Meeting of Ratepayers.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 22, 21 July 1900, Page 3

Meeting of Ratepayers.

On Thursday evening the annual meeting of the ratepayers of the Pareora Water Bace District was held in the Liberary Hall St Andrews, a largB number of rattpayers being present. Mr Or. Y. Cochrane clerk to the Waimnte County Council, presided. Mr D. Stowell, as chairman of the outgoing committee, gave a i resume of the work done by his committee sinoe the inception of the race. The nice was constructed in 1892, and at that time a ranger was appointed to look after the races, and an engineer was paid to look after the interests of the ratepayers in the water supply distriot. This lasted for throe years, and during that time continuous complaints had been received from taxpayers who received no water, and the Council were bo disgusted that they shifted the responsibility on to the conamitteo. The : committee in turn also got disgusted and finally the supply was stopped. Complaints had been reoeived that the race was being tampered with, and though the committee held several meetings, the supply did not improve. He related at length what the Council had done in the matter of tho construction of waterwoiks, and said that in thia the committee had no say. Complaintc Btill came in of the mcc being dry, and later it was decided that a new intake be given a trial. This worked wall for a few months, but afterwards failed, and the commit teo tendered their resignation owing to the constant complaints of no water, while there was no water to be got. Another committee was appointed after some montks, and the ranger reported a full supply from the lower intake later on, the race being supplied from the Bluecliff Creek. Later on again, the Committee in power decided to dispense with the service of the ranger, and the annual meeting held in the tame year took the same view. Men were put on to clean the race, but still the supply was getting lower evaty day. By reason of this the committee appointed an independent man to go over tho race, and report as to where tho fault lay. , On this repors is was decided to xnake several ratepayers clean out their races. A meeting of ratepayera in May, 1898, decided ! against any further expenditure, and the committee had nothing to do but to comply with the wishes' of the ratepay«rs who had elected them. In cohsluaion, Mr Stowell said tho committee had endeavoured to do their duty by th« ratepayers, and this they had done to the bast of their ability. — (Hear, hear). Mr Young asked what right had a man owning 50 acres of land to pay as much as a, man who owned 1000 acres ? The watar-raoe snhame should ha based on an average basis. Every man should pay according to his holding. He proposed that the present system of rating be don« away with, and that an average system be adopted. — Tho proposal on being put to the meeting [ was declared carried. In reply to Mr Maddocks, the chairman said that the capital value of the properties amenable to the maintenance charge this year was £67,6*28. Tho interest rate was a. fixed annual recurring rate of & of a penny in the £. The maintenance oharge depended ! altogether on the requirements, A ' tenth of * penny would have sufficed for the uaat year, and if the expenditure this year did not exceed that of previous years, there would be no maintenance .charge required. The actual expenditure last year was very much lower than for some years past, being only about JQS9. For the year ending March 81, 1896, the expenditure was £74 33 8d; for 1897. £192 15s ; for 1898, £190 8s lid ; and for 1899, i! 119 2s 7<l. The maintenance ch»rjj« last jear was f of a penny in the £. The Rev. Mr Brady proposed th*t & ranger be appointed to look after the race for the ensuing year. He pointed nut that the Pareora settlers r«(juired

tho water, and h« thought that the , races should bo given another chano*, | and a, r»ng«r should b« appointed. He ] did not think (hat it had been given a fair trial. Export expwieno*, advice, ; and opinion had been obtained of a ■ farourable character, and wore thoy, in ; th« face of this going to abandon th« ' V8.69 ? | Mr Btasley had much pleasure in , seconding Mr Brady's motion, thai a : ranger be appointed for the ensuing : year. He maintained that thera was : a considerable amount of water at the ' , lower intake, and he thought that if some works wsre put in thert, an \ ample supply could be obtained. The Rev Mr MackU gave the meet- ! ing the ideas which he bad that day arrived at, after visiting the head works. He was vftry nr.uch disappointed he said in the manner in which 1 the water was nursed or conserved, and the whole of the arrangements at the headworks were disappointing. At i th« lower intake there was a better supply of water, and ha believed that from this place a good supply oould be j obtained, though it would necessitate a considerable expenditure to do the | work thoroughly. He would support Mr Brady's motion for the appointment of a ranger. They should try thu. thing thoroughly, so as to satisfy all parties. ! Mr Stowell said that one would \ thiuk to hear various speakers, that the thing had never been tried, whereas it had been tried for several years. On the vote being taken, MiBrady's motion was declared lost, 23 voting for and 24 against the proposal. Mr Blair said that this praefcically meant that tho race would now be abandoned, and therefei'e he proposed that no new committee be appointed. Mr Brady asked that as his motion had been carried by such a small majority a poll should be taken. * The chairman ruled that thero was no provision for putting the vote -to a poll. The chairman said, in r<>ply to a question, that a committee, if appointed, would have the control and management of all the races, and that committee, subject to the approval of the County Council, would have power to i elect a ranger, irrespective of the , decision of the meeting that '■ night, i Out of eleven names, Messrs \ Beasley, Tooley, Kennedy, Traves '< and Burns received the highest ; show of hands, but a poll being demanded, a ballot was taken, lesulting in the election of Messrs Beaaley, Tooley, Traves, Burns, and Vallance. A cordial^vote of thanks was passed to the chairman, and the meeting tuiminated.