THE MAYOR REPLIES TO THE CHAIRMAN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVII, Issue 100, 30 December 1913, Page 5

THE MAYOR REPLIES TO THE CHAIRMAN.

[To Tun Editor Strati-ord Post.] Sir, —Mr Robert Masters is surely a humorist, even if an unconscious one. He states, at the outset of his last letter, that it was not his intention to take up much of your space, chiefly for the reason that there was little to reply to in my letter. He then proceeds to fill a column of your paper, attempting by tedious repetition of arguments used in his previous voluminous correspondence, to discredit the position 1 have taken up; Mr Masters has not in one single instance disproved any of my .statements, but endeavors to drown all argument ina deluge of words. His continued pathetic appeal on" behalf of * tho County ratepayer is amusing, but deceives nobody with the exception, df Mr Masters himself. In quoting the American axiom inferring that I could not fool all the ratepayers all the time. I wish to tell your correspondent that he is extremely foolish to think on his part that he can fool any of the ratepayers'.for any of the time. His object is to extend the operations of the Electrical Supply Company without consideration for the ratepayer:.-; of the Borough, and to this end he has endeavored to make a catepaw of tho County Council, but I am glad to say, failed, as several of the Councillors have altered their views since the position has been made clear. Mi' Masters sets out to make the position "perfectly clear," for tho benefit of those ratepayers who are not acquainted with the conditions of the license, •and goes on to say: *'.tht> ncensa in the Borough does not como into operation until the present concession has run out, and therefore no agreement entered into by tho Company and tile Council is beiusr violated in any way." Before making such a statement, Mr Masters would have been Aveil advised to seek information other than that within his own knowledge, and bail he done so probably would not display so much ignorance on the subject. The real position is that immediately the license is granted, the Deed of Concession between the Company and the Council is rendered nugatory. The said license is not the simple document Air Masters, Chairman of the Supply Company, would have us believe: to print it in a newspaper would take columns, and it gives the Company practically the same powers as the Government itself would exercise. Although Air Masters quotes' from the license he does not tell the ratepayers that the license would give the Company the right to take any of the ratepayers' property they wished, to the end of carrying on their operations. < This right does not exist to-day between the Company and the Council, and yet Air Masters lias the effrontery to say that the license would not interfere with the present Deed of Concession. However, this is not the only way in which the ratepayers would be affected, but the license contains so many clauses that it would be impossible to explain outside a lull newspaper. To sum the license up, it may be said to be of such an over-riding nature as to render inoperative the agreement now existing between the Company and the Council. Mr Masters may continue to fill columns with his verbosity, but as one open to reason, T would ask him to ponder and consider, if the Company is entitled to the license, why does the Government refuse to grant it ? Verb sap.—l am, etc., W. P. KIRK WOOD, Mavor.