DRAINS ON MAYORAL PURSE

Evening Star, Issue 19549, 6 May 1927, Page 10

DRAINS ON MAYORAL PURSE

POORER FOR HIS SERVICES NOT A FAT EMOLUMENT ISPECIAL TO THB * STAB.*] CHRISTCHURCH, May 5. “I am poorer because of being mayor for the past two years, and I have had to draw on my limited income to meet some of the expenses of the position,” declared the Mayor of Christchurch (the Rev. J. K. Archer), to-day. A ‘ Sun 1 reporter called on Mr Archer to point out that Mr Hope Gibbons, the recently deposed Mayor of Wanganui, had said that his first year of office cost him £I,OOO, and subsequent years not less than £SOO a year. Mr Archer routed the fairly general impression that holding the mayoralty is all honor, glory, and glamor, with a fat" emolument to smooth out the bumps. x “ lieing a mayor is not worth while financially. Naturally one is approached oy a host of individuals who desire financial assistance,” said the mayor. “Many of them are worthy of help, but a few are not. Then there are memberships of many organisations, and donations are desired which cannot in all instances be met, except by a man of comparative wealth in his own right.” “it is my own lair opinion,” ho said, “ that a mayor should not bo expected to make so many donations and gifts, because they arc, however unintentional. more or less in the nature of a bribe to the electors. A candidate for the mayoralty should be treated on his own merits from the point of view of suitability for the position, ami irrespective of any largesse he is able to distribute among the public. A mayor is not in the position for what he can get out of it. and should not be put into the position for what others can get out of him. It should be purely and simply a question of service.” “ Can yon give any idea what it costs you a year?” asked the reporter. “ No,” replied the mayor, 1 but it caunot cost a Labor man what it cost the northern ex-mayor referred to, because the Labor man cannot afford to spend it. A Labor man has to try to make his honorarium cover the expenses, but the honorarium is too small. The number of necessary expenses to which a mayor is put, apart altogether from generosity, is larger than citizens imagine.” Dir Archer pointed out that the honorarium in Christchurch is £4OO, the same as it is in smaller places such as Napier. In Auckland, Wellington, and Dunedin, he said, where the calls on the mayoral purse could not be any greater, the honorarium was £SOO a year. (Mr Archer is wrong. Dunedin s sonorarium is £100).