The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. TUESDAY, JULY 30, 1912.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXX, Issue 3588, 30 July 1912, Page 4

The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. TUESDAY, JULY 30, 1912.

As so much has been kept back from . the ratepay-

What the Ratepayers Should Know._

ers with reference to the progress of

the electrical scheme, we feel that a few interesting facts and figures on the subject will be generally appreciated. What makes the occasion all the more opportune* is, of course, the circumstance that it is proposed that,the payers of rates should, to-morrow, authorise the raising of a further loan to assist the undertaking. In this regard the position is that, originally, the sum of £10,120 was voted to provide an electrical system for the town. When that amount proved inadequate a supplementary loan of £IOOO was raised without the necessity of consulting the ratepayers. To this total of £17,720 it is now proposed that an additional sum of £15,000 should be

authorised, making, if approved, an aggregate sum of £32,700 that would ho involved in the concern. As it stands to-day, the financial needs of the system, it is estimated, reach double the amount, then, that was requested in the first place! Now for a great part of the information with regard to the scheme which is at the disposal of the ratepayers, they have to thank Mr Buswell, the Electrical Engineer, who, it will be recalled, submitted a report upon it to the latest meeting of the Borough Council. What impressed everybody most in the' matter was no doubt the fact, despite the official claims on the subject, that the amount of patronage which has so far been extended to the concern must be regarded as far from gratifying. The total number of connections to ’July 9, it seems, was only 61, whilst the number of other applications in view within the present area was given at only 48! As one of the “City Fathers” said: Fancy only fifteen connections in Gladstone Road! It should be added, however, that Mr Buswell said that if applications outside the present area were taken into consideration it would mean that the number of prospective consumers would be more than doubled. Taking his figures, then, it appears that the total applicants, connected and unconnected, i each only about 160. And on top of this Mr Buswell says that “a very complete and extensive canvass was made prior to the installation of the system!” It is interesting to note in this regard that as far back as November 1 last—some nine- months ago—Mr Metcalfe was requested to report on the system. He said in his report, it may be recalled, that so far two hundred and twenty-two customers had, at that date, applied for connection, and further applications for at least as many more again were expected—it is clear, lie thought in the then immediate future! Under the circumstances, Mr Metcalfe, it is evident, cannot be blamed for advising that the plant should straightaway be increased. But it would be interesting to Enow all the same from whom he got his information In view of the proposal to raise another loan one would have thought that the authorities would surely have been able to present a much more encouraging report? Notwithstanding what !Mr Buswell or anybody else may say, the general opinion must be that far too little attention has been given to the question of canvassing. The canvass to which he alludes will not have been forgotten, as it must have appeared to most people as being of a more or less perfunctory character. What Mr Busj well should have demonstrated was that those responsible for the conduct of the undertaking could guarantee that the proposed extensions would bo profitable. Upon the present occasion we do not intend to again touch on the waste that has been attendant upon the institution of the scheme, excepting to say that it will be generally trusted that the errors of erecting such unusually heavy posts in side streets, etc., etc., will not be repeated. Nor do we intend to re-diseuss on this occasion the need for the adoption of a more popular system of charging, for it is plain that something will be done in the matter. Whether the small consumer of electric light is any better or worse off than the small consumer of gas—a point that \yas raised in these columns recently—may now be left to the rival concerns to fightout. There is one point, however, and that is that under the present system of charging for the electric light the tendency must be for consumers to instal as few lights as possible. The real position, then, in regard to the scheme, is that the results to date ! must he considered hs very, very j disappointing. Without a dcubt, j the department is short of nia- | terial, but the “City Fathers” have certainly not helped the chances of the loan by including in the requirements a stand-by engine when it is not necessary to use the present plant to a greater extent than one sixth of its capacity, and furthermore that Mr Buswell himself does not suggest that the estimated demand will exceed the capacity of the present generating plant “for about one year lienee!” In order that they may be in a position to judge whether the best results that were possible' have so far been.realised, the ratepayers, we feel, should know how the concern stands t-o-dav from a financial aspect. We can make the position for the current year clear in this way: Estimated charges: Interest on outlay to date £BB7 ; depreciation (say) £BOO ; maintenance and renewals (say) £400; salaries (as per list) £1317 ; and material, fuel, etc., £6OO, total £4084. On the other hand it is estimated by the borough authorities that the revenue from the electric scheme (presumably from all sources) will be only £750, unless of course the estimate in this instance is also wrong. Perhaps'in this instance also the Mayor will prefer to remain silent?