THE Pukekohe and Waiuku Times PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 1914 LET THERE BE LIGHT.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 206, 23 June 1914, Page 2

THE Pukekohe and Waiuku Times PUBLISHED TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS TUESDAY, JUNE 23, 1914

LET THERE BE LIGHT.

" We nothing t.ttenuate, nor let down auaht in malice."

We are glad to learn tit it at the last meeting of the Pukokohe Borough Council the Mayor again introduced the question of public lighting for this borough. The form his suggestion took was that when the forthcoming poll is being taken upon the various loan proposals to lie submitted, the ratepayers should be asked to siy whether they favour tho installation of a lighting system by the municip;lity or by private enterprise. The idea has some merit, as the cost of ascertaining the minds of the people, will be vory trilling. Possibly the most effective form in which to put tho questions would be as follows : I.—Are you in favour of tho Councd submitting loan proposals for the installation of a municipal lighting service 'i 2.—Which system do you prefer—Coal gas, electricity, acetylene or air gas ''. Note: If the ratepayers do not approve of municipal lighting, the Council will consider the proposal to give options to piivate firms to instal a lighting service for tho borough.

If Eome such fonu as tho foregoing were used, the Council would arrive at a pretty exact idea of what the ratepayers want; and the ratepayers would be given clearly to know that if they will not support municipal lighting, then priyate enterprise will bo given the opportunity of doing for Pukekohe what Pukekohe is not prepared to do for itself. A second advantage would be that a declaration would be obtained from the ratepayers as to the light they most favour and the Council, if the vote met with their approval, could at once proceed to obtain all the necessary data as to the cost, etc., of installing the light. Wo know of no public utility which lends itself more readily to co-opera-tive effort than a public lighting service. We believe that the sarvieo should be municipal. We believe that in this borough a coal-gas works would prove most advantageous to all the people And it would be only as a last resort that we would approve of hauling overthe opportunities and prospective profits to priyate enterprise. We do not think that Cr. Pollock expressed the miud of ratepayers when he said at the Council meeting on Wednesday night that if a loan proposal for lighting were put to tho whole of the borough it would bo thrown out by the " outsiders." It can bo shown by the experience of many boroughs in New Zealand that gas-works are paying concerns; that the profits derived therefrom can bo employed to reduce the geuoral rate ; and that gas-pipe laying and road-making cau bo done more economically under joint management than under separate coutrnl. If these points cau l>o proved we do not think the "outsiders" will vote against the progross and development of the whole borough, beciuso by doing so they would bo voting against thoir iutorests.