statement, still a credit balance of £iJ3> 80 there was no doubt the enterprise was paying. Cr Coley; If we can’t make more money by running the pictures than by letting the hall, then we should let the building. At the request of the Mayor, the Town Clerk produced the books with the transactions in connection with the hall, which showed that since March 3 ts l> 1913, the gross takings at the picture entertainments were ,£1264 9s 3d, and the expenditure ,£9*4 Ss 3d, leaving a credit balance of £33o’ is od. The expenditure in.

eluded an extraordinary item, that for legal expenses in connection with the recent case, so that the ordinary profits from the pictures for the past ten months amounted to no less a sum than £450.

The Mayor said if they could not get any better offer for the hall for pictures than they had got previously, Cr Coley’s argument would not be borne out. At that time they were offered P er week lor one night a week, with a condition that the building was not to be let for pictures to any other firm, so that from the returns produced they were still justified in running the pictures. He was glad that it could go out to the ratepayers that the municipal pictures were still a splendid paying concern.

Cr Whibley said be would strenuously oppose any suggestion to let the hall for picture shows, until such lime as it was not paying its way. While the picture entertainments were paying their way, it was the Council’s duty to continue to run them. Cr Henderson also considered the Council should continue to run the pictures.