STRATFORD.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 December 1920, Page 6

STRATFORD.

TARANAKI DAILY MWB, STRATFORD AGENCY. ■ . Advertisements and items of news for publication should be left at the office of the local representative, W. J. Wilson, neit Union Bank. THE LOAN PROPOSALS. December 18. The Mayor's loan proposals are to be submitted to the ratepayers of Stratford on Wednesday next, and it will be in the hands of the ratepayers to sny whether .Stratford is to advance in keeping with other towns of its size and importance, or continue as it is at present with its unformed streets, incomplete drainage system and inadequate water supply. The total amount of the proposed loan is £129.500, which to many ratepayers might seem too large an amount, but an assurance has been given that the money will be borrowed as required and only £IO,OOO a year can be spent. The various items in the loan are as follows:—Full width bridge over Patea river, £10,000; drainage £45000; advances to private owners for drainage, £5000; improvements to water supply, £28,500; improvements to £250; public conveniences, £750; improvements to domains, £SOOO. The whole of the items will be submitted in one issue, and ratepayers will have to vote for the" 10l or none at all. The Borough Council Chambers will be the polling place, and, all ratepayers are .:rged to record their votes. MEETING OF RATEPAYERS. V In connection with the loan proposals, a public meeting of ratepayers was held in the Town Hall last night, but the attendance was utterly disappointing, only about thirty ratepayers being present in addition to the members of the Council. The Mayor (Mr. ,T. W. McMillan) presided, and expressed his disgust at such a display of apathy on the part of the ratepayers of the borough. If they were against the proposals, ho thought the least they should do was to come to the meeting and learn what he had to say. Referring to the proposals, the Mayor | remarked that it was very gratifying to hare the unanimous support of'the i Council, and this fact should give the ratepayers every confidence in supporting them. They would agree that it was quite impossible to develop a town out of revenue, not even if they were prepared to wait. To illustrate what he meant, he need only ask them to think how much Stratford had progressed in the past twenty years, during which" time practically 'everything had been done out of rates'with the exception of the recent improvements in Broadway. Had a comprehensive progressive policy been adopted 20 years ago, what different place Stratford would be at the present time. It was, however, of no use holding an inquest on what might have been. They wore now concerned with the present and future, and to_realise that it was only with loan money they could hope to develop and make the'town worth livine in. 6 Dealing with the first item, that of the bridge, the .Mayor said that he believed that was the only item likely to concern the ratepayers in deciding to support the loan proposals. He asked them to consider the town and its future importance, and remarked that if only given a chance it was going to become the most important town in the province. .Some, without giving the matter much thought, said that a bridge half the width of Broadway, or less, would suffice. Such a bridge might do, but he wan satisfied it would not"do for all time, for whatever bridge was constructed would have to last a very long time. He hoped the ratepayer's would heartily support the full width bridge in the interests of the future progress of the town. The second item in the proposal was £45,000 for drainage, embodying a comprehensive scheme to treat the whole borough. The Council employed Mr. Sturrock to give advice on this matter, and he wished to say that Mr. Sturrock was a leading authority in this branch of his profession. The ratepayers would, he thought; agree without argument that the work was absolutely essential in the interests of the health of the whole community. The sanitation .system which was mostly in vogue at .the present time was an absolute disgrace to an enlightened community such as Stratford professed to be, and was most dangerous in case of an epidemic. He was convinced, however, that everyone was fully alive to the necessity tor this work to be carried out as' expeditiously as possible. In connection with this work, public conveniences, which were absolutely necessary, were to be erected. Another matter was the duplication of the present water supply, main improvements to the head works and a thorough reticulation of the borough. Mr. Sturrock was also responsible for the scheme adopted. The present supply was not sufficient, and with the ever increasing demand the position was steadily getting worse. The aspect as regards 'fire prevention and fire fighting was serious as they were I continually menaced with the prospects i of disaster owing to the susceptibility of the intake blockage. This made it I very necessary for the system being improved Street improvements also were an essential part of the proposals. Most of J the streets had been formed in a roush and Teady way more than 20 years ago and left at that, and no attempt had been made at permanent improvements or the establishment of permanent levels. Did the" ratepayers realise where a good deal of their good money had been going all this time? It had been washed down the gutters with every heavy rain, and footpaths and water channeling had had to be constantly repaired and was no better to-day than it was 20 years ago. He was satisfied the money which had been spent on these matters would have more than carried out the whole of the present proposals. A sum of £45,000 had been spent during the last 20 years. That was what this part of the loan proposals proposed to do and to stop the waste of good money which had been going on. The proposals meant that permanent levels would be adopted for all streets and all new road work tar-sealed. They ' could not altogether blame past councils for the present state of affairs. Ratepayers who voted against previous loan proposals must take a good deal of blame on themselves for keeping the town back. Another item in the proposals was £SOOO for improvements to the park and domains. This could not be classed as essential work but was. in his opinion, very desirable wo'rk. They had in their park possibilities unequalled anywhere, and it was a crying shame that it was so neglected. It was their duty to make the most of such a beauty spot. The domains were given to them Mfer rtomtion but tlioy w«r« nowlwr*

in proper condition for any games. They should encourage athletics by putting the ground in first-class condition, and tennis courts, cricket and football grounds, etc., should be provided and kept in order at as low a cost as possible and everyone given a chance to participate in the benefits to be derived. Regarding the question as to how the rates would be 'affected, he was not going to make' any rash statements or promises, but would put the worst position before them from the worst possible aspect. Assuming that the whole £129,500 was spent right away and fii per cent interest had to be found by increasing the rates, this would mean that they would have to pay 2A times what they were JJaying to-day, hut he was quite satisfied that with the extra revenue from water and drainage and the enormous saving in upkeep that the street improvements would be responsible for, the rates would not even be doubled. Comparing Stratford with Hawera, he found that Hawera's average rate for an ordinary dwelling within half-a-mile from the Post Office was £7 17s lid, and Stratford's was £3, and if Stratford's rates were multiplied by 2% they would still be less than Hawera's. He asked, however, would they not willingly pay as much as Hawera to have the same state of up-to-date services. He was satisfied they could not find one person in Hawprn who would exchange for the same value property in simply because the rates were lower, because they realised that they had good value for their money. A full discussion of the various items in the loan followed, and at the conclusion Mr. S. M. Porritt moved: "That the me</Tng is, in favor of the loan proposals as brought down by the Council.'' This was seconded by Mr. C. Martin As an amendment, Mr. W. A. Hewitt moved: "That the present is not an opportune time to go on the market, or to suggest the raising of a loan for the Borough of Stratford." The Mayor ruled that the amendment was out of order, and the motion, on being put to the .meeting was carried without any dissentients. "general." The choir of St. Adrew's Presbyterian Church visited the Stratford Hospital last night and rendered a very fine programme of Christmas carols, solos being sung by Mrs. Ching and Mr. H. Le Petts, the conductor. At the conclusion of the programme, Mr. C. IX Sole, chairman of the Hoard, thanked the choir for visiting the hospital and entertaining the patients. Mr. Betts replied stating that( the visit wits a pleasure to the members of the choir, and they would be pleased to come again on future occasions. Before departing the visitors were entertained to supper by the nursing fctatT. The branches of the Stratford Farmers' Co-operative Association at Toko, Douglas and Tlninga, which have been manufacturing cheese, will change over to butter manufacture on Monday. THE KING'S CINEMA THEATRE, TO-NIGHT. Robert Warwick's latest Paramount picture, "Told in the Hills," is a virile storv of the great out-doors, from the pen~of Marah Ellis Ryan, one of the world's most powerful writers. The story concerns the sacrifice of .Tack Stewart, who keeps a promise made to his dying mother, by marrying the girl his younger brother has wronged. Providing for her .lie leaves the city and takes up a claim in. the mountains of Montana among the Indians. From here on the picture gains in interest, which is maintained to the finish. Other items include gazette, educational, and comedy. On Tuesday night the big English production, ''Mr. Wu," will be presented. "Mr. Wu" is without a doubt one of the finest productions from the English studios. Mathison Lang appears in the role he created and made famous on the English stage, that of a stoic, inscrutable Mr. Wu, calm and courteously dignified in the earlier scenes, and in the closing act frienziedly maniacal. This production is a masterpiece. Supporting items include gazette, comedy, and the fourth episode of "The Vanishing Dagger" serial.