GHOSTS OF THE PAST.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20622, 22 July 1930, Page 7

GHOSTS OF THE PAST.

SYDNEY'S NEW ALDERMEN*

COUNCIL'S FIRST MEETING. 7!

LORD MAYOR'S ERMINE. " Gentlemen, the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor of Sydney! " Resurrected from the limbo of almost forgotten things, the old formula ushered :in the new Lord Mayor, Alderman E. S. Marks, and the new regime at the Town Hall, Sydney, a few nights ago, when council control of the city's affairs was resumed after a hiatus of over two years, says the Sydney Morning Herald. The new aldermen were on the spot early, eager to hold the reins of power again. Some of the new Labour aldermen seemed a little subdued by their surroundings—" new honours . . . like strange garments, cleave not to their mould but with the aid of use"—but the old hands cracked primitive jokes at each other's expense and disported themselves lavishly to indicate that it was nothing new to them to sit beneath the mayoral dais. " Don't take all the best scats Sammy," cried Alderman Shannon. " You've taken my old possy." But Alderman Walder smiled and sal. tight. Ghosts of the Past. All the ghosts of the past peered from the crimson hangings when the Lord Mayor took his seat beneath the canopy and the aldermanic whisperings filled the council chamber. The Lord Mayor was an august presence with his black robes, ermine edged, and lined with crimson, and his aquiline countenance, softened by an expression of earnest benevolence. Beneath the Lord Mayor sal the town clerk and his deputy, black robed. And round the council table sat the civic fathers, clad in the solemnity the occasion demanded. Uniformed attendants hovered in the background, and in the gallery overhead spectators craned in silent wonderment.

All this was in strange contrast to the meetings of the displaced commission. In those times the three commissioners and the town clerk crouched at one end of the table while a clerk rushed through the''business paper in a voice that never rose above a whisper, as though oppressed by the vast emptiness of the chamber. Lord Mayoral Allowance. This meeting was held to dispose cf formal business only and offered litllo scope for eloquence, but the new council seemed disposed to make the most of its opportunities and worried each motion as a dog worries its bone. It fixed the Lord Mayoral allowance for the rest of 193G at the rate of £ISOO a year, after Mr. Shannon bad suggested that the Lord Mayor should keep a watchful eye on the refreshment room and be discriminating in his civic welcomes. Then a by-law of rules to govern procedure at meetings of the council and it* committees was submitted, and a tremendous argument ensued on the question whether they should be considered en bloc or individually. After a-quarter of an hour's debate the council decided to take the non-contentious clauses en bloc and the contentious ones seriatim, bul> as Mr. Shannon-found most of them contentious, or at least demanding comment, not much time was saved. Mr. Shannon objected to the Lord Mayor having power to call ordinarycouncil meetings at his oyn convenience.He said he had it on gofid authority that the Lord Mayor intended tD hold the meetings in the afternoon, whereas ha would prefer them to bo held at night. " Some of us have to work for a living,'* he said, and added that it, would be unfair to deny Labour aldermen the right to be present at meetings because they were held at an inconvenient hour. But the Lord Mayor was firm. He was supported by Alderman If agon, who declared that in the old time:! of night meetings halt the aldermen were in the refreshment room and half in the chamber. Too much time was wasted, lie said. Mr. Shannon demanded a division, the Civic Reform Party asserted ;.ts superior numbers and crushed his amendment. It did that to most of his other amendments and suggestions, too. Aldermen's Ceremonial Dress.

By-and-by the Lord Mayor appeared to find his ermine a trifle oppressive in the close atmosphere of the council chamber, lie untied its scarlet ribbons, mopped his brow, and looked to the press table for sympathy. Appropriately enough the council at this stage reached a clause providing that the Lord Mayor and aldermen should wear special dress at ceremonial occasions. This was to consist of a black cloak, white fur, full court liat, laco necktie, and a jjfold chain for the Lord Mayor, and a black gown with a white linen tie, edged with lace, for the aldermen. Labour aldermen objected strenuously to this proposal. Alderman O'Dea protested that lie had not been sent there to dve his hair and wear a disguise, while Alderman Ward hinted darkly that perhaps the " rug merchants " on the council wanted the contract to supply the garments. Ho did not think a was necessary to convince the public of the council's importance. The Reform Party had it:i way, however, and on the occasion of tho next. Royal visit Mr. O'Dea will liave to perspire within his lacy necktie.