STRATFORD NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 243, 4 March 1913, Page 3

STRATFORD NEWS.

I From Our Resident Reporter. (<';ll;-c: Net Loan & Mercantile Agency (.0. Te!> ji!,one li:i. DARKNESS, ALL DARKNESS. FAILURE OF ELECTRIC LIGHT SUPPLV. Early on Saturday night Stratford electric lighting system failed, after one or two premonitory warnings. Jn days of old, shopkeepers Always obeyed the injunction to "trim your lamps and be ready," but of late years the carefully tended kerosene lamps have been relegated to the lumber room or sold in the auction mart. Tu those days the light on Saturday nights was wretchedly insufficient, and a "fresh" in the river, or a lengthened spell of dry weather, just made things worse. On one unusually dismal Saturday, Pollard's opera' troupe struck Stratford. What a night! But to our muttons! When the light went out there was an immediate demand for lamps and candles. The grocers' establishments were rushed. And in a few minutes Stratford jumped back 25 years to the day of candle illumination. A livery stablekeeper lighted up his place with the lights of his motorcar. A few, very few, shopkeepers had lamps ready. The patrons of one public house were lighted to the bar by a candle stuck in a bottle-neck on'the 1 staircase. The light seemed to be quite ' j sufficient. Chemists, grocers, clothiers, drapers and sundry other people stuck candles here and there, till their shops bore a marked resemblance to some ancient shrine. It was a dark night, and the darkness was of the inky description. Messrs. Broeklebank "had the laugh" on the rest of the town. They had an acetylene installation, and the people drifted up to their well-lighted premises like moths to n candle. People flocked to His Majesty's for the picture show. One good lady remarked that "it would not matter in a picture theatre, for 'the lights were hardly ever turned on!" It never struck here that the pictures themselves had to he illuminated by electricity. Mr. Will Diamond, the manager, did some tall thinking in a very injured tone of voice, and the blessings which fell on the lighting company from his lips were but a re-echo of the expressions heard down town. J Then, at five minutes to nine o'clock, I when there remained but five minutes in I which to do business, the bulbs glowed : J again. Some of the shopkeepers said j things about the early closing movement. But for this there would have been half ' i an hour's business still left. They sup- ], posed, and the wish was father to the i , thought, that the inspector (Sergeant , MeXecly) would, in the circumstances j give a little latitude. But what a row | he would have got into had he not en- f • forced the new regulation, for some of the business men had shut up quickly', and rushed off to the picture theatre..*; With their shops closed, they could not | calmly look on at others doing business. ' It was a very effective ushering-in of r (he early-closing system. By nine j o'clock Mr. Operator Bush had com- ) menced the picture entertainment to j an unusually packed house, and there ) was no more trouble with the light. j The darkness was caused by an acci- j dent to the Diesel oil engine at the company's generating station. The broken t gland has now been welded and placed ] again in position. I THOUGHTS FOR RATEPAYERS I THE TOWN CLERK ON RATING. Mr. P. Skoglund, towii clerk, has addressed the following, circular to the Mayor anil councillors for consideration. Mr. Skoglund has evidently given the , matte- a good deal of thought, and now ! gives i lie councillors something for consideration and discussion. The circular reads:— "Gentlemen,—l take the liberty of placing before the Council a proposi- j tion which, in my opinion, would place the rating of the borough on a. more equitable basis than at present; and if the principle were affirmed by the Council I believe it would have an important bearing on the result of the poll on the proposed loan questions, especially with regard to the drain- i age and water loans. At present | special rates are collected over the J whole borough for provision of interest I for drainage and water loans. The ) scheme T propose would place the burden J of the loans for these purposes on the ' shoulders of those who enjoy the privileges that water and drainage confer. At present the loans for drainage and . water, together with the interest pay- [ able on each, are as follows:—Drainage: Loans, £550,1; interest, £IOO. Water: Loans. £l2.l'Sfi: interest, £425. To pay the interest on the drainage loans, two special rates of one-eighth and one-tenth of a penny in the pound are now struck. Tn lieu of these rates, I would suggest that a tax of £1 per annum be placed on all water-Hushed closets. Presuming there are about 200 of these closets at { present in use, sufficient money would be | provided for the interest on the drainaye loans. The special rate struck for inl crest on £BIO9 of the water loan is five-sixteenths of a penny in the pound, producing about £285. The interest on the balance of the loan, amounting to £l4l, is paid out of water revenue. The working expenditure on water account for the year ending M rch 31. 1012, was. in round figures, £'.'. ■>); interest on ! the two loans. £125; total. £725. To produce this amount, and leave a margin for ■ 'iy extraordinary exp"nditnre on worl 'ag account it would be necessary i to strike a water rate of Od. At the j present time more than he'i' the ratepayers have to pay the drainage rate in'addition to the charges for removal , of nightsoil. If my suggestion were carried out. the tax on water closets would be £1 per annum, and on the pan system 10s Gd per annum. The question of how these suggestions would the proposed drainage and water loans has to be considered. T contend that with the Ou waicr rate, and the number of new water-flushed closets that would be installed under the new drainage system the revenue would be sufficient for the purposes of providing interest and sinking fund on the proposed new drainage and water Joans. The advantages of my proposal are as follows: fl) ' Without increasing the present taxes for sanitary purpose? on those who do not enjoy at present the privilege of the drainage system the convenience of the, drainage could be given. (2) The increase in the water rate would be met in most instances by the reduction of the special rates amounting to 43-Soth of a penny in the £. (.1) Those ratepayers who. neither under the present or proposed new conditions will enjov the benefits of drainage and water will not be asked to share the cost. If the new drainage loan is carried it may. of course, until the scheme is completed and each house provided with a waterflushed closet, be necessary to collect a special rate for the provision of interest and sinking fund, but when once the scheme is completed it would not be necessary to collect these special rates. These suggestions are placed before the Council with a desire to promote what I consider the welfare of the borough and with the feeling that your Worship ind councillors will consider them in

I the spirit in which they are placed before you." ! Conversing the other day with Mr. F. T. Bellringer, of New Plymouth, acknowledged to be one of the best town clerks in the Dominion, your n porter learned that this charge for water-Hushing is made in New Plymouth, but on a graduated scale—so much for residences, so much for shops, and a special tariff for hotels. In addition, the New Plymouth borough authorities make a charge of £3 for laving the service from the main sewer to the boundary of the property. STRAY PARAGRAPHS Our mothers and grandmothers were not blessed with the same labor-saving | appliances as are at present used by housewives in the kitchen. One of the greatest boons in the preparation of food is the institution of enarnelware, which is so easily cleaned, ran be used for almost anything, is more rapidly heated than the old east-iron utensils, and cheaper. For enarnelware of every kind, visit the Taranaki Hardware Company. Less than an inch and a half of rain fell during February. What! BERNARD'S PICTURES-TO-NIGHT Last night's fine audience was delighted with the new picture programme, and it is safe to say that to-night the theatre will again be well filled and also to-morrow, when the programme ; will be repeated. Somehow or other, it has taken some of our people a long time to get to know the excellence of the entertainment provided here, but ] consistent advertising, and n persistent and successful endeavor to furnish only the finest films obtainable, have had the desired effect, and now, whatever the weather—hail, rain, blow or snow —His Majesty's always has a good audience. The present programme is arranged from such a wide range of subjects that it cannot fail to interest, educate and amuse. A glance at the advertising column will give intending patrons an idea . of the brilliancy of the whole selection. "The Mystery' of Room 29," and "A Reconstructed Rebel" are the star dramas, but there is a wealth of other ] dramatic, scenic, educational and comic pictures.