BOROUGH COUNCIL BUSINESS.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2570, 3 April 1877, Page 2

BOROUGH COUNCIL BUSINESS.

(To the Editor of the Evening Star.) Sib,-—Will you permit me through your columns to make one or two remarks on the business Iransacted at the Borough Council meeting on Thursday last. 1 intend to confine my remarks principally to the raising of the salaries of two of its officers, viz., the Foreman of Works and Collector of Katfcs. ~ ttow, with regard to the former I must confess • that I believe he, with all his faults, deserves even more than lls per day, Because I do not think that any one could be got to perform the same duties for the. same money ; and if the £25 which has been added to the' Collector's salary had been added to that of the Foreman of Worksnl should never have"wrote^one line of this letter. Wow, sir, two reasons are assigned for raising the salary of the Collector, the first being that he is an efficient officer, the second, that he performs a good deal of office work. To the first, then, I would say that if he is not an efficient officer the Boroughs Council would have no right to keep him .in their employ ; to the second I would say, Jet tbe Town rClerk perform his" own duties, and if at any time he should-feel inclined to employ any one else le|?him pay them. Now, sir, I will try and give your readers an idea of what this ill-paid collector is worth per annum; first, then, he gets £125 a-year as collector for the Borough, second, £'30 per annum as valuer (this does not include two valuations in one year at £30 each); say £100 raHjfe¥r as collector of rents' for>Block 27i £20 a year as general commission agent (Qiost likely I am a little under the mark in the two last items), £25 a: v'year;increasi.'of salary, making a grand total of £3bO jlir annum. I will not here give'my difni opinion, but-will leave the burgesses to judge for themselves. It might be as well to ask whether, if the increase had to come direct out of ttie^pockets of the Bpro. ugh, Councillors, how many; vp'f them would have been founS tthe increase? Burgesses, judge for^ljßpurselves, and, not?;another^for 'yott^^ut first seek employment from some of the Borough Councillors, and then you will be better able to judge whether or not tlieißorongb Council has not dealt pore liberally with public money than it jrould have done with. its o:wni»s>riyate funds. Now, sir, I will ask you whether it would not have been-more -to the credit of the Borough Council if they had complied with some of many requests m%sb by burgesses for improvements" to their;fostpaths and other necessary works P or whether it would not have' been -xa/dre charitable on the part of the Borough Council to have given 3d per yard more for the breaking of road metal ? But, no, they believe too much in the doctrine of they that hath shall have, and they that have not can go and look for it.—l am, &c,

Faib Plat. '

April 2nd, 1877.