THE CITY LOAN PROPOSALS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 898, 17 May 1889, Page 10

THE CITY LOAN PROPOSALS.

It is devoutly to be hoped that the ratepayers of Wellington will consider and discuss

and vote on the new loan proposal with an ey 7 e solely to the merits of the scheme, and wholly apart from any side issues such as the possible bearing ol the result upon any future election for the mayoralty or for the House of Representatives. We regret very much to see that already there is a disposition in some quarters to give the question a personal aspect —to pit particular persons against one another and represent the issue as being whether the ratepayers have greater confidence iu Mr A. then in Mr B. Wo avoid mentioning narni B. There is no necessity to do so, aud we can see no warrant for degrading a most important issue gravely affecting the health and welfare of the citizens into a mere personal struggle be) weeu twopossiblerivalßin municipal or general politics. We cannot believe, however, that the ratepayers will be led away by bo very thin a red-herring drawn across the scent. They ought resolutely to ignore all attempts made to concentrate their interests into the effect which tho fate of the Council’s proposals may have on anybody as a candidate for popular favour. The solo point tho ratepayers have to consider is whether the present proposals with regard to a L 75,000 loan and its appropriation are such as to merit their approval. The scheme is one of a purely practical character for the improvement of the city. It does not matter one straw who is its authoi 7 , or who may or may not reap political advancement through its acceptance or rejection. All that is utterly trivial. The point is : Does tho scheme itself deserve approval and support ? Fresh borrowing is without doubt undesirable and objectionable in itself and as a general principle. But, as we pointed out a day or two back, every rule has its exception, and this is a ease iu which it is proposed to borrow money for necessary (or highly expedient) works as against a splendid estate which would be available if required toward the ultimate repayment of the loan. These needful works cannot be done out of revenue. There is no mistake at all about that. Then from what other source savealoan could the requisite funds be obtained? We know of none. None has been suggested. None has been so much as hinted at. Even a wholesale sacrifice of the city estate would not. meet the difficulty, while it would be a most wasteful and imprudent method. Thus we are driven to borrowing a 3 the only course open. It cannot be pretended that such works as drainage and street formation are other than necessaries. But the city must either borrow money for these purposes or else go without admittedly necessary works.

According to the municipal authorities the interest on tho loan can bo met without increasing the rates. It is quite true that tho money wh'ch would bo wanted to pay tho interest, somo £3OOO per annum, might bo used in slightly —very slightly—reducing the rates. But when there are works of an indispensable character waiting to be done, when these are waiting at the serious peril of the public, it might bo very false economy to let these remain undone for. the sake of saving an almost inappreciable sum in the rates. Take only tho two items to which wo have already referred —street formation and drainage—both of these are urgently needed. There is no getting over or ignoring the hard facts aud figures which the Registrar-General publishes to all the world every month, showing that this city has an unduly high death-rate as compared with other towns, owing to its insanitary management, or mismanagement. Nothing is at the present time so pressingly needed in Wellington as the completion of the system of local drainage. This is quite outside the outfall question to which we shall refer later. The first point is to get the sewage away from the bouses. That is the first thing to he done. The sewage may have to go inio tho harbour for a time, but it is surely better there than under people’s houses, or saturating the surrounding ground. What many people say, however, is that everything connected with the eitv drainage, including the open-sea outfall, ought to bo provided at once and out of this loan. They say, with perfect truth and sound sense, that the practice of pouring all our sewage into the harbour is a filthy and perilous one, and that the consequent mischief already begun will steadily and rapidly increase until it becomes unbearable. Quite true ! We have said the same thing over and over again. Undoubtedly the question of an open-sea outfall should have early and earnest attention at the hands of the municipal authorities. But it cannot be solved in the free-and-easy hop-skip and-jump way that Borne people fancy is feasible. An outfall has to be selected. That is not such a simple thing as it looks. Private interests have to be studied or heavily compensated. People who are now looking into this matter for the first time may perhaps be rather surprised to find —if they take the trouble to inquire —what long aud serious attention this subject has had in the past from the City Council; what difficulties were encountered in the endeavours to arrange for an outfall site in Cook Strait; what large compensation was demanded, what heavy expense was incurred. And even now it is not entirely clear that an outlet can be secured without very considerable further outlay. Assuming that a site can be secured, the next question is by what means the sewage shall be conveyed thither. Three alternative plans are in the hands of the Council— Climie’s chain-pumping system; Clark’s mile long rising-main ; and Shone’s Pneumatic Ejector. The laet appears to be by far tho best and cheapest, but even that would swallow up more than double the sum that would be left for appropriation out of the proposed loan, even if all the items which could be deemed non-necessaries were eliminated. If the city is going in for an open-sea outfall—as it assuredly must sooner or later—at least another £50,000, and more probably another £75,000 will have to be added to the loan, and that means additional rates. If the citizens are willing to submit to this the course is plain enough. But even so, all the money already set down for drainage would still be needed as an integral part of any complete scheme. It would not be wasted in any case, for whenever tho sea outfall should be provided all this previous work would fit in, and would in any event be indispensable. The immediate question is whether or not it is advisable to postpone the open soa outfall undertaking for a year or two when it may be hoped that property will have improved in value, giving larger revenue, so that possibly a further loan might be raised without necessitating the imposition of a special rate. True, the sewage would be defiling the harbour all that time, but at least it would be safer there than under and among a host of crowded houses. It is for the ratepayers to say whether they would prefer to adopt this course, or whether they are willing to have additional rates imposed, so that the sea outfall may be secured

without delay, by means of an extra £50,000 or £75,000 loan. It is to be hoped that thiaiinportant question will be thoroughly discussed on its merits without the importation of foolish personalities or remote political possibilities.