THE ELECTRIC SCHEME.

Timaru Herald, Volume CIII, Issue 15743, 30 August 1915, Page 5

THE ELECTRIC SCHEME.

I > til-- huitor of the '"Timnru Herald" Councillor Sout'.-r's letter i:i Saturday's issue, uii.io cleverly uttempuue to .side track the lna.n issues <»t tin? (jnc-tion. am> sliows Ins do-.iro t■> (■>(,• so as a financial expert. Tlie only pent- ill the letter wnrtli answering is h.s statement that the l-\-,n was in i <>i" and tlien-.ore I hail ed miy interest eh wyes on t'io Im-jli a sinii, jiamoly ,11. T|, ( . latter r-uiu is the small- st anioum of loan 'I seitssed cither inside or out.•:<!<> the I'm.!;::.I fur this work. at:-! -o my hctttivs .--till ho <1 yond. Coiu'.i'illoi' Si)iitor is ono of a sefliou of tli-> (,""i;i:.-.l i!mt applauded the Mayor's Mythical tS'l.ti prolit- <-n la.-: year's v. oi tlie i! aud these K.'i;n<! late." that this profit, was "oiijy apparent imt real. ' I hops j'or the sake ol llie ratepayers, if tho scheme >s approved. that hi. li-nres this time will In- real ar.d not "on y apparent. ' 1' :s a pity that at ill.- pre-ont i:ine v. e should b" thrown ;nto a turmoil over a matter that cotiid wei! Ji«w I'-rcti lit- sta ihl over until alter tlie war was f-ettled, hut ior some l'e.-!,nj

T lio promoters <•>.'r th«* iumi.v urj/'-m. ;in<t tinn- <:nmot I»o 1 ) 1 without 11 itici m. Ii:.- iiin.ii points lor tin' consuh r;>t'Or; . : ii,,. r.ii'-p.iy.'rs arc: —Has the I)oc!i j-.ny:ih!-< :■.> Scott lSrosy and ir so '-an tiio run it as well or lir-Wer'.- My contortion is that ii Scott Uros. 'liad charged >.-> v. ork ns account t-hoso items ii» ually li:m: to capital account uf.uia show a lo=>. and that ii >-ott I'ros. cannot .show a, prolit 1 am suio that the -a ill not K- ahle to. O uaciliors -MaLii;; and S.uitcr >:iy thai. 'Ji per .-out. deprcivatinn or s''nkin_; itind \%i 11 wipe oil the Hill coo oi' ti:.- plant in 24 years. .Now, >ir. sce- | n _C mat a very part of the. plant is already ob»o.ote and \>'ill nevd to n.- n-rapped immediately. 1 ark hov.lauch. i; any. ol ;l,e present plant or «• vr-n or th.c- <>u Idings. will ho m existence twonty-t'oiir yi ai s liciico!-' Xo

pror iarion lias oven been wiped oli" the plant and it stand# on the books Messrs Si-.-.'.t Hros. first- valuation, in - boilers have had a reasonable • mr tli<*:f typo. The strain online i:nsnnabo Jor th:s work ami would I • I'iinl to s»*]I tV>!- nthe:* work. The si it - 1 ii hi -as plant It' well 10-ikcil alr.-r may work tor ii.-t-eon years. On a. plant " tni.s nature 10 per rem. should be wiped oli annually as is done in most j i -'.'a'e iimiis. ,\ny les-'er sum wiM b > i 1 to be insufileient. and the I''. ju r f-."nt. inen;:"ii"d i* absurd >i'.i.nid ( oler.diie p-v.er hj.» adopted la.it on. the pOMi'.cji w:!l be worse -till, an 1 leave very lit; !:■ ex.-opt i-lio I'O.s Hi the Mreet-s. .Mr ?av< in li .s iir«t lvnort. \\■--m-iine the m l :mid mothotl" <Cnl.vi<lv-ei : s adopted, that :s altering the \\hol-' distributing

irom a direct- current- fvstem to an altornat'nir >\>tem. this Would mean th-. abandonment oi' the ohvtr.ea: er.uipnKnu at the pccnoratiM-.; power ptant"—.scrapping in one hit al' that W(> are now asked to boy at 1:3 >eott Bros. :«r.^un:>h! e t,> innn. k than 7\ j>«t '""lien anxious to put the "most lavor.rablo s'dcfenv.ird with a view to ''• f, »d wlien it is n-.t against their i:iPi-e<ts tr. charge all possible to eap;..:!, aet-oinir. I say i--niphatically t - ,: V .' nn elnii'-e of the Boron" ii ; - ' p-iy. A mistake to an .'-!H-i'ie (o:nj::i 11 : n the tirst pr.ee. :!,..,-e U reason wliv the ratepayer; "''nn!,! Nov.- h-ar the' bur<!'"n |o : " » -v." s-hm,,. with so !1 ," : ' . A-, t-lnie froex on the ( oiyi.- 1 -A ;; be in a better posij'Oi. to d er;i-,. t.-nns and : n the ni-an-tli:. i '»i;ri i-il s'-rti,!,-] tb" : r rights and pe o that the ••lex-trio e-mt-aet , s out. ns advised by . b-s nrst report: by tesr- • ■ •.: b.u-!t~. it■-:•"!i ii -_r n.Pti'rs. and insp--t-t- --- a-. .-ounts, •••c. I ~t l, "vv. ii. i-iuxr.

i o tile F.d'tOi* of "'Tfinaru TTnrilrl."

.it me £>outti M.£n>oj nic-'Ltiif on Wednesday iLtst, .-(UIK- n;*ure:s uti.- . u i>y v.ppoiK'uts ii uue, ie\c.u, to lny uun'i, a tai-augc mt.-tn.od ol bin>K K»-i piiiii on part ..ii Alo-ssrs Scott Jims. liioir iiyur.-o aro as follows: i<i viMiiie. .Colio'J, running -oats ClioJ/, jiut to s ii",v mat tliut -i--i 1 w :i-> Mot a true one «>t the opponents .-aid, m l iinder.siooU inm c*Oa r» ctJ\, tli.it xo iho running; costs tiioiild He added i,.jok keepi»i°. management Oxjil'll.sos, vlt I'l l■(•:;;tJon, etc., showing tnat, to Jus muul, those items had not Oeen aiciuded in the ,t'2U37. If that >s- true, \\ ii.ch 1 can .scarcely credit., the. gam of €242 L is a. myth. W Oil, I am not ;i business tnniij so am not well up in business methods: the opponents of the scheme are; and if what is said in thus casa is true and ot all common, I am thankful 1 am not a business man. Jn regard to increaiinH the present plant: It appears from Mr Stark's report, that a year ;ind a half and may De ruore, is like'.y to pass before Lake Caler:dge power is to be "ot It. also appears that the present generating plant is worknijr near its full capacity and requires IP ivo buy «c shall have to imtnT' another unit or else refuse nen- customers and

wait for tlie new. water power; if we do not buy, Messrs .Scott will put in a lien- unit and we sliali have to pay for it ; tlie-v will not wait, and it woiud be as fooiisli, for us to do so, thereiore, it is our wisest poiiey to buy now, for the longer wo dti.lv—a fault of ours—tlie worse it will be for us. ilow any man can persuade himself that a more favourable t.mo for borrowing will come I'm- a long time, I cannot, understand, .see.inV that every country is piling up debts at an enormous rate. Evidently that is ilic opinion of the Bank of Now Zealand's chairman. No private company can run an electric, or any public utility, scheme so advantageously for the people, as tlio people themselves. If our unenterprising Councillors would wake up and try to find out what many hundreds oT enterprising local bodies are doing for the benefit 'if their e tzenc they, purelv, would try to initi-

ate schemes which would "neatly ,-u)vance the welfare oi' the pciplo-. In order that anyone really interested in local government may know what rt is :'-nd what it might he, and wish to cct lb s know'pd'i'o, I wi'l, with the consent of tlie lYhrary Committee. givo three hor>k« to the Public Library on eondii'on that T nrn.v hnre free access to them when not in use bv others.—l am. etc.. r.. tvood. [The onlv tlvnz not included in the '■iii>i : ng dem-r>oifit : .on. Tvlitor "T'rm-ru