Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 1l. EDITORIAL NOTES.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXVI, Issue 10478, 14 October 1912, Page 4

Rangitikei Advocate. TWO EDITIONS DAILY. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11. EDITORIAL NOTES.

NOTING the enormous progress that has been made in the short period since the first white settlers arrived in New Zealand, we are apt to consider that this country has advanced mor« rapidly than any other. It seems, however, that Western Canada has outdistanced all rivals in the matter of advanced, as is pointed out by a writer in “United Empire.” Ho remarks that “to the older centres of civilisation the growth of the cities of Western Canada is almost inconceivable. They can scarcely believe you when you tell them that twenty-five years ago Calgary was a cow-town, and that to-day it is a flourishing city of 60,000 souls, with immense public buildings, and an incredible growth in real estate values; that Edmonton’s population rose from 3000 to 80,000 in less than ten years, that her assessment jumped to £6,000,000 and the territory covered grew to nine square miles. The conservative British business man does not understand cities that grow as if by magic-does not realise that in Alberta, where yesterday you saw only raw prairie, to-day you are liable to stumble upon a small town, which to-morrow will be a city, with its board of trade and a ‘publicity agent’ bring ing its merits before the world. But Western Canada understands it, and Western Canada believes in making provision for her future population. One of the cities which has done most for her ,citizens in that respect is Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, and one of the prettiest and best planned cities in the West. Edmonton controls all her public utilities. She owns her telephone (automatic), her electric light, her street railway, her power, her incinerator, her scavenging, her waterworks, her sewerage, and . her gas-produced system. No franchise of any kind is granted for public utilities within the boundaries of Edmonton. You wonder how she does it when you remember that municipal ownership and operation of public utilities and services means increase in municipal ‘debt.’ It does, because a municipality must borrow money to either create or acquire a system.. But promoters of private companies do the same thing, either in bonds' or shares. The difference is that they call it ‘capital’ and not ‘debt.’ The question the people of Edmonton deliberated was: Is the undertaking a profitable public service? If so, it is profitable to operate it, whether it be done by the directors of a private company, whose shareholders want as big dividends as possible, or by elected representatives of the people who are more interested in cheap, comfortable, efficient service. The community who created the franchise, and whose requirements give it its value, should be the ones to profit by it.

THE people of Edmonton recognised \ that a heavy debt must be incurred by the city in carrying out the municipal ouwuership policy, and it was therefore provided that, the | amount of the debenture debt of the city should at no time exceed 20 per cent, of the total amount of the last revised assessment. The Council has the power to decide on the expenditure of money taken from the current year’s revenue. Other expenditures, being for improvements of a permanent pharaoter, must be submitted to the ratepayers for their approval in the form of a by-law. This, with the annual election, gives the-people the lever they want to keep their representatives within bounds. It has happened that the people have voted down money by-laws submitted to them by the Council. Land is assessed at its fair actual value,, without reference to improvements. In estimating its value, regard, may be had to its situation and the purpose for which it is used, or, if sold by it present owner, the purpose for which it probably would be used within the next twelve months.” The example of Edmonton is worth studying by our legislators should they make any endeavour to improve our own system of local government.