THE WAIMATE ADVERTISER. SATURDAY, AUG. 20, 1898.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Issue 13, 20 August 1898, Page 1

THE WAIMATE ADVERTISER. SATURDAY, AUG. 20, 1898.

Thr attendance at the meeting of Borough ratepayers on Monday evening, called to consider the water supply question, is indicative of onejdLboth things. First, not many people %t JmeVtne ineeung was to be held, and second, interest in the matter is not sufficient to justify the Council going further in the tf meantime. In the present state of the law a proposal to raise the necessary loan must not only be carried by a majority of those who \ vote, but a specified proportion of the ratejSJ P»yers must go to the poll, otherwise the poll / • is void. Judging by Monday night's meeting

it is clear a loan proposal would not be carried. We are not opposed to an improved water supply, but very much in favour of one and believe it can be shown that the most expensive scheme, No. 3, would be the cheapest in the end. The present is a ease in ■which it will be found best to " hasten slowly." The opposition to an improved water supply shown at the meeting was a perfectly reasonable one, and could be overcome by proving that the cost would not be in excess of the advantage. Our present basis of Borough taxation is a hindrance to progress. The first thing to htslp along the water supply question or any other for the public good, and involving the question of rates, would be to adopt jatingjro unimproved values _in«tead of the present oldfashioned and unfair method of taxing im-

provements. This subject is one whi ch re quires separate consideration, but there need be no hope of carrying a. proposal till it is shown clearly that the burden of taxation will not fall on the poor residents to the advantage of mere propferty-owners. Then again the water supply schemes have not been .properly placed before the ratepayers. Desultory discussions in the Council, and more or less heated ones at public meetings, is not enough. People should have the proa and cons before them in black and white. We shall from time to time contribute to the clearing up of the subject, and hope others will take advantage of our correspondence columns to ventilate and agitate it. Only harm can be done by unwisely forcing tha matter, therefore we say again, "Hasten slowly."