THE WAIMAKARIRI-ASHLEY WATER SUPPLY BOARD.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11547, 1 April 1903, Page 9

THE WAIMAKARIRI-ASHLEY WATER SUPPLY BOARD.

TO THE EDITOB OF THE PRESS. Sir.—l am obliged to your correspondent "West Eyreton," for lii's suggestion as to ■•■ how I *hould sign myself, and at the same time express Jeep eorrow that the Board won't wash. I hold no brief for tiuBoard, the members of which oon, I preJume, take core of th<>nwj»lves, which is hardly the case with the unfortunate water ratepayers who, after all, are the people » most concerned, and it -wns in their interest that I penned my previous letter. I said then that I d«precuted destructive carping rtitieism, and I am not disposed to depart from that attitude now. 1 am not questioning the professional skill of any enfinetr who had to do with the work ut ivown'y Rock intake, nor the judgment of any person who was concerned in settling upon that site for an intake, although •vvnte have proved that it was by no menus the best of fhose that were uvailtblu ai the time. , After miding " West iKyreton's" letter of March 23rd", it seemed impossible to ; iuppose thnt he had ?ver seen the Brown's Rock works, or had ever hud a.clear knowJedge of tlieir history. If, however, he has •wa the intake, and is fairly acquainted •with its history from the first, and up to the present time, then I can only express my regret that he did not confine himself to facts, and abstain from indulging in misstatomente. All that he liae to cay - concerning the dam of sand bags is quite beside the question. Anyone would suppose from reading his letter that the presence of the temporary dam wm the cause of the falling off in the supply of Water to the races supplied from the Brown'e Rock intake. Every person who .known anything at all about it, knows that owing to the vagaries uf the river the water had got below the level of the intuke, and the supply had become so ■canty that a- remedy -was mow imperatively called for. The water had receded from the intake, and the shingiie had taken its place, and the ds'in could not nave been the cause of thie change, as your correspondent chouses to a-s&umK, because it Was non-existent. But, as I say, the pomtion had become *o urate that'u temporary dajn of sand baga was determined upon, and the result has m> far justified ita erection, for by its irieuns the supply «l water has been* brought up to eomewhere near the original supply. But the objection atiU exist* that the may

' dose up the intake uito-aher. which is the reueon I advocate in a. feeder nite at a ix>int higher up the river. The above is ;i wjfficicnt answer to " West Eyreton's'' query as to how I cau " uc* count for the iau that formerly in summer tune. v. hen thtre is plenty of water in the Waiinakariri, we always had a fairly good supply, while in this particular summer the water has receded from the intake, and the .'■•hinzle has taken its place." And I also say that the proof of the pudding- is Jn the eating. ;-:n..i abundant proof can be giV.-ll ii.M U> til" tlUl.il Of HIV rtaU'lCfcllt. = All that yoi-.r <.<jrr-.«i>ono.-.'i;t quotes «.or.----c-niiiii.' i Us' • n-ine-tr's u-pon, 1.-.j* mtjuv does not ;*;.p!y, :w the Browns K<* k" supply ' i.ad, for all practical pur--I«js-:>-, failed' prior to thai daU\ It is vt;y uj.eti to uue.stiim if the <-n-L-iin."-T's pro'iiiovi p!;'.n for impiovin,: the present intake would vi anything else than a more waste of money. There m very little fall at Browne Kock now. mid to le-sen it as proposed would, I think, only lead to unsatisfactory results. The concluding paragraph of "West LvittonV letter would lead one to suppose t'.ut tho mwstatoments in it wore uuide for t'lcttii-n pur]»o.se», and that he hat) mi idea of becoming a candidate. Hie election, howi-ver, would not, I am afraid, have the slightest etteet upon the river.— Yours , ! etc., PRACTICAL. REDUCTION AND COMPENSATION. TO TUB EDITOB OF THE rRESS. Sir. —I'otir very interesting article in tliis morning's isnue on "Licensing Law in contains a statement that irf .-lightly misleading. You say "they (the magistrates) have ' power nnder the new Liix-nehiff Act to return any license without compensation." Tho new Act, while extending the magistrates' power with regard to other licensee, 'does not in any way in-ca-aso their power as far as publicans' licenses art* concerned. They have always possessed tho power to reduce those licenses without compensation, and the* law cays distinctly that tho holder of a license cannot claim its renewal. Indeed, tho Lord Chief Jwstico of England said recently "that there is no such tiling as a renewal of a license. Every license is a new license issued for a new year," and tlie magistrates in England have full power to refuse such license. It's a long time ago since they began to use it. Of course the trade tried to get compensation, and earned a case through every Court right to the Privy Council, and were beaten. Sharp v Wakefield established the fact that the publican has no vested right in his license. In Liverpool the licensing magistrates have reduced licensee during the past ten years by 345, and tho results were so splendid in the increased order, sobriety, and comfort of tho people, the decreased rates and decrease of policemen, that it lias served as a brilliant object lesson for England and .Scotland, and magistrates are arousing themselves to follow such a good example. In Blackburn alone fifty licenses are, by arrangement between brewers and magistrates, to bo extinguished in that town during the prosent year. Of course the trade is crying . out for compensation. They will never get it. There, as here, the people would require that those injured by this trade should first received compensation—the men and women robbed of their manhood and womanhood, the wives and mothers whose lives are blighted and hearts broken, the little children whose lives Lave been one long .drawn out agony, this great army of em-smitten, sorrow-laden human beings do, I freely grant it, and ought to receive compensation, but not the men who have grown rich through the possession of a privilege which everywhere has proved ruinous to the community - . I heard of a man the other day who receives £6 a week for his house as rent. It -will lose its license fhis year, and his rent will come down to £2 10b weekly. Hard! Yes, bub where's the claim for compensation? £2 10s representa the value of ihe building, which he etill holde, the remaining ÜB3 10s represents the value of the license whicb the people granted him, and for which he gave neither service nor money except £40 yearly. Now, Sir, I am prepared to give £40 a year if I can receive £3 10s weekly for it, so would anyone, and would be sorry when it ceased, but I fail to see why I should get compensation. Most people would think I was very well off to get the enjoyment of such a good thing even for a year.— Yours, etc., GETTING TIRED OF THE TRAFFIC. March 27th, 1903.