LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS.

Evening Star, Issue 23882, 12 May 1941, Page 11

LOCAL BODY ELECTIONS.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —In a footnote to my letter in tonight’s ‘ Star ’ you slate that the concession granted to ambulance people for many years has never at any time been withdrawn. Tliis is a complete misstatement, as every member of the ambulance in this town can testify. The writer travelled from Frederick street to the southern part of the city just this week, and paid 4d car fare. The only time we travel for Id is on Saturday afternoon to the football; at all other times the ordinary fare is demanded. I challenge tho mayor and council to disprove this, and 1 am prepared to give £5 to the Patriotic Fund if I am proved wrong. No doubt you will receive many letters from ambulance people verifying my statement. All your reporter has to do is to ask any car conductor if ray statement is correct. The misstatement was made, no doubt, because the council has placed itself in an unenviable position so close to election lime. The football duty is only a small part of our activities; some of us are out four or more, nights a week on ambulance work, and the council, by granting £IOO to the association, has not helped those who do the work; we shall see none of that. The rank and file do the work; the association gets the credit and collects the “ boodle.” I repeat, the associalion has tried to get as back tho concession twice, but has not been successful.—l am, etc., Salvolatile, May 9. [lt is officially explained that the only concession was in regard to football matches, and that that concession is still allowed. Further concessions were asked for, but not granted on the ground that the way would be opened up for too many other claims apart from ambulance work.— Ed. E.S.] TO THE EDITOR. Sir,—l was interested in the remarks of Mrs G. Brooks, Independent candidate for the City Council and the Otago Hospital Board, when giving her address in the Wesley Street'Hall. Mrs Brooks mentioned that party politics in civic life should be abolished ■and that electors should not be influenced by partv feeling or a ticket. I am afraid the candidate is wrong in her statement, in this way : The candidates for public honours are selected the world over by party influences solely because they have the backing of the bulk of the people. The City Council is better fitted for men. The home is better fitted for the women. Surely home is a woman’s Paradise; it should be so. anyway, and this applies to women on the present Hospital Board also; they have bad a fair spin.—l am, etc., New Zealander. May 9. TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —“ Salvolatile ” has aired a grievance that has been rankling for some time. Everyone knows that military forces, the Territorials, National Reserve, and Horae Guard receive a tramway concession. They also think that the Ambulance Brigade enjoys the same privilege. I can emphatically state that they do not. The privilege was withdrawn some six months ago, and was not reinstated even when the military privilege was reviewed. - One night when four different branches of the service travelled together on the same tram the conductor said: ‘‘To with all these different rates.” “ You’re free, digger,” to the first,” “ How Far?” to the second <a reservist); ‘‘ penny, please.” The third, a Home Guardsman, produced twopence and the conductor turned to the ambulance man, clicked his punch, and said; “ And you chaps have to pay full fare now.” The-ambulance men and women are ready at all times, in peace as well as war, to give their services to the Army, Navy, or Air Force if required, and at the same time are available for duty if asked by any civilian authority or individual requiring their services. Under those circumstances they feel they are as much entitled to tho concession as any other reservist. The concession was certainly withdrawn, and the footnote. r to Salvolatile’s letter is: the more astounding as it endeavours to hoodwink the public by quoting grants to the association to explain an argument about the brigade. It would be as pertinent to withdraw the tram concession from the armed forces because the Patriotic Fund received £IO,OOO from an art union. The fact that the council granted an extra £IOO will be greatly appreciated, but much more is needed. People would feel more happy if the council disposed hospital material at various points for use in an emergency. A few such moves would make people feci that our worthy mayor was indeed “fathering” the emergency precautions scheme and not “ stepfathering ” it. j One more point. If your informant is corj rect and the concession has never been withdrawn, will you kindly r.sk him to whom accounts for refunds of tho overcharge dur--1 mg the past six months may he sent? —I ! am, etc., I Ptrtic Acid. . i_' May 10. ■ I ' ■ I j TO THE EDITOU. . Sir,—Dr M'Millau, at some of his meet- , ings; has tried to belittle Mr Allen by sueei-i j ing remarks about a property in Cumber? 1 land street bought by the City Council, | which, according to Dr IVPMillaii, was j bought at a'higher price than tho valuation. I Without saying anything about the, price, 1 t will say that I think the property in question was worth more to the council than to any other buyer, and it has made good use of a valuable property by the up-to-date building it has erected. I think Dr M‘Millan, as a would-bo progressive mayor, should congrat’date the council instead of trying to got voles by cheap sneers. If this properly was bought at a price above the valuation ■will Dr 11‘Millan tell ns at his next meeting why the Labour Council, of which he was a prominent member, was so anxious to buy the Passmore property for £6,500, and when the present council would not complete the deal it was sold for £5,150? This looks to me as though Dr M’Millan was quite ready to give £1,350 more than tho value for a property that would have been no uso lo the city, 1 do not know Mr Allen or any members of the Citizens’ Association, but as a ratepayer for 40 years •I do not like to see the City Council run by political agitators.—l am,"etc., Piffle Pills. May 12. TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —Wo hear quite a lot from the exponents of,the Citizens’ Association about the sterling worth of Mr Allen, and also they point out the Leftist activities of Dr M'Millau as being detrimental to the civic welfare. We know that Mr Allen stands for principles which have been well tried and found wanting the world over, whereas each day in 8.8. C. broadcasts wc hear of The “new order” to emerge after this war is over, the general outline being along Leftist lines (used by the British Government in its war effort), so why not get started now and elect Dr M'Millan and be in our stride for the end of the war. —I am, etc.. New Order, May 10. TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —I wish to refer to a letter signed “ Win the War.” Several have appeared in vour correspondence columns recently in similar vein. It is, to my mind, stupid and definitely undemocratic. Stupid because the money expended on (he election campaign could not in any way produce one more bullet, rifle, or aeroplane than is being produced to-day. To assume otherwise is simply to evade the real facts. If the issue was as simple as one of money-produc-tion, it could be done overnight. The time elemsni, as stated, is difficult to analyse; perhaps the writer could explain more fully I have no connection with either the Citizens’ Party or the Labour Party Both parties, to my mind, have missed tho real issue. Any intelligent voter must cast his or her vote for the most _propolicy. The voter s problem is to decide which policy is the more progressive. Democracy permits us lo make this choice freely—a right every citizen ■ should value. H is our heritage, and we must keep it strong. Why deprive (lie

voters of the right to vote? We are lighting a real monster—a human Frankenstein, who is king of Fascism. Surely no reasonably-minded person believes we should resort to the methods of Fascism to defeat this horror. If this is so, I am afraid that, after we have won. the war, we shall find we have lost the only thing that makes it worth fighting, and that, of course, is for freedom.—l am, etc., Les. Frame. (