GAS COOKING STOVES.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11644, 23 August 1905, Page 5

GAS COOKING STOVES.

Proposals of the Gas Engineer.

At last night's meeting of the Borough Council, the. following suggestions were read from the Gas Engineer, Mr Geo. Smithies: —

The Chairman, Lighting- Committee. — Sir, Re .Gas-cooking stoves. I propose, with th© consent of your committee to take special steps- to increase the output of ga3 during the summer months, and in that way to make "better use of fixed charges on capital and labour accounts. • Cooking by 'gas is not nearly so general in Wanganui as, in my opinion, it should be. The reason being that the first cost of installing a cooker • prevents many who wish to use gas from going into the matter. lam satisfied that it wo.xtld pay us to -follow in the steps of many large gas . undertakings in Great Britain . by renting but suitable cookers at a. purely nominal rental. We stock cookers ranging in cost' from £3 10s to «£7 10s; ,the average cost of fixing is about 25s each cooker". I recommend that cookers costing not more than £3 10s, plus cost of fixing, b© rented out on the following conditions: — 1. The cooker is to be supplied and fixed free of cost. Where cost' of fixing exceeds 25s the additional cost to be. borne by the r consumer. 2. Rent shall be charged only where the consumption of gas for cooker alone falls ' below 3000 cubic feet ■ " per quarter. The rent chargeable in this case to..be. five shillings

-per "quarter.- ' 3. " Hire agreements i:o~-be" signed providing for cost of repair of damage to cooker, other than fair wear and tear, and binding the consumer to pay the rental fixed if same becomes payable, with such other provisions as may be necessary. For an oiitlay of .£SOO about 105 of such cookers could be fixed. payable average consumption would-be ' 1500 feet per cooker per month, or 18,000 feet per annum. This, at 5s per thousand feet, would bring in ,£472 por ' annitm'.' We could well afford to place dfilOO per annum towards' capital cost. I may say that the Board of Trade returns show that many works in England, in towns little bigger than Wanganui, have as many as one thousand cookers out in use on terms similar to the above. The more expensive cookers, however, should be sold for cash. The MAYOR said Mr Smithies was to be commended for having brought the matters before the Council, and; it was undoubted-, ly a step in the- right direction. The adoption of his suggestions practically meant, that people would" get' cookers free of cost, the qnly condition ibeing that a certain amount of gas was consumed. Cr BATTLE thought that the more expensive cookers should not be installed free, but sold by instalments. Mr SMITHIES explained that he did not intend that expensive cookers should bs hired.

On the motion of the" MAYOR, seconded by Cr Caiman, it was resolved that the Gas Engineer's recommendations be given effect to.