THE MAYORALTY.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXII, Issue 96, 23 April 1912, Page 5

THE MAYORALTY.

me. McAllister addresses the Ratepayers.

A GOOD MEETING

There was a very fair attendance at f"the Town Hall last evening, when Mr. J. McAllister gave the ratepayers his opinion on. affairs municipal. He spoke for over an hour, and received the fair and impartial hearing that the Mayor asked for him. •In introducing the speaker, the Mayor said Mr. McAllister had been in Stratford fifteen years, and had served on several local bodies, among them the Hospital Board, the School Committee, and the East Egmont Reserve's Board, besides being a Councillor. _; _ .it

On rising to speak, Mr. McAllister, who was greeted with applause, said he made no apologies for coming hefore them that evening, and asking them to listen to what he had to say. He believed it was the duty of every candidate for such an honour to state his views on any question that might be occupying tne public mind, to maice public any suggestion he might have which would advance the interests of th.s town, to say whether he will continue, or amend, tne present policy 01 the Vouncil. He recognised in seeidng this honour of representing them as Mayor he was aspiring to a position which had been tilled oy worthy men in the past, he wished to pay a tribute to the men who had gone before. Stratford had been particularly fortunate in this respect, and lie trusted if he was permitted to be a successor of these worthy men he would uphold the traditions and serve with credit to himself and honour to the town. "If elected," the speaker continued, V'JL shall endeavour to do what seems right and proper in that position." (Applause.) Before he began his. address proper, Mr;.McAllister said he w.shed to make A Personal Explanation with regard to certain matters which Mr It, MoK.. Morison had seen fit to publish about him. He mentioned this matter because he did not wish to appear, before them under any false colours, but simply that the ait might be cleared. "Mr. Morison,has thought it wise," said the candidate, "to publish some parts of an interview he had. with me. Two of the statements are as follows: .First, that I would rather see him in the Mayoral chair than be there myself; second, that I considered no one on the Council more entitled to the position than he. Tne whole thing is so paltry that I hardly feel justified in referring to it. . Taking the first question, Mr. Morison must admit that when he came to see me in connection with this election, I told him distinctly that I had been approached with regard to standing, 1 d.d not disguise the fact that I had been pressed to nominate for the position, and, further, I did not tell him that I had decided not to stand. 1 told him positively that I had not decided, but I would rather stand .down, if he had the following sufficient to put him in the chair; as far as the honour ( was concerned, I woud rather see him there than myself. That is perfectly honest. Mr. Morison should have quoted the rest of ray remarks. As regards the second question, Mr. Morison invited me to,compliment him, and I did it. When I told'him that he did not appear to have much chance, he said, 'l)on't you think it's up to the Council to put me there?' (Laughter.) Well,''what could-J say? I saiid; i that as far as work is concerned, and services on the Council, you may be entitled to the honour as much as anyone there, but you must admit you are a weak man at the poll." Mr) Morison: "It's like your cheek to say so." "I don't say it'," continued the speaker, "is it any detriment to you, or any reflection on you? It's not. But the fact remains you are a weak man .■ at: the poll. And Mr. Morison said 'Yes', I'm not brilliant.'" This, Mr. McAllister said, was the. conversation of that interview, and he did not consider he was doing Mr. Morison any injustice in coming forward now. He did not mislead him in any one particular. (Applause.) In his platform, "Tha Moat important Plank," he went on to saty, was undoubtedly his attitude towards loan matters, it was certainly admitted that much work was required in the Borough. They could n'ot, however, do all tnat was needed, and much would still need to be' done to make' the Borough as convenient and as comfortable as it might bel Ho adriiitted that it would be possible to do a great deal of that work out of revenue. In considering a loan, it was a good thing to be influenced, not by what they would like to do, but by what they could afford to do. (Hear, hear.) It was the easiest thing in the world for any one to come along and say he would get this done and that done, channeling here ana kerbing there, and tarred macadam and 1 asphalt footpaths. But" it was th;.' ratepayers who should say where to stop in this direction; the man who pays the piper, should call the tune. One thing that was necessary was enterprise, but he hoped that the ratepayers would not be led into expense which they would bitterly repent in time/to come. (Applause.) At this stage he would like to refer to the Revaluation of tire Borough. "It is a very difficult matter," said Mr. McAllister, "to judge just how this revaluation will affect us. Undoubtedly it will make a difference—a considerable difference to some ol • us*. To others, perhaps, very little difference: But, jit will not make much difference so far as the total revenue of the Borough is concerned. Tin same amount will have to be raised on one valuation, as on another. L the revaluation is going to effect one man so that he will have to pay more rates, it will have an opposite tendency with another man. It is only a matter of adjustment." Mr. McAllister said he believed that the present amount raised from rates was not an excessive amount, but he was certainly opposed to raising the rates to gain more revenue. He believed with f the administration they had had in the past, they could do very well with the revenue they had at the present time This year's revenue had been sufficient to cover working current expenses - , and they had £843 on the credit side. During the winter months the Council v had spent a good deal of time in considering A Loan Scheme. They went through the Borough from end to end, and calculated what works might be undertaken. Not with the idea the work scheduled should be put in hand immediately or at all. It war; expenditure that was desirable rather than expenditure they could afford. The whole scheme as outlined by the Council would cost about £41.100, including £20,000 i for street improvement, the town bridge £7510, drainage £14,600, To the cost of the drainage scheme tliey must add a certain amount for expenses in putting in connections where the owners could not afford to do it. The money would, of course, ultimately be refunded, but it would have to be found in the first place. That was not done when.the

former loan was carried. Either then I was no machinery, or it was not | thought necessary. It ..was certainh an oversight. Putting that amount at £3OOO, the loan would be £17,100. The present indebtedness of the .Borough was £42,699, and much" of that money was borrowed at a rale of interest at which it would be impossible to borrow at the present day. The Government had very recently raised the rate at which they lend money, and it now stands at 5} per cent., which, of course, includes a 1 per cent sinking fund. . That exceeded verj considerably what the bulk of theii present loan cost them. At all events, big enough. The proposal which he he thought that the present rates \vevc wished to submit to them that night was one which would enable a considerable amount of improvements to be effected, and one which would not raise the rates at all. Indeed, they could do this comfortably with a margin, he believed, for contingencies. ._ He proposed to raise

A Loan of £3OOO ■for the improvement of the streets, for the filtration of the water supply, and for general purposes. The present surplus of £Bl3 would, of course, be swallowed up by the road roller which was on order. As far as this year was concerned they would have the road roller. There' was the increase from reserves which would amount to £350, but it was safe to assume that that £BSO would be swallowed up in putting the buildings in thorough repair. and in renovating the Council Chambers generally. They could not, therefore, count on that money so far as. this year was concerned. 'lt was also safe "to assume, he claimed, that this year, without any special 'expenditure before them, they could effect a considerable saving, at least £6OO, in the coming year. As they could see, if they borrowed £BOOO at 5} per cent., that would appropriate £l2O of that surplus for next year. Taking into consideration the arguments of those who had advocated the purchase of a road roller, they would make a considerable saving on road maintenance. He trusted they would'. But that saving would hardly *bo appreciable for at least two years, so that as far as the present was concerned they could hardly take the saving into account. He did not hold with the views that had been advanced at a previous election on, that very platform that a bank overdraft was a thing no self-respect-ing Borough should be without, and he did not think many ratepayers would agree with those views. They should use their best endeavours to lessen that overdraft, and they would then have less■ interest to pay. • The first call made upon the loan of £BOOO would be for a Filtration Scheme. This, ho was sure, was a most pressing need, and was one which would benefit every individual in the Borough. It would not only be a universal benefit, but it would not prove a costly scheme. He trusted that whoever led :the affairs of the Council after the next election, that steps would ( be taken to carry out this scheme. They should not have to wait much longer, as they had waited long enough for pure and fresh water. (Applause.) The Council had long had the matter under consideration, and two years ago Mr. Climie had submitted a report, the following extracts i of which ho read: "In regard to the question of filtering the water, I am of opinion that the time has. arrived when this should be carried out in view of the fact that this, treatment would free.the water of all unpleasantness,, and would ensure its perfect wholesomeness, though 1 am given to understand that the analysis made by Dr. Makgill some shorttime since did not reveal anything seriously wrong with the water, that is, anything injurious to health. . .." The next question is the class of filter' that should be installed. After going thoroughly into the matter, 1 am of opinion that the cheapest, both 'in first cost and cost of maintenance, is a mechanical pressure filter installed on the main, without a reservoir, and the site for the filter is at the junction of Page Street and Brecon Road, say in the corner of the Domain. Tin? filters require very little space, as they aro only eight feet in diameter, and about fifteen feet in height. They also do not require housing and are not unsightly. The site proposed is very accessible and most suitable in every way. The filter requires very little attention, which can be given by one of the Borough men, and will take only, say, half an hour on alternative days." •'Surely," said. Mr. McAllister, "if the/time was thought fit two years ago it is overdue now?" (Applause.) That was Mr. Climie's opinion two years ago, and .the time had arrived to undertake the work then ;' it was overripe now. But the whole trouble had been, in the past, that they could not place a loan proposal before the people without asking them for extra rates. Ho believed that they could now raise a loan, as he had said, without raising the rates at all. The cost, of the scheme would bo approximately £2OOO. That was rather more than Mr. Climie's estimate, but he was allowing a substantial margin for increases in the cost of labour, etc., as he_ thought it wiser to be on the safe side. They should do their very utmost to secure this loan. 'The sinking fund would only amount to £1.05, and as ,at the' present time the profit on the water account was £lO5 a year, it would be a good proposition to go in for the scheme. (Applause.) The remaining £OOOO would be utilised For General Purposes. Trr's would include, continued Mr. McAllister, a comprehensive scheme of street improvement, kerbing and channeling, channeling only, and necessary formation work. That, of course, as he had already pointed out, was not everything they would like to do. The need for street improvements he need not enlarge upon. When they got the road roller to work they would have better roads. That was admitted. He trusted sincerely that the anticipations of those who considered that trie road roller was a good financial proposition would be realised. He felt that the need for kerbing would be admitted by all. Footpath's without kerbing cost double or treble for maintenance. Of course, channeling would be necessary only in certain places. It was not necessary to channel wherever kerbing was put, but' only in such places where the water scoured out the footpath or damaged the road. The necessity of formation work might not appeal to the ratepayers as a whole, but it would mean a great deal to those people who would be benefited by it. In this respect some places required immediate attention. He instanced as an example Juliet Street South and Ariel Street. A Voice: "What about Seyton Street?" (Laughter.) Mr. McAllister said he now came to a part of his address which would be considered by some the most important. It certainly was one which reoviirrd very careful consideration at the hands of the ratepayers. Ho referred to the matter of sewerage. At the dime when the Borough Council were considering the loan proposal they had hoped to be able to drain the entire town. To drain that portion of the Borough between Began and Seyton Streets, however, a very compro-

hensive scheme would have to Im adopted. There wore two alternatives. One, to lay a sewer _ along Swansea Road to the present site ox the septic tank, and the other to purchase land along the Esk Road, and there to construct another septic tank. 'there were schemes which would require a great deal of money, and the Council were not justified in recommending either of theor, and he greatly regretted that it was not possible to deal with these schemes in any other way. However, he considered that a small portion of the £BOOO loan would bo admirably spent in linking up a fcm portions of the Borough to the sewer He mentioned in this respect, a certain portion of Juliet Street South ivliich could be connected for a sum of about £73. and a portion of Orlando Street which would cost the same amount. “I have endeavoured to show you,” continued Mr. McAllister “that a loan of £BOOO can be raised without an extra rate. There are, of course, Alternatives. First, that we should do without a loan altogether, and do the improvements out cf revenue; and second, that mg should raise a large loan and have extra taxation. The first proposal must hang up the _ filtration scheme, and the ratepayers will do well to consider that for a moment. The second alternative—a largo loan and extra taxation—will not appeal to anyone, hut those who have no rates to pay, nr whose valuation amounts to very little.” Mr McAllister added that while the loan money lasted there Mould bo a boom, and when jt ceased they M’ouid have a slump which would more than counteract the effect of‘the boom. HoM'ever, be M'ould leave the loan proposals and touch upon matters Of General Interest. The question of the electric light had boon so much in the public mind that he believed it Mould not be out of place to refer to it. People had found fault with the position’he took up on tins matter, because he believed it was in the best interests of the Borough to take over the concern. He was fully entitled to his opinion, and saw no reason. to alter it. He firmly believed that before the concession of the company expired they tvoukl have repented the decisbm they came to a few weeks ago. His interests in this matter were identical with the ratepayers’. Although he believed in giving the com- . pany fair and just treatment, he would not'lose sight of the fact that be represented the interests of the ratepayers, and that they must have the first cla : m on his consideration. Referring to the Domains, be claimed that the Domain Board had not received enough support from the public. The Domain Board, as at present constituted, would go out of office in about twelve months’ time, or, at least, the members originally gazetted would then have to be re-appointed. Ho thought the Council should move in the matter of having representation on the Board. On several occasions he had defended the Board against personal attacks, for he fully appreciated the work they did with such a small revenue as £BO a year, about £25 of which M-as ‘all that was available for new work year by year. They would understand what expenditure they had, when he told them that they had five miles of live fences to keep in order, with no neighbours to pay half the cost. Ho advocated that the members of the Domain Board should lie elected year by year instead of for a period of ten years, and that the Domain Board should take some particular work in hand and endeavour to get the public to assist them, the Borough' Council to subsidise the amount sc raised £ for £ up to £SO. He considered that-this Mould more than double the usefulness of the Board. Mr. McAllister referred briefly to his qualifications for the position, as already mentioned bv the Mayor. In enndu-. sion, ■ho wished to refer to a matter that ho had hoped he need .not refer to. “I have been compelled,” said Mr McAllister, “by what I have hoard continuously during, the last fenv days since I made the announcement of my candidature. It is that lam being run by the Clo-License Party, and that I am only going to get votes because I am a Prohibitionist. I tell everyone of you to-night, that if yon are going to vote for me just because I am a Prohibitionist, then I am sorry for the way you look at things—sincerely sorry. (Applause.) I want you to vote for me, but because you consider that I am fitted for the position and Mill fill it with honour to you an* credit to myself, and that on every Qccasion I shall fill the Mayoral chair with the wisdom and tact that has been used by those who M’Gii t before me.” On the’other hand, he thought it was only fair that because lie held these vlom’s people should not consider that they debarred him from occupying the Mayoral chair, and urged that they should look at the matter fairly and squarely. He' thanked them for their lend attention which they had paid to what he had to say. (Applause.) Mr. N. J. King moved a very hearty vote of thanks to MV. McAllister for his address, adding that he considered that Mr. McAllister had proved that, he had a very thorough grip of Bor-) ough matters. Mr. Saugster seconded the motion, which Mas carried witli acclamation. There was no response to the invitation to answer questions, and a vote of thanks to the chair concluded the meeting. - -j MR. KIRKWOOD'S CANDIDATURE This evening in the Town Hall Mr. W. P. Kirkwood will place his views before the ratepayers. It is to he hoped that there Mull he a large attendance, as to-night Mill he the only opportunity that will lie given to the public hefore the election of hearing Mr. KirkM'ood’s opinions on public matters.