ELECTRIC LIGHTING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8077, 5 April 1906, Page 2

ELECTRIC LIGHTING.

AN ADVOCATE OP MUNICIPILTSATION. Mr T. H. Nesbitt, Town Clerk of Sydney, was mterviowed by a "Times" reporter last Friday in referenco to electric lighting. In reply to a question concerning the proposal that the City Council would take over private lighting by electricity, Mr Nesbitt warmly applauded the project. In Sydney thore were several privato companies, but the City Council had embarked on a big scheme, and had already expended £250,000. The sue cess attending the Sydney installation had been phenomenal, notwithstanding that certain of the companies were " cutting" by every conceivable means, with the object of keeping their customers at any cost. In Sydney in seventecn months the City Council built up a business necessitating the generation of 3,500,000 units a year, and this business was increasing rapidly. At the end of that period the Council had the number of 619 customers connected. In Sydney at the end of the first year's working the net profit exceeded £7OOO. Indeed, so pronounced had the success been.that authority had been obtaiued to raise anothor £250,000, to be applied to providing additional plant and extensions of mains.

With regard to street hghthing, Mr Nesbitt, when in Auckland and Wangnmii and Pulmerston North, had had his attention directed to the remarks made by Mr D. Nathan, to the effect that Mr Nathan found, as one result of his European visit, that the tendency at Home and on the Continent was to givo up the electric light and return to gas. In relation to the Continent, Mr Nesbitt was not at the present time prepared to speak, as he had uo reteiit information, but is regarded the tendency at Home, he disputed Mr Nathan's statement entirely. He frankly admitted, however, that there was a modicum of evidence available whu-'hliadno doubt influenced Mr Nathan iu making such a sweopmg statement, but the superstructure built upon the very weak foundation which existed did not justify Mr Nathan's assertion that the tendency at Home was to give up electricity and return to gas. Mr Nesbitt said that, in justieo to the public of Wellington, he considered that, as representative gentlinun, Mr Nathan ought to mcnljm the names of cities or towns which have given up electricity and roturncd to gas, or the cities and towns where a tendency to do so exists. In such event, Mr Nesbitt continued, he might have something further to say through the columns of the " Times."

Another point to which Mr Nesbilt alluded was the statomcnt of Mr Na. thuu that iu Loudon, from Westminster and Charing Cross, the electric light was being removed, and gas substituted. In the absence of definite information as to the precise streets, Mr Nesbitt said bo presumed that Mr Nathan referred to the principal thoroughfare,- known as Whitehall and tho Horse Guards, extending from near Westminster Abbey to Trafalgar. Mr Ncsbitt believed that thoroughfare had never been lighted by electricity. How, iu that case, could it be said that the electric light had been supplanted by gas K