A DISTRICT INSTITUTION
SUFPORTFQR WOMEN’S REST. COUNTY COUNCIL GRANTS £2l TO BUILDING FUND. CL AIMS OF OTHER. TOWNS SUGGESTED. A donation from the Horowhcnua County Council-towards furnishing the public room in the Women's Rest. Wasi* requested in a letter received at tae I' Council meeting on Saturday' from Mrs C. Bartholomew, secretaiy Of the Com- ' mittOe. It was pointed out in the letter that the building should prove a ; -great boon to the country women and children. ; CHAIRMAN SYMPATHETIC, t The chairman "(Mr G. A. Monk) said he "felt that the erection of this building in Levin Would fill a long felt want, as far as country people were 1 concerned, benefiting the surrounding districts - and > plaees as far away >as . the extreme south of the county. He thought, therefore, that any little dona* : lion that the Council could make toWafds'it Would be for an object which, in the-future, would be most useful to COUnty, ratepayers as providing a comfort for their womenfolk. Whilst she was not suggesting that any big sum should-be contributed, he thought 'that -the Coiinty Would be quite within its rights'in assisting the fund with respect to the building—he was not particularly impressed with the idea -of contributing towards the furnishirlg; the County might like to have an interest in something more stable than furniture. Any contribution that vsiasso 1 made would have to come out f ot “unauthorised,'? and could not be a .very large amount. Cr. Catley: It is not there to make, is it? Cr. - Gimblett': Do I understand that there has bech a request before us for , a contributic^? The Chaihiittn:, It was held over, I think, to Isee how they would get on. A LESSON FROM WHANGAREI. s Cr. Gimßihtt; said he had been very much interested in the matter, and Cr. Bryant had had something (to do with it; Mrs Bryant Had done quite a lot for the movement. Personally he could* apeak with a good deal of, feeling; he had seen what the wUmen of the district haddone'for this project, and he could only express admiration of their work and the time they had put in. He maintained that the Council hadan obligation in the matter. During the Winter he visited Whangareij where ;his 'attention was called to a buildiiVg which comprised a ladies’ rest, with Plunket room. The Boroughs Of Whangarei had raised, for this pttr po-fe a loan of £2400, making itself liable' for the whole amount conditionally on the surrounding comities con-* -tribUting one-third and the Hospital Board a little less than one-third, the 'Borough finding the balance. the annual costs Were £B9 each to the Borough and the Counties and £79 to the Hospital Board He thought that a precedent was established there and an admission made that q Council had an obligation in the matter, and therefore that it was the duty of this Council to make-a vote to the Levin institution. No doubt, some of the councillors from the northern end of the County-might ask, what about helpingthe Plunket Society or kindred institutions there. He knew that was a, real danger in contributing to too ;., many causes, but ne hoped that the Council i could see its way to help this one. He thought that the ladies*? committee would be able to furnish the ■public Toom, but there was a debt Of £2OO or £3OO on the building. Tile committee had requested the Borough Council to take the building over, but it had practically declined to do so. However, it had appointed a commit-tee-to meet the ladies and go into details; If the building-were paid for, he thought that the P>orough Council would take it over and it would be run or. the lines that those interested ' wished to see. He moved that the Council grant 25 guineas to the Women's Rest building fund. The motion was seconded by Cr. Kilsby.
Cr. Gimblett explained that ho was not’ in favour of the Council granting anything towards the cost of the furniture. AN OCCASION FOR LIBERALITY.
>- Cr. Kilsby said he did not think
that the mover had gone far enough,
The sum should be made double whatt was stated. This was the sort of re-
quest that did not often come before the Council. The building was for the l/enefit not only of the ladies in thy vicinity of Levin, but for those residing throughout the County and also for lady. visitors from outside that area —
members of the travelling public who broke their r journeys at Levin. The ) rest'Would be well patronised by ladies who were ’passing through the district. The Borough Council should take the building! over free of cost and maintain it afterwards. The first cost should be the only cost. NEEDS JF SOUTHERN END.
Cr. Jensen Said it was somewhat dMcult ‘to against a motion of tins nature. Although it was realised that the societies ’ concerned weTO doing a great amount of good, it must also be recognised that if public money was to be spent in Levin there were societies in other parts of the County 'too. They existed„ in Otaki and in ■the* south cud of the district, and were practically all short Of funds, but they -had'not come to the Council for any contributions. If they approached the -Council, was it prepared to treat them a» generously as it was proposed, in thia -fnotion, to - treat the Levin people ? ' The Chairman: A very fine precedent' is laid down here.
. Cr. Jensen: dan this Council spend , -its funds -so freely when we are so ‘sorely in need of sdme Of our public 'woirlrtf I take-it that Otaki is just 6S'mu4h entitled to hate the donation, - if it, as these people here.
:TifefC; iis anothff ;pdiut: ’Have we “not donated from year to year?
The Chairman: No. There is established here a Plunket Society, and at Otaki there is a 'Plunket Society. We have {.made an annual contribution to the Levin branch.
Cr. Gimblett: Levin only? The Chairman: Yes; so far. This contribution’fo - which we are now asked is towards paying the cost of a women’s and children’s rest room in Levin, and 'the committee have also built a room which is being used by the ’Plunket -Society. This is a nonxeeurring contribution. The contribution to the Plunket Society can be ceased, added to, or reduced; or we can'- contribute to Gtaki. I would be rather inclined, as one of the committee down there, -to have them put in their application. We are enterprising and have held carnivals and so forth. My “personal opinion was that probably £2O would be a fair contribution from the Council in this casx. I am mot going to move to reduce the amount proposed, however. Cr. Kilsby: Increase it?
The Chairman: I object to increasing it, because I think that £2O would be a very fine contribution. We don’t, know what rest rooms may be built in the future. Otaki may say, “We want to draw some of the west coast business, and must go to work and raise “some 'money. Certainly I would object to increasing the proposed amount., IMPORTANCE OF A CARETAKER. Cr. Jensen stated that Otaki had a women’s rest resort, but was not in n : similar position to the committee in Levin, who had no caretaker for the Women 's Rest. The Chairman: Levin’s institution will not go -without a caretaker.- - Cr. Gimblett: That is not this Council?® ‘worry. Cr.‘Jensen said that without a caretaker for the Rest- the grant would not be wanted;
Cr. Gimblett: It is good hands. , Cr. Jensen went on to say that the Council should not-deal so lightly with a matter 'such as this. lie had a strong Objection to public money being granted before those granting it were assured that it would be spent. It 'was the ratepayers’ money that they were ‘voting av/ay,-and"they -should see that it was l spent in such a way thatit! was not wasted. Without a caretaker it Was wasted. If the Council would give him an assurance that, if Otaki asked for a similar grant, it would be treated as liberally as Levin, he might consider the proposal. The Chairman: This is a very fine weapon. Cr. Jensen: "Vyhat iB going tc happen next?
The Chairman: Perhaps Otaki will send someone who will extract more. • Cr. Gimblett stated that on Tuesday last- Levin was 'visited by a decorated lorry With “Otaki’’ printed all over it, so evidently the southern 'town was after something. Cr. Jensen: I object to too much centralising. Or. Kilsby: You must centralise.
Cr. Jensen: Not with public money, SHANNON ALIVE TO SITUATION
Cr. Whyte said that, in all probability, the Council would have a request from-the Shannon Plunket Society for a grant—a request'that it had not had in the-past. With regard to Tokomaru, the community of interest was with Palmerston North;, Tokomaru people did business with Palmerston; and their women-folk used the Rest Room there. It would be some time before there was a Rest Room at Tokomaru. He was not against the present proposal, but the Council should bear in mind that it ufould have a request ' from Shannon -before very long.
Cr. Barber: I feel that it would bo better if a freer move were made by the Levin Borough Council instead of wanting to have a debate as to whether they Should give assistance. They arc inclined to quibble about it. Remarks passed here to-day leave that opinion in one's mind. The Chairman: I have the opinion that the Levin Borough Council will do the right thing. (sr. Gimblett: It is pretty hard to make them do it, then. The Chairman: They will do it ip their own way, but it will be the right thing. The Borough Council must racognise the great advantage the Women's Rest will bo as far as their people are concerned. Cr. Gimblett: I don’t think the Borough Council have any knowledge that this letter is here. The/Borough Council has taken very little part in the raising of funds. It has given the section.
Cr. Barber: Are we not using the term “unauthorised” rather broadly 1
Tho Chairman: It ha® to come out of “unauthorised.”
Cr. Catley: I would make it £2O,
The Chairman: If there are enough of us, we can make it that. Or. Catley: To.anyone with business or pleasure in Levin there is no doubt that the institution is going to be very convenient. It is more an obligation on the public; too much is made of the obligation cf a local bod}’ to contribute. There may be a moral obligation, but there is a far greater one on the public to contribute. It is more to the benefit of Levin than anybody else. There Is a far greater population round Levin than in other parts of the county. The Chairman: You-won’t help me to make it £2O?
Cr. Catley replied in the affirmative,* but added that he knew instances where the Council had to be cheese-paring in regard to road requirement. The man on the land was paramount with him. , Cr. Bryant said he was in sympathy with the proposal to vote £2O. Quite a lot of money-had been raised in Manakau for the Women ’s Rest, and -a grant of £2O by the Council should be sufficient. The Council had to make quite a number of grants, thought that it was becoming rather too . generous, AMENDED GRANT AGREED TO.
An-, amendment wan moved by Cr. Bryant and * seconded- -by Cr. Catley, that the -grant be £2O. Cr. Gimblett eaid that, with the
consent of his seconder, he would amend his motion so as to make the grant 20 guineas (£2l). The Chairman: I will agree to that. Cr. Gimblett added that, if applications came in from Shannon and Otaki, be was quite agreeable to support them if funds were available and if councillors would remember that the greater share would have to come , out of' the Wirokino riding, though the charge wa9 on the whole county. With regard to Cr. Catley’s remark about the Council being ecdlnomical concerning certain roads, he considered that no works put before the Council were as important 4s this hvork. ,The debt remaining on the, Rest building was being guaranteed by some liberal gentlemen. As for the Borough Council it was difficult to know, at the present stage, what it was going to do, but he felt, with the chairman, that it would do the right thing. There had been one or two debates in the Council that one could take exception to, but on the Whole he thought that that Council would do the right thing.
The amendment to vote the Rest. Committee £2l towards tho building fund was carried.
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Shannon News, 14 December 1928, Page 4
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2,126A DISTRICT INSTITUTION Shannon News, 14 December 1928, Page 4
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