THAMES MINERS' ACCIDENT RELIEF FUND.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 1999, 1 June 1875, Page 2

THAMES MINERS' ACCIDENT RELIEF FUND.

At the Warden's Court last evening a meeting of subscribers and others interested in this Fund took place, Captain Frascr, the President, taking the chair. In- consequence, no doubt, of the very inclement state of the weather there was only a moderate attendance, and the chairman deemed it advisable to take the opinion of those present as to the advisability of postponing the meeting; it was decided to/go on with the business." Alter the advertisement convening the meeting had been read, and the minutes, of the last meeting had been confirmed, the report of the sub-committee was read, aa follows:— > ■'■.-■ ;■;,.■ v,i- -i

" Gentlemen,-^-We beg. to'submit to you the foliowiujg report on your fund, and also our opinion as to how the fund can be carried: on so as to assist subscribers who meet with accidents. '? We have gone* carefully through the accounts of the fund since it first started, and find that had the present rules been'in existence since the first, and no donation, been given to the hospital, the fund would have had accredit balance of £150 7s lid, that is, including the donations received; but by subscriptions alone it would have been- in debt to the extent of £76 17s 8d: There has been, since the; fund started^ 116 members who have received relief, and the average duration of sickness has been six weeks. The sum paid for relief alone amounts to £915- 10s, and for fatal accidents, £125. We give these figures to show the amount of good that the fuad has already done and the. necessity of making an effort to resuscitate it. We are of opinion it can-be-again carried on by the miners subscribing 6d per week, as heretofore, and by making the • weekly, payments in cases of accident 20s, and doing-away with the sliding scale of payments as provided for in the present ;rules. We. have .also gone carefully '"through the rules of the fund, and beg to recommend that rules !N"os. 5, 6, 7, and 8 be altered to read thus : Rule 5. That amount of relief to be paid to subscribers in cases of accident shall be 20s per week. Rule 6. In case of a subscriber being injured »o that he is incapacitated from further working, ke shall receive for the first six months, 20s per week; for the second six months, 10s per week; after which he shall have no further claim on the fund. Rule 7. Incases of accident resulting in death, the executors of deceased shall receive the sum of £12 10a,. to defray funeral expenses. Rule 8.! That the committee, shall meet. at least once every fortnight for' the transaction of all business connected with the fund, and that an office be had in Grahamstown, open one night in each week for the receiving of subscriptions, and that persons entitled to relief may also receive their money from this office. Rules' 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 9 we propose shall stand as at present. We are also of opinion that there will be, no difficulty in increasing the number of subscribers to 200,' and* with that number, ■without any extraneous aid, the fund can be carried on by adopting the rules as recommended by us. There has b<3en given since the fund started, exclusive of the money given by the mining companies, an arerage of £50 per annum, and we feel sure that, the public will not be backward in again forwarding, an institution that has done so much good. Should the subscribers decide that the fund be continued, we would recommend that : they elect a fresh committee, as a number of those who are at present committeemen have left the Thames, and others who are oh the Thames never attend anyof the meetings. —S. E. Richahds, Chairman" of SubCommittee."

After a comparison by all present of the old rules with the rules as they would stand.if ■ the report of the Sub-Committee were adopted, and an addition made to rule 9 of a clause providing for the election of a committee at each half-yearly meeting, the report was, on the motion of Mr Lowe, adopted. It was then agreed that the funds should be carried on under its new auspices, and be managed by an Executive Committee consisting of a president, rice-president, treasurer, secretary, and seven committee men—Captain Frascr as President, Captain Kichards as Vice-President, Mr Murra/as Treasurer, and Mr Fred Day as Secretary were then unanimously elected; and on the motion of Mr Murray: the following gentlemen were then elected to serve on the Committee, during the ensuing six months:—Messrs P. W. Donnelly, T. Dunlop, W. Potts, T. B. Hicks, J. Goldsworthy, W.; Carnie and E. Harris. The business of the meeting being now concluded, a vote of thanks was accorded to the Chairman for presiding, also for the use of the room, which was duly acknowledged. ';-.''■'-■ The Committee afterwards met in the Warden's room, when a letter from the Secretary of the Thames Dramatic Club was read, offering a benefit for the fund— all the proceeds, after deducting the necessary expenses, to be handed over. The offer being accepted, the Secretary was instructed to acquaint the Dramatic Club of the same. After having deqided to hold their meetings fortnightly, at the Governor Bowen Hotel, (the next meeting to be held on Monday evening next) and transacted some further routine business, the Committee adjourned.

applications for transfers, and they wore accordingly granted. • BEMAININa CASEB. In the case of a number of houses in the out districts the Commissioners recommended reductions in the license fees, but the Chairman thought they would not be granted as the Provincial Exchequer was low; All the other applications were granted, being merely read; according to the new Act the applicants not requiring to appear when there is no objection on behalf of tho police.