MAYORAL ELECTION.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVI, Issue 2166, 15 April 1908, Page 2

MAYORAL ELECTION.

DR, WILLIAMS’ CANDIDATURE. ADDRESS IN THE THEATRE. Dr. J. W. Williams, who is standing as a candidate for the office of Mayor of Gisborne, opened his _ campaign with a public address in His Majesty s Theatre last evening. Tho lion. Captain Tucker ocoupied tho chair, and thero Was a largo audience. The candidate was listened to with keen attention, and his remarks were frequently applauded. In introducing the candidate, the chairman said that Dr. Williams was not unknown to tho ratepayers of Gisborne; ho had lived among them for many years, and came from a family closely connected with Poverty Bay since Europeans had come to reside there. Whoever succeeded to tho coveted position of Mayor of tho town would nave no easy task to follow in tho footsteps of tho present Mayor, who had served tho ratepayers faithfully and well. He had spared neither time nor trouble, and had sacrificed both his money and liis business for tho benefit of the district. Whoever followed Mr. Townley—and ho trusted it would bo Dr. Williams who would succeed—was for the ratepayers to decide, and he felt uire that tho candidate was worthy of the position, and that when the polling day arrived they would say ho was a fit and proper person to be the chief magistrate of the town. The best testimony that could be -;aid of a man was that nothing was known against him, and ho (the chairman) had never known anything against the character of the doctor. At all elections the voters could expect great promises and professions, but it was easy to promise, and all promises could be kept if the people would only put their hands in their pockets and pay. Dr. Williams had always been a man of progress, and ho was sure that if the ratepayers would only help him in carrying out reforms that a better system of things would soon be brought about. DR. WILLIAMS’ ADDRESS. Dr. Williams,, who, on rising to speak, was greeted with- prolonged applause, said that first of all he must thank those present for coming to hear what ho had to say, and he, in return, would try to make himself dear upon all points. He was not seeking their suffrages for the sake of vainglory or aggrandisement; but he recognised that it was the duty of any public-spirited man to answer the call of his fellow-citizens. The position of Mayor was not one to be lightly sought, as it meant that whoever was elected became the first citizen of Gisborne, which was the highest honor the ratepayers could bestow upon any man. His one desire was to see the place advance until Gisborne became the best regulated and best ordered town in New Zealand. SANITATION.

Tho first question he would deal with was sanitation. When he asked their confidence twelve months ago as a Borough Councillor, he fought the election chiefly upon that question, his one object being to promote a better drainage system. The present drainage of the town was repulsive, out of date, inefficient, and absolutely harmful. There was no provision for dealing with slop water. Those living on the river banks were fortunately able to form drains, but those living in other parts had. to throw the water into their yards to be absorbed by the soil or dried up by the sun. That condition of things was likely to cause pestilence and disease, " and whilst it was a fine thing to be able to cure, it was still better to be able to prevent sickness. Gisborne had tho reputation in some places of being infected with typhoid, and he was sorry to say the statement was founded upon a certain > amount of fact, and the ratepayers should not rest until the stigma had been removed. The only remedy was a reliable and satisfactory drainage system, but it would need to be reliable and satisfactory, for the town wanted a' good system or nono at all. As a Councillor he saw that it was his duty to look around and see what should bo done. He inquired as to what had ben done iii other towns, and found that all had their drainage problems. Auckland had, at great expense, brought out an expert from England to try and solve the difficulty for them, while Christchurch and Dunedin were still grappling with the question. Tho only city m New Zealand that had a. satisfactory drainage system was Wellington, whore the drainage was good, and, in his opinion, the man who put it in know what lie was doing. That man was Mr. Mestayer, and the system was known as the “Shone.” As a Councillor, le (Dr. Williams) made it his first dutv to move that a report bo obtained from Mr. Mestayer. Ho recognised that Gisborne suffered from nianv disadvantages ; it was very fiat, and was almost surrounded by water. A gravitation scheme could not lie brought into use, and the only alternurive was a pumping plant, as embodied in tlio “Shone” system. When the icport was received, lie was nou'icl to admit the cost of tlio work appealed to bo a staggering one; but tho Council had asked lor a report for tlio whole of the Borough—not for a tinkering job, but a work in which tho parts would all dovetail into one another and mako a perfect whole. Mr. Mestayer’s seliemo provided for a population of 30,000, at a. cost of £125,000. Tho town was growing rapidly, but lie (tlio speaker) thought it would be a long time before a population of 30,000 was reached. Thu Council then received a report on a subsidiary scheme to provide lor 15,000 people, at an estimated cost of £83,000, or'perhaps £90,000. This was a large sum of money, and lie. did not favor commencing tho whole of the work at- once, but would prefer to sewer the more congested areas between tho wharves and Roebuck Road.

Dr. Williams exhibited a map, and nxp'aiued at length how the different areas embodied in tho scheme fitted into each other. Continuing, the candidate said it was proposed to sewer the areas Nos. 1,2, and 3, at a cost of £50,000, which sum would also provide for a main outfall sewer sufficient for the drainage of the whole borough. He did not think these areas should he saddled with the whole of the cost of the outfall sewer, but as it would also serve the other areas when they wero connected, the expense should be borne by the whole-borough. He thought the thickly-settled portions of the town should he drained first. It was there the people came to do their shopping and' transact their business, and in the interests of all that portion should be clean and sweet," but at t-Ji? saute time it was

■not fair that these areas should pay * the whole of .tho cost of tho main, sewer, which was to tako the' drainage of tho other areas as well. In a few years, when tho advantage of tho system had been demonstrated, ureas 4, 10, and: 13 would want to bo connected, and areas 1,2,- and 3 could rightly cay. “You would not contribute towards tho cost of tho main sower, and wo will not take you iii.” It would only cost £20,000 to sewer areas 4, 10. and 13 after tho main channel ha<l been constructed, and it was only fair they should ocm- ’ tribute to tho cost of tho work. It would bo cheaper .for thorn to ho included in tho scheme at tho outset than to pay an. increased rate after- 1 wards. In ten yoara’ time areas C, 9, 11, and 14 would want to bo connectod, and 1 ho would suggest a rate iofls in tho £in areas 1,2, and 3, 9d in tho £ in areas 4, 10, and 13*, and 6d in tho £ in areas 5, 9,11, and i 14. If the scheme was undertaken i it would not bo necessary to find : tbo whole of tho money immediatoi ly, and there would ho a saving of > £IOOO a year on tho sanitary con- ; it-act. Tho people alono could decide [ the question of whether tho work [ should be done or not, hut, without ; any egotism/ho claimed to have, as I a Councillor, brought tho indefinite t ideas on drainage to a more con--5 crete form. WATER.

Referring to tho question of water supply, Dr. Williams said it was a matter for regret that so much delay had occurred' in tho completion of tho main pipe contract, which was nearly twelve months’ overduo. The delay was not due to any inactivity ' of tho Council. Since ho had been a member he had used every lever, meeting after meeting, to push the work ahead. Then, lastly, came the catastrophe of tho damage by flood,, but he was pleased to say that the first reports had -been exaggerated, and that repairs could bo effected ia a reasonably short time. They had hoard a good deal about the defects ‘ in the main pipe line, but notwithstanding all bad reports, the supplyhad been a blessing through the long and dry-summer. There were still : many streets to be reticulated. Some of them were new streets not included in the original scheme, but the residents in these streets paid water rates, and should be supplied as soon as possible. The turncock had reported that the cost of mains in these streets would be about £2OOO, and the question of undertaking the work was now being considered by the Council. Water was necessary for all public purposes, and with ak# plentiful supply the town could ho greatly beautified, as, for instance, by erecting a fountain on the river bank or iu the Recreation Ground. STREETS AND ROADS. The difficulty of making good-roads, said the Doctor, was hard to solve. Some of the side streets were in a bad condition, and many roads, chiefly in the west end of the town, were not metalled at all. The question was what was the reason? and | the answer was the difficulty in getting metal to put on the streets. The Council had obtained their supplies from Patutahi at a cost of 14s Gd a yard, “a shocking price,” and the Borough could not- afford largo quantities at that figure. Shingle had been tried, but had been found useless for heavy traffic. A contract had been let for a supply of 5000 yards of Patutahi metal, _ but only 3500 yards could be obtained, as the supply was all absorbed' by the Cook County Council. He thought tho time had arrived when the Borough should obtain a quarry of its own. There was a good site at Waihirere. He bad heard some condemnation of the stone there, but Mr. Gibbona was emphatic, in his opinion that the metal was quite good enough for secondary streets, and other engineers - shared the same opinion. He (the speaker) had, ever since he sat on the Council, advocated the use of ■ this metal, but the right to uso the quarry had been blocked by the title to the land being unsatisfactory. That bad now been settled, and an application made to t-ake a quarry of about 28 acres under the Public' Works Act. Tbe question was what would the metal cost? At the request of the Borough Council Mr. ■ Grant had reported that the Bite 1 ;:'; would cost from £l5O to £2OO, a tramway for about one and a-half miles £1852, and plant- £1765, or a rough total of £3BOO. The cost per yard, allowing for interest and- depreciation on the plant, would be - about 2s lOd, to which must he added railage to Gisborne Is lOd, and spreading from lOd to Is, or a total of not more than 5s 6d per yard. If they could l get good metal at this price it would be a great advantage as compared with paying 14s 6d a yard for Patutahi 6toiie. Even if tbe Cook County- Council built a tramway to Patutahi, the freight would he 3s a yard, which, with the cost_at_the quarry, made a total cost of J s '<l a yard. The quantity of metal at the latter place was limited, and lie would lather see a Borough quarry* at Waihirere, where the Council could have control of tho supply. The footpaths were also in a bad condition, but this was partly through the inability to get a supply of gravel. Why, he could not'say, but tbo fact remained that the gr-arel t not be obtained, and, if elected, ho would use every endeavor to improve the condition of the footpaths.

GAS AND STREET LAMPS. During last yoar seventeen street lamps had been erected, but the Council found that in some places where lamps were needed there were no gas mains, and that brought him to the question of tho municipalisatiou of the gasworks. (Applause.) Looking at the question from a general point of view, it was desirable that the borough should own the gasworks, and though it might not bo possible to at once reduce the price of gas, any profit would go to the ratepayers and could bo well used .in providing more street lamps. The question was worthy of every consideration, and he thought that if tho Council appaiac-h----wl the Gas Company they would fii d tlio shareholders reasonable. Tho Oouncid ’had no powder to 'force a sale, but ho thought that if negofi mons were entered upon, tho worcs con'd bo acquired at a fair and reasonable price. A municipal gas v whs would also ensure a cheap supply of tar, which was greatly needed for form'd' l ' footpaths. “

CHARITABLE A ID. Dr. Williams said lie thought the borough should also find a hr me for chronic and incurable cases which coukl not be received mti tho Hospital, and it was not fair to ask the hospital to take them in tc the exclusion of others. The Ch triable Aid Board should deal with such eases as it did with other patients, even it t rax Provided a house with a small stafi to look after the inmates’ comHo;also thought the advantages of tho Old Men s Homo should bo oxtended to women. There wero not many women who needed a home, but those who dirl should be provided for. I HE OUTER HARBOR, iho oiiieo of Mayor also carried a seat on tlio Gisborne Harbor. Board, but he was of opinion that such a~*' privileges was not good, and that the Board should be elective, Gisborne was handicapped by tho want of a decent harbor, and he asked them to picture wliat the prosperity of the district would be if shipping could bo made more comfortable and easier. Hie Board had good expert advice upon an outer harbor scheme, and ho agreed that a third engineer should be engaged, and full consideration gn en belore any scheme was decided upon. If he was elected he would support the present Board in collecting all the information it was possible to get, and when the scheme was fully considered to leave the question to - the ratepayers to decide, for it was tlio' ratepayers who would have to bear the burden. CONCLUSION. ' In conclusion, Dr. Williams said lie would like to see the reserves made more appropriate _ aud r.r.cful to tlio public, and tbonoio - reserve should bo obtained on the Waimata river where boating rv‘ : r. c <n;l;l "O and picnic. If elected be would “always try to be first in initiating reforms and in helping to carry them out, and would try to be progressive, per- «■* j

QUESTIONS. Asked if he was in favor of leasing fcho Borough reserves on the river bank at Wbataupoko, Dr. Williams said he thought all approaches to the rivor should be free to the people. In reply to a question os to whether ho favored rating upon unimproved values, tho-candidate said it was a question for the ratepayers to (leoido. The system had been adopted in many places, and had its advantages and disadvantages. Ho had novev looked into the question very deeply, but if the ratepayers desired n change the matter should be brought under the notice of the Council.

In reply to other questions, the doctor said that ho did not belong to the prohibition or any other party, though ho was an aclvocato for reform of the liquor trade. Ho thought tho Council had acted wisely in engaging Mr. Hay of Dunedin, to align tho street levels, as tho work would bo done well and cheaply. A number of questions of a humorous nature wore also asked and appropriately answered.

Mr. W. L. Clayton moved that a vote of thanks bo accorded, to Dr. Williams for his address, and said that tho measures advocated proved that tho candidate was a man with progressive ideas. Mr. G. Darton seconded tho motion, which was carried unanimously. A vote of thanks was also tendered to tho chairman, and tho meeting terminated.