PROVINCIAL NEWS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20905, 20 December 1929, Page 9

PROVINCIAL NEWS.

NORTH OTAGO.

UTkou Oca Sfxcux.

Coßßxtpcxnairr.)

WAITAKI ELECTRIC POWER

BOARD.

The monthly meeting of the Waitaki Electric Power Board was held yesterday'morning there being present Messrs i M. Forrester (chairman), J. M'DiarW. H. Frith, J. A. Macpberson, T. A. B. Lang, J. Rutherford, and-A. MTnnis.

. Tks following balances were reported in the financial statement:—Power fund account credit £1777 Os 3d, receipts £2809 7s 2d; compared with £3047 3s 2d I "November, 1928; loan account credit £6206 Is 3d, receipts £279 12s 4d; com£B4s 7s lOd in November, 1928. The receipts amounted to £2378 12s. compared with £2251 13s 2d for November, 1928. The tender of Messrs Maynard and Armstrong of £92 each for switch houses at Herbert. and'Ngapara was accepted.

ENGINEER’S REPORT.

The engineer reported for 1 the month ? s . f°lmws:—The staff had again been fairly busy with sundry- line extensions and services, and very busy with country house wiring and the installation of apparatus of all kinds. The work had been spread over the whole of the district, as, was now unavoidable, necessitating much travelling in spite of the most careful planning of work. The Tussock road extension had been completed and livened ep, and various extensions and alterationg to lines and transformers carried oU ii ip both new and extra supplies fj! j ‘ or * Early in the month-severe thunderstorms, with lightning, occurred in several localities, and although little actual damage was done to our lines, a number of > fuses were blown, requiring several trips over long distances, and causing considerable inconvenience to the consumers concerned. The servicing of consumers and the maintenance of lines ana apparatus at distant points was a problem, which, it should be realised, was a . troublesome and costly one as compared to a closely settled town area, oteps had been taken to provide further safety devices in the. moat stormy localities, .to minimise trouble, but it was hardly possible to prevent all disturbance. The inspection and house wiring departments were very busy and were endeavouring to clear up all work as far as. possible before the holidays. The chief inspector reports that 17 new consutners were connected during November, while 59 extensions and alterations were carried out,, and_ no fewer than 15 transfers,- disconnections, and re-connections dealt with. There were installed 11 ranges, U water heaters, and 11 motors, the new connected load being 147 kilowatts.- The special terms for installation of cooking et , c ” we ? e Proving. attractive, "1J ™>er busy times might be anticipated after the Reference might he made to tne Dominion advertising scheme for furthering the 'uses of electncity, which- was now brought up for the board s_ decision, by a request from an advertising firm for an agreement to be entered into. This matter was before the .Power Boards’ ■ Conference and was referred to the executive and a special committee - to formulate . some scheme whereby the Government,’ the supply authorities, and the electrical fir^ C^V shar , ed , th ?‘ c , oa f- Apparently the firm referred to had been appointed- to the advertising throughout the Dominion, and . the board was asked to pay lts quot ?’’ as stated, spread over three, years, . , Although the board Infill 0 "!? adv , e , rtl 3ing contracts in hand +k° ul r> no - • bt T ay it: *<> subscribe to the Dominion scheme as proposed. some particulars of which were again to mention of the sale of e apparatus >y non-electrical firms,.and even by some electrical firms, apparently without regard to safety. Inspectors were continually: coming across w^uck a had 1 ?V ch K Waa dec ’ de dly risky, and secmpA nl bee c n approved, and there murfi rnhWH? 37 atoPP’ng the sale of l bb if h u j ntll a properly.constituted p S?- ? ard w l s set U P- with powers and controlling the sale alI f apparatus and fittings not mS'tl «afe. In the meantime it could hot be expected that supply authorities 1 inspectors could dekl with the matter ™ J el - V fr a * d ]t T, as , to ba hoped that an earnest effort would be made to get some board formed possessing the necessary Powers. ..Eiiritig -November the board at « 9;60 units from the Public Works Department, and generated 6389 units by water, and. 281 units by oifen-

ACTIVITIES OF THE DISTRICT.

SUPERANNUATION FUND

| me —a total of 476,270 units. The total demand was approximately 1156 k.w., equal to about 1350 k.v.a, at the power factor obtaining. There were six interruptions to the Public Works Department supply, mostly only of a momentary nature, one. however, being for 10 minutes. Three of these were from unknown causes on the ) Public Works Department system, and the others from troubles, on the board’s own system. He would like to express appreciation of the staff s services during the year,, and also thank the board for the very good consideration shown to all suggestions and requests from time to time. In trusting that, all might enjoy the holiday season, it might also be hoped that the New Year brlI i K f V rtber Prosperity to the district and a demand for still more and £2™, ekctncity. to the benefit of the board and consumers alike.—After a full discussion the question of a Dominion advertising scheme was deferred in the meantime with a view to securing further information on the scheme. ■ nro.Trn^ 8813 ? a ?J- manage r reported on the progress of this month’s , work as folTiisrLicP 16 tl.ooo volt extension along Tussocky road was successfully livened up on December 4. and supply given to ¥““[■ Turnbull. Turnbull? and Mulligan! At the beginning -of this month several transformer fuses .in the Hakataramca valley were, blown during severe lights ning storms. However, since that date, additional lightning arresters had been erected on the Hakataramca linos which should thus have further protection against such disturbances.. Lightning arresters had also been erected m the Five Forks district,, The country gang is now engaged on overhaul work in the Kauroo tail and Kunhika districts, while the town gang, had been periodically engaged on earth improvement on the Wailaki ■Flams. During the month new services nad, been run to. the following . cou--sr? Messrs Valentine, Kurow; M Aughtne, Kurow; Maffey. jun., Kakanui. and Hill, Herbert, while transformer alterations and additional low tension phases have been necessary.to provide for new cooking in the Kurow, Enfield, and Herbert districts. It was interesting to note that allowance for all the above was made when our lines were, originally built, and in consequence the additional work as required now proved simple and comparatively inexpensive.

The question of contributing towards the National Provident Fund to>provide superannuation for employees upon retirement, came before the Waitaki Electric Power Board yesterday'morning for a final decision. It was suggested that the discussion on the matter be taken in committee, but Messrs Frith and MTDiarmid opposed this suggestion, and, with the exception of the figures showing the amounts of contributions from employees, the board; and the Government, which were confidential, the, whole of the discussion was taken in open meeting. The manager (Mr I. Dalmer)' read the official communication on the subject,' and reported that 15, members of the staff (and there had since' been one or two more) had signified their willingness to min up pritb the superannuation fund The age of retirement wag 65 years, or 40 years’ service. They had not yet arrived at a definition of a “ permanent ” employee.

Mr Frith, stated that on • principle he waa opposed to superannuation under this particular scheme. He was not opposed to superannuation 'under fair and equitable , conditions,. and it was not a question as to whether the fund was sound or not,-but a question of. principle. Although Bevel's! local bodies had adopted the scheme,-they should not follow that lead, without' very careful consideration. He understood, that any employee could join the fund on his own account, but the employee had to pay the contributions out of hie pocket. In the board’s case the Government, hoard, and employees contributed, and any system of superannuation that called on someone else to pay for any person’s benefit was like asking someone else to pay a persons-insurance premium. When an employee was superannuated his contributions ceased, but the board and Governi -ent continued their contributions ./hile that ,man lived. Not only that; but the board would have to take on another man. and pay his contribution also. It was .not a fair thing to ask anyone to help to pay for anotherV Benefit. The board's employees were well paid, had their regular holidays, and were in constant employment, but what about. the other fellow outside who had _ to contribute towards the superannuation? He may.be dependent bn casual work, and it was not right; for him, to help to pay for men in “cushion" seats.

The chairman (Mr ,J. M. .Forrester) objected to, the term “.cushy," but Mr Frith retorted that he would not withdraw it. He ineant it. Their employees were the aristocracy of the district. and' there were > no employees in more favourable positions than, the employees of the Power Board. He was opposed to the superannuation scheme because it was inequitable. He moved that they do not entertain any scheme of superannuation based on that inequitable foundation. —The motion was seconded by Mr J, D. Rutherford. Mr J. M'Diarmid said he did not intend to record a silent vote on the subject. He agreed that though the superannuation, scheme established in the past had shown great promise, they found in its operation that a further examination of the scheme was necessary, and people were quite justified in altering their views. They were creating an army ; of superannuates, and economic stress compelled them to look more closely into the effect of the scheme. It had been pointed out by the present Prime Minister that millions of the people’s money was required to keep it going. He thought it had a tendency to discount thrift and self-reliance. Insurance schemes were available to thrifty and self-reliant men. The Government and board contributions had to be made up by men out of work and taxpayers.. If ever he supported a superannuation scheme it would be on account of the unemployed who were kicked about from pillar to post. Mr Frith. Hear! hear! That's my principle. Continuing, Mr M'Diarmid said in respect to their own particular requirements that they should consider whether conditions prevailed on the board that •were likely to be permanent. He. considered that alterations to the conditions of the board were to be expected. Government operations would cut out local schemes, distribution would become much simpler, and operations would be made much cheaper. Less’ than per cent, of the board’s output was generated by the board’s own plant, for which they had to employ a staff. He realised that was necessary to keep down the peak load on account of the Government system of charging, but that system would have to be changed when Government power was fully available. He thought when i the Government schemes were properly ■established there would be very few interruptions, and it would not be necessary to keep a big plant and staff when the reticulation of the whole country was completed and “ juice ’’ was available. He did not like the superannuation scheme, and, as Mr Dalraer had suggested, there w-as some doubt as to the definition of " permanent ’’ employee. There was no urgent, need to adopt the scheme. Mr Macpherson said he recognised there was a pood deal in what had been said in that it seemed to be making a special class. When, however, he looked at the scheme in a broader light, it seemed to him to be falling into line with the system being adonted by Governments and local bodies throughout the world. They must not overlook the fact that the employees were contributing substantially to the scheme. He recognised there was room for introducing some system to provide for the unemployed. That was going to come soon, and it Was for them to solve the problem. There were compensations in the scheme —contentment in the staff because the employee bad a stake in the institution. He realised that he had to work in the interests of the institution, for if forced to retire, then his past efforts would have been in vain. If not, the taxpayers would have to provide old age pensions, and so he was thrown back on the ratepayers. The

GOLF,

scheme had gone past the initial stage and had given fine satisfaction. Mr Macpherson added that he did not think they would be _ doing their duty to the employees without giving the matter very careful consideration. It had been proved that it ' would ’be satisfactorily worket). _ They could not associate the scheme with the civil service scheme. ‘ Ho moved ,as an amendment that the board accept the scheme so that the staff be placed on the same plane under the scheme as other local bodies. Mr Frith claimed that the amendment was a direct negative, but the chairman accepted and seconded it, adding that if Mr Frith was logical he would oppose the old age pension. _Mr Frith: Not on your life. He knows what he is talking about. Mr Forrester: A certain paper that wrote disparagingly about superannuation subsidised the -scheme very heavily for its own employees. Speaking of the . Borough Council’s superannuation scheme, Mr. Frith said he had heard complaints, but Mr Forrester replied that he had not heard of a complaint. They had had the unpleasant experience of having to put off an old employee and to-make an allowance, and it would have been much more pleasant if the council had gone into the scheme earner, when the man would have been retired on a proper footing instead of an allowance. H& hoped superannuation would be made, compulsory for local bodies, and, he concluded with emphasis: It.does encourage thrift,” Mr MTnnea pointed but that farmers were unable to enter the scheme. Mr Forrester; Anyone can enter the scheme.

•Mr Frith: And our employees can on their own account. ■

Mr Forrester pointed out that the boards contribution would be less than 1 per cent, of the revenue. Mr Munro said, in view of the wool market it would not be a good year to go into the scheme. If wool prices continued to go down some would have to nave the electricity cut off. It was clearly explained that the withdrawal of an employee wiped out the benefits, but the board continued to pay contributions while the superannuant lived.

!n reply Mr Frith said two or three platitudes, bad been uttered by the chairman and Mr Macpberson, but no arguments had been put up. . 'Mr Macpberson: You may not bo a judge of argument. Mr Frith said the reference to a contented staff was a platitude, but Mr Macpherson retorted he had had 40 years’ experience with men and knew the value of it.

Mr Frith: Perhaps you do, and perhaps you don t, ■ . y Referring to the council, Mr Frith asked if it was a fair thing for one man to go off on superannuation, while the casual man went off with nothing, because he was a casual, t ¥ r Eorrosfcer: That is quite wrong, but I don’t want to retaliate. cari stand* away ’ My ba <*

, The chairman concluded by referring the humanitarian aspect of the questioD, and then called for a division. The amendment , was defeated by five votes to three,, and the_ motion carried, those m, t SL^ r i the^ 1 - on Messrs Frith, Rutherford, j M Diarmid, Munro, and A 1 Iniiis; . and against, Messrs Forrester. Macphersofi, and Lang. : , j conclusion the chairman exbeart‘eßt greeting for the festive season, and best wishes for a prosperous New _Year. He hoped particularly that the farming community would have a tbb!t r y \r T >«?“■■ - Mr Munro seemed to think. Mr M Inins, on behalf of members, reciprocated ..the greetings.

rotary club

tbe «, w ? ek y dlnner of the Oamaru Rotary Club it was decided to send Christmas greeting to the GovernorrT h u 18 a “ember of the Weilington Club, The ■ secretary has rer6flly the meßSa ge. stating that their Excellencies were, very grateful for the. kind message, of the club.

SHOW MARE SOLD,

The show mare “Pretty. Jane.” which was champion harness horse at the Oamaru Snow, has been sold by Mr F. Poff to Miss Coutts, of Riversbank, Pal3t • s satisfactory figure.

PERSONAL,

QueeuV Hotel.—Mi SB , L . Wilkinson (Auckland): Mr T. R. Kirkcaldie (Welhngton).; ,Mr and Jlrs M'Auley (Upper Riccarton); Messrs Russell, F. E. Olsen w- V; Kensington A. Simpson, c! Weigh ton (Dunedin); Messrs Lurasden, T wiiil air £ lot r h ; Messrs K Wilson, s. Louden (Titnaru) Notice of her appointment as substituted teacher at Oamaru North School has-been received by Miss C. F. Miller of Oamaru.

f ollowinz is the draw for the flag match to he played tp-morrow, knock-out matches may be played concurrently:Day v. Heron, Fowler v. Irvine. WilCohh v' W ar f- ha,1 > G ™ter v. Pollock, v - W. lomhnson Roll v. M'Dowel!, SSJp Irm Gurne Whitcombe v. Hopgood, M Death v. Bird, Kinder v. J. 51. l V SelwoS Jd^ WSO V’‘ H £ Pter ’ C - Wilson v. Keay,. Ireland v. Mitchell. M'Kenzie v. Rivers, Wyber v. Kilpatrick, Matheson y. Scott.

lawn tennis

The following Will represent the North P ay Country to-morrow;— Gallagher, Bryan, Feathers, M’Ewan C Swmdley, Mias D. ililler. slrs Bradley, Blisses h. Weavers R son 51‘Donald. and iMrfM’Ewan foUows^—T ltr \TTv SPreßenta^ Ve J :eam >3 a* louqws.— L. M'Kinnon, B. Collins, E Chr.s lanson R. M'Master. T. M'Kimion; a ,v^P le ' Misses Burnett, A. Lawlor App,eby ’ . C * Kawlov. and Miss Cooper/ emer gencies Tripp and ■ar^j o will represent the Bleadowbank Tennis Club in its match with Pukeun to-morrow:—JßDonald LaHedges W. Robertson, Brehaut J Hed e /« 0 & lH Bes Jr Macpherson, 'M Hedges \\ . Slater, E. King. A. slill ar H Ss-Sf. sssr***-

CRICKET NOTES,

inf atU In a ‘f-.rf a M day ° f Very 6mall «o> t*?f‘ , , f , a th® general standard of play vould indicate that no team is strong in batting. Oamaru deserved its three-point win over Union, though the only two batsmen calling for comment •were Uttley, whose batting was forceful and crisp and Malcolm, wdio provided a very usefu! partner. The rest of the side failed. For Oamaru Jones again gave a good display behind the stumps, 'his stumping of Rawstron being particularly clever. K. Sumpter bowled a good length and Zimmerman concentrated on the natural leg turn with effect, both bowlers keeping the Union batsmen quiet. Hawstorn made a welcome reappearance and he looked to be quite set, hitting four successive fours off Zimmerman. The bowler however, had his revenge when he ae acepted low down, a one-handed catch on a hard drive. Maddigan again plaved a sterling innings, and his 32 .runs in the second innings were the result of sound batting. Tonkin continues to improve with each game. He accounted for the first five wickets that fell, threw two men out from the field, and scored 21 runs. He is at present one of the keenest fielders in the senior competition, and, as he_ is stijl young, shows promises of a bright cricket future.

DRUIDS.

The following will represent Albion Club in its matches on Saturday:— Seniors v. Oamaru, at School: Keith, Jacobs. Brooker (2), Davey, Taylor, Carrington, Geddes. Todd,. Chalmers, Sim. Juniors v. Union B. at King’s George’s Park: Palmer (2). Sampson. Firth, Adamson. MTadzen, .M'Caffery. Brosnahan, Farrant, Finder, Ford.

OAMARU BOROUGH COUNCIL.

The fortnightly meeting of the Oamaru ■borough .Council. was held last evening, there being present' the Mayor (Mr F. Crawshaw) Crs J. M'Diarraid. J. M. Forrester. J. T. Caldcr, K. Farailton. \V. JJ;. r r J”. John Fraser.' M. F. Cooney, W; £5. Crombie, H. Jenkins, and N. U; Colquhoun. Cr E, A. Fox was granted leave of absence pending the hearing of the action uy the Audit Department against him. ihe manager of the Majestic Theatre was granted permission to screen a picture programme on Christmas Night. ,Mf J. Hargreaves accepted the council s offer for the sale of the Opera House pelton wheel at £lB. ’ The Public Trustee acknowledged receipt of debentures in relation to the redemption renewal loan. Mr H. M'Quade applied for ah incrMsed water supply to the Club- Hotel. ihe Mayor and Cr Forrester were'emP°wered to deal with the application. The Texas. Oil Company, Ltd., was granted permission to erect signs at four service stations and garages in Oamaru, subject to the supervision of the engineer.

The drainage engineer advised that the machinery in No. 2 pumping station; Humber street, had now been operated satisfactorily, and that it could be taken over by the council. The sewerage system was now complete; and ihe engineer would submit a full report in January. ■Th e railway district engineer advised that the right-of-way and level crossing to the gasworks. Coquet street, would expire on March 31, and offering a renewal on a year-to-year .tenure terminable on tl*ee months’ notice.—Ur Coonev raised the question of maintenance of the track and-siding, and the matter was referred back to the Gae Committee. , Messrs flislop Creagh, and Main applied _ to have leasehold 19, block XI, submitted to auction in two parts.— Referred to the Reserves Committee. The Finance Committee reported the following- balances:—D.f. account,- dr. £8093 10s 9d; loan account, cr., £435 Os 2d; loan P.O.S. B. t £IOOO. . Accounts amounting to £913 12s 2d general, and £3BB 3s 3d loan account were passed for payment. , A rebate of half water rates on section 4, block XL, was granted Messrs M'Callnra and Co.

In view of the inspection made by Mr J. Rawcliffe and his report it has been decided not to enforce the provision of tanks by the Waiareka consumers in .he meantime. Inspector Fischer was asked to prepare specifications for the necessary plumbing work at the gardener’s residence, and it was decided that tenders bo invited.

The recommendation of the By-laws Committee that the Scottish Society be required to carry out the engineer’s instructions for the completion of the roof of the Scottish Hall was, after a short discussion, approved. A complaint regarding the disgraceful state of Lune street was referred to the engineer for immediate attention, and it was decided that this be one of the first works to be placed on the estimates in the New Year.

The Mayor reported that in company with Cr Forrester, the engineer, and town clerk be bad conferred with thecommis eioner of Crown lands and Messrs Gilchrist, and' an amicable settlement had been, arrived at concerning land for the water race on the property, recently sold to the Government by Messrs Gilchrist. In 1877 the Borough Council bought the land—about 20 acres—but did not pay for it, and interest had been paid. Now they had to have a title, and it'had been agreed to. complete the purchase for £384, The engineer reported that the Takaro Park footbridge and concrete piers had been 'completed at a cost of £l7B 2s. It was considered that a gap on the north side was dangerous at night, and the engineer was instructed to extend the handrail. ; ,

The engineer reported the cost of road foundation work in Severn _ street for 34 chains as £549 Bs, or approximately Is per square yard. .

The next meeting was fixed for January- 10, the Mayor and the town clerk being, authorised to pay wages and accounts in the meantime.

In reply to Cr Cooney, the engineer reported that crushing at the quarry would comnrencp on January 3. The Mayor and Crs Forrester, Familton, Jenkins, and Cooney .were asked to report on the question of disposing of the smaller crusher.

The inspector wag instructed -to , have the nuisance ■ created by the placing of four oil. stands, two drums, and two trees in front of a certain garage abated. Appreciation was expressed of Mr Steenson’s services in preparing plans of the Severn street wall and the Gardens hothouse gratis, and a very hearty vote of thanks was passed to him. Deep regret was expressed at the death of Lieutenant D. A. Kennedy, who had done so much, for the cadets of Oainaru, and it was decided to forward a letter of sympathy to the. relatives, and also to ,Mr W Morton, the . reservoir, caretaker, on the death of his The Mayor conveyed his,heartiest greetings for a merry Christinas and a happy .New rear to .councillors, press representatives, and the borough staff. He jy fio , P resß f d his deep appreciation of the help and sympathy extended to him by Lr Forrester during the past three months. Or Forrester reciprocated the Mayor a kind wishes. ,

NORTH OTAGO RUGBY UNION,

A special meeting of the North Otago Rugby Union was held last evening, Mr tx- B- Stevenson presiding. ,Question arising out of the replv of the International Board as to the- formation of a consultative body was discu sed, and it was decided to advise the Lew Zealand Union that it was considered {■mv.u advisable to proceed anv further with the proposal. It was decided to lodge a challenge for the Ranfurly Shield on January 1 ’ J p “ al meeting of delegates will be miif^^ re s- Wee M L prior t 0 the annual Insurance 0 “ Iscuss * ke Q ues fion of players’

OUTSTANDING RATES

Gr J-amiHon, chairman of the Finance Committee, reported to the Borough Council last evening the amount of rates outstanding as £23.164 to be collected by the end of January. Comparative figures for the last four years as to the amount of rates paid by November 30 were as follows, the total rates being teV)! p s h ß rs,T 6 ii2 B ag* 1929-30. -£4917

SEVERN STREET EMBANKMENT.

rg P°rted to the Borough Council last evening that the total cost £1665 "« Se fid rD ™' eet ,? mbanb ment was £I2OO to £nnn-Ti he i e f tlmate waß frora £I2UV to £I3OO, the labour cost of earth- ™ S f ?- £2 f n V ss st] - “d.of StoTe. work £5Ol is lOd; a total of £728 3s 3d. X^OOn'^ihi 4 ? f t Sione J w , as estimated at was laoin c l e . et - f and , the amount used eubic feet, the cost per cubic from t'hl be, f g 2s ° The material from the extra earthwork was used to ln r?, ad fiHiug. The contributions were:—Government subsidy £275. P 4° yi?l ! nt £260, BeautiT, n - B c, - et - v £l5O, council £300; total the iob tT' S e dinglv pleased with inf JP r T , l,e P lan ting had been done stonnii ?an lr u fu,ld ®- but had been £6O nr An .'"aantmie, and another pSe the work! reqU, ' red to c ° m ‘

P r Galder offered his congratulations to the committee on the completion of the uork. He had been one of the doubting Ihomases at the start, but now the work waa finished it had. obliterated one of the worst spots in Oamaru, and turned it into a place .of beautv.

1 n, e e H" 1 f o£ the J’ ear of ‘he UjA.O.D. was held last evening. Bro E Waring reported on the Christmas free party, and on the results of the euchre assemblies, and together with Bros. A E Kearns and W. G. Bain, sen., was ’ accorded a very, hearty vote of thanks for the successful issue of their joint efforts during, the cast six months. It was de-

ctded to give the remaining tovs to the children of the Public Hospital. The lodge was closed with the. exchange of the season’s greetings. .

RECEPTION COMMITTEE

CRITICISED,

Reference was made at the. Borough Council meeting last evening to the Gov-erner-Geherars visit by Cr M*Diarmid, who congratulated ‘ the Mayor -on the general success, attending the visit of their Excellencies .to. Oamaru, .There were, however, several matters which had given rise to discussion/- and, 'personally, he thought an even greater success would have been secured if there had been-more co-operation’ between the committee and the councillors. , The committee should have reported the suggested ‘arrangements to the council to have them endorsed. The only intimation of the reception in i 1 j Y art^er,s was the papers. If they had been told they were expected’to be there, then they would, have been there. He understood that there were few councillors there. There was afternoon tea at the \\ omen s. Club, and a number’of , ladies, on the assumption that it was open to the members 6f the club, wentthere, on!y to be excluded from the funcThat could have been avoided. Then, as to the order of precedence at the dinner at night, the town: clerk had the matter m his own hands, with the result that some ■ peculiar things happened. The town clerk did not work on the accepted lines in the matter. The Mayor was the first to take precedence over the local member of Parliament, and the immediate past Mayor was next, and on - He noticed at the head of the table their sanitary inspector and his wife, but the borough solicitor and his wife were not at that table. Other people had no right to be there. These things had given rise to a deal of amusement. Another thing, should have had' the approbation of the council, and that was p f bq«or on the table. That was settled long ago that when it was the rule of the town, no liquor was to be used, nor was it desired they had with them the County Council. The County Council s views, however, should not have' affected them on the matter if the Mayor put it on himself. , The Mayor: I beg your pardon. I nave done it. , Cr M’Diarmid. Then that’s all right, but I should not have been put there without the, sanction of the Borough

. I Jm , P a ying for it. Cr M Diamud: You must hare known “ was beiriK piit on the table? Mayor; I certainly did. Cr MDiarmid; The Ladies’ Club wag a waste of tune of her Excellency, whose wish it was to meet as many as nossilMe, but members were rudely expelled. S r SI 1 ® 1116 ! It’® a jolly shame. Cr M Oiarmid: These things could have been prevented. The success of the function was marred "in-several respects. •. Ine Mayor. Are there-any more councillors who wish to give their encomiums? V r Colquhoun stated that -he had inquired for particulars of the programme, an d had received- them. ■ , .The Mayor thanked Cr M'Diarmid for his congratulations. „ He conic say a lot on the matter, but lie took it Ms breeding was of a better class; He was ink® P reKe Pt at the Ladies’ Club at 3.30 p.m, The reception was fixed for 4 o clock, and the shops were closed at 3 o clock. _ The committee set up by the two councils worked together. When liquor had been provided it had been P a ?d for by himself. The committee of the County Council was consulted, and agreed that liquor should he provided. In connection with the seating at the h- id table, there .was a good reason why uie inspector and his wife should be there. He was very sorry the matter had been brought up. What, he asked, was the use of a councillor on a committee who would leave his shop to go to a meeting during .the_ day? Cr M'Diarmid: Who is the councillor you refer to?

The Mayor replied that he. was. not referring to the Reception .Committee, but to other committees. _ The reception at the Gardens was a civic ‘ welcome, and councillors were expected to have been there. He thanked Cr M'Diarmid for his kind remarks, on the way" in which the function had .gone,, of i which he (Cr M'Diarmid) was a good judge. Cr Calder expressed regret that O M'Diarmid handed the Mayor a sweet and then handed him a bitter. The Ladies’ Club was out of the. bands of the committee altogether. He did not think that the proper place ■to discuss U after the function, was over.—Cr Forrester stated that the Ladies’ Club was asked by . the committee to provide' afternoon tea. The time was so short that it was impossible to have - all the members there. He thought the remarks very unfortunate, as they did not butt in.-MUr M'Diarmid said he considered it a waste of their Excellencies’ time, and also. an impertinence on the part of a handful of women to monopolise their Excellencies’ time.Cr Frith said he felt.it very keenly. What happened there was a, very brutal thing to be done, and all right-minded citizens would.resent it. He resented it most emphatically. What, right had they to be turned out?—The Mayor said that had nothing to do with him. They had had an anxious time .on account of the weather, and they had prepared the Town Hall and also the Gardens, and if they had made any omissions they might be-pardoned. .