Conference of Thames Borough and County Councillors.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2500, 10 January 1877, Page 2

Conference of Thames Borough and County Councillors.

A conference of Borough and County Councillors of the Thames was opened at the Borough Council Chambers at three o'clock to-day to consider the question of amalgamating the Borough with the County. There were present : —County Councillors Brodie, Spencer, Mitchell, Thorburn, Coutts, Thorp and. Bagnall. His Worship the Mayor and Borough Councillors Eowe, Butt, Macnab, Kenshaw, Gibbons, Eead, Kilgour and Ehrenfried.

The Mayor said the meeting was not called on his own individual responsibility. When absent he had received a requisition by telegram asking him to do so, and this of course he had done; the meeting had originally been fixed for Monday, but had been postponed until to-day. He then read the requisition which was to call a meeting to take into consideration the propriety of uniting the Borough and County. He pointed out that their one great object should be the prosperity of the 3istrict as a whole, for the lines which divided the Highway Boards, Borough and Riding, were but arbitrary ones. Cr Eowe said his views had been given before, and were in no wise altered j he thought they ought to have but one governing body, and could see no possible reason why a line should be drawn between the Borough and the County. He did not see, if the Borough did not join the County, how the latter would have sufficient funds at its command. For the first year, at any rate, the revenue of the Borough would be greater than that of the County, but he was quite sure that next year the Borough would not get one shilling subsidy, and he thought that the time had come when, if the district was to prosper, the town must be connected with the country. He thought it was to the advantage of both parties that they should unite. .Roads and bridges were necessary to them, and by uniting their resources they could best accomplish this. He would move that the Borough be dissolved and united with the County. Cr Mitchell said he would rather some one else had risen to second the resolution, as he would have liked to have been in the position to answer such arguments as might be brought against it. He agreed with Mr Kowe and did not see how they were, as a Borough, to exist unless they joined the County. He drew attention to the revenue of past years, and said that the time had passed away when the absorption of revenues by the Borough Council would be possible. The streets had been made out of the revenue which should justly accrue to the whole community. This was unjust, but an end to that had come at last. He urged the meeting to throw away all petty feeling, and consider that if they did not unite the Borough with the Council they would have the* expense of keeping up two governing bodies instead of one.

Cr Kilgour said he took an opposite view of the question from Mr Eowe. He thought the union of the Borough and County would be a matter highly detrimental to the former. A. great deal yet remained to be done in the Borough, and the means of the 1 Borough ought not to be expended for the benefit of the County. He thought the idea of. joining the County was a moat suicidal one. He then referred to the subject of the Big Pump, particularising the objects for which the money was granted, viz., to test the low depths. He argued that by tbe union of the two money would, be lost to ] the district, and would move that " it is inexpedient that the Borough be merged in the County."

Cr Ehrenfried said he rose to support Mr Bowe's motion, at the same time he did not agree with some of the statements made by Mr Mitchell. These he proceeded to criticise. The General Government had shown that they wished for them to unite, and then they would do all they could for them, and with this he agreed. Cr Spencer also supported the resolution of Mr Eowe, believing that it would be for the interest of both parties. <■ He thought they had been long enough boxed up, and that if they united, roads to opon up the country might be made. Gr Butt said that if the words "at present" be added to Dr Kilgour's resolution he would second the* amendment. He then further proceeded to say he would rather see the town people manage their business and the country people manage theirs, as he thought it woukt be better for both sides.

After some discussion on the subject, as to whether Dr Kilgoiir's motion was an amendment or a negative of the original motion— i Cr Macnab said that eventually it might be beneficial to amalgamate, but that at the present it was injudicious, as the Borough had a revenue; of over £6000 a year, and the County not a shilling. He thought the best thing would be to postpone the consideration of the subject until more light was thrown on it. [Left Sitting.]

A Crool) "Wife "who Found Good in Everything.—A farmer was once blessed with a good-natured, contented wife ; but it not being in the nature of man to be satisfied, he one day said to a neighbor, he really wished, he could hear his wife scold once, for the novelty of the thing. Whereupon, his sympathizing neighbor advised him to go to the woods and get a load of crooked sticks, which would certainly make her as cross as he could desire. Accordingly, the farmer collected a load of the most ill-shaped, crooked, crotchety materials that were ever known under the name of fuel. This he deposited in its place, taking care that his spouse should have access to no other wood. Day after day passed without .a complaint. At length the pile was consumed, v "Well, wife," said the farmer, "I am going after more wood ; I'll get another load just such as I got last time." " Oh, yes, Jacob," she replied, "it will be so nice, if you will; for such crooked, crotchety wood, as you brought before, does lie around the pot so nicely."

A day or two since, two ladies from the country, on a shopping excursion to the city, dropped into a hardware store, where agricultural implements are sold. They had read John's advertisements, and therefore innocently inquired for cradles. The storekeeper said it was rather late in the season for the article, and he had sold all he purchased. The ladies looked at each other wonderingly, and whispered, laughingly, when one, turning to the blushing John, remarked : " Out of season 1 I thought babies were always in season I "