The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-05-13 00:00:00

Xocal mitt pistrid

BOARD OF GUARDIANS.

The weekly meeting of this Board was held on
Thursday; Mr. Granger in the chair. There
were also present :—Messrs Brooks, Rollinson,
Billingham, Baker, Darby, Fereday, Fiddle'',
riflin, Guest, Homes, Higgs, Homer, Hall,
1 lat,kew, Jeffries, P. Pargeter, 'l'. H. Pargeter,
Pearsall, Pateshall, Plant, Paskins, Weston,
Bose, Rhodes, Wright, and White. The min-
utes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.
Admitted into the house during the week, 7;
horn, 0; dead, 1; discharged, 14; remaining,
422. Corresponding week lust year, 406. Out-
door relief, Kingswinford district, £l2 Is 8d ;
Stourbridge district, £24 12s 54d ; lialesowen
district, £25 15s 64d; total, .tO2 Os Bd, against
£9l 10s 10d, last year.
The Clerk read the following letter which be
had received from Miss Rye :

418. Strand, London, 9th May, 1971.

Dear Sir,—l have to thank you for your kind letter of
the 16th of May, informing rue that your Guardians in.
tend committing to my care some ten or twelve children
—orphans—from your Union. Please convey to the
Guardians my thanks for the confidence reposed in me,
and nay that I am starting again for Canada on the let
of June, that I take out only orphan girls, end they
mind be between nine and twelve years of age, both ages
inclusive. Children deserted three yearn to be counted
as orphans. The cost to the parish is from £ll to £l2
each. £4 of this is spent on outfit, box, and rail to
Liverpool. .E 8 is given me for the journey from Liver-
pool into the West, and maintenance of children till
li:eyed. I w.:uld take a child as young as three or four
years if there were two sisters of ages first-named all of
one family.
. . . . _

I enclose a het of clothes required ; also from where
children are coming for my June party.

Believe me, yoUrs faithfully,
MARIA S. RYZ.

The Clerk reported that he had received a
letter from the Public Works Loan Board, in-
forming him that the intereat on the loan of
£1,500 would be due on the 11th of June.

_ ,
It was proposed by Mr. Jeffries, seconded by
Mr. P. Pargeter, and carried unanimously, that
the advertisements of the Board be given to the
sb,urbridyr Obserter.
Messrs. Evans and Smith's contract for ex-
tending the drainage at 3s 61 per yard, at
Wordsley Green, was accepted.
The Chairman said the next business bofore
the Board was Mr. Plant's motion.

Mr. Plant moved, "That although it is clear
that property in general is rated in a more uni-
form way than it was two years ago, this Board
feels itself called upon to impress upon the As-
sessment Committee the propriety of rating all
property according to law." He said the Rate-
payers' Committee were not quite satisfied that
the coal mines were rated properly, and in ac-
cordance with law. It would be remembered
that an arrangement was entered into at Wor.
cester some years ago, when it was decided to
rate coal mines on one-sixth of their value. In-
stead of the proposition being carried out in the
path of Kingswinford, the coal mines were
rated at something like 1-54th part of theii
value. Through the recent agitation which had
taken place the coal mines were now rated at
1-12th. They were all acquainted with the mat-
ter which followed the appointment of Mr.
Meredith, as assessoi, when the Guardians res-
ponded to the appeal of the coalmasters against
their rate at a Special Sessions at Brierley Hill.
A compromise was afterwards entered into, and
the coalmasters were rated upon 1-Bth on the
thick mines, and 1-12th on thin mines, besides
being allowed 15 per cent, off the whole. He
believed Mr. Meredith, previous to the appeal,
fixed the gross rateable value of the whole parish
at £3,600, but the compromise entered into by
the Assessment Committee with the coalmasters
caused a reduction to £lB,OOO. The coalmas-
ters had been taken aghast at the sudden rise in
the rateable value of their mines, but the rate-
payers took the matter up because for many
years the coal mines had been rated after souie
sort of a manner of which no one knew. All
the ratepayers of the parish of Kingewinford
were convinced that the coal mines were not at
present rated according to law, and he therefore
hoped that the Board would fall in with their
wishes.

Mr. Brooks said Mr. Plant had said that all of
the ratepayers of the parish of Kingswinford
were dissatisfied.

Mi. Plant: If I said all—
Mr. Brooks: You said all the ratepayers. I
know this is correct.

Mr. Plant: If I said all, allow me to qualify
it, Eta far as lam concerned. If not all, a very
large majority.
Mr. Paskins seconded the motion.

Mr. Hingham saici—it-;;;FM;;;;:s a very dis-
agreeable business to him to have to propose an
amendment in public matters like the present,
and at that Board where they all ought to be of
one mind, but he had to propose an amendment
to Mr. Plant's proposition, and the amendment
was" That the Board, having confidence in the
Assessment Committee, could give no directions
in this matter."

Mr. Jeffries seconded the amendment, mid
said he should perhaps be forgiven for making a
few observations. He did not appear there as an
agent of the Earl of Dudley, or to represent any
coalmasters, but he was there ae plain William
Jeffries, and he was brought there by the grace
of tied and the will of the people. In reference
to the law upon the rating of coal mines, he said
that it was very clear, but at the same time so
clear as to cause the whole matter to be muddled.
The proper mode of rating coal mines was un-
questionably that of the valuation, Mit at the
same time it was an exceptionto the whole prin-
ciple of rating, as other properties were rate.'
upon an entirely different plan. Manufacturers
tor instance were not rated upon the produce of
their factories, but upon the buildings. The
coalmasters w,.re obliged to divulge the price of
their sales of the coal raised to the surface.
flierefore they were rated upon an entirely dif-
ferent basis. In reference to the compromise
entered into between the Assessment Committee
and the coalinasters, he denie 1 that it was
brought about by a suggestion front the latter.
The 15 per cent, which was allowed them was In
accordenoe with the usual custom, as at one time
they were allowed 20 per cent. He admitted
that some persons massed large sums of money
by the coal trade, of which Mr. Plant was an il-
lustration ; but on the other hand many persons
lost large sums.
Mr. P. Pargeter said if the amendment was
carried, it might go forth to the public that the
committee were not desirous of rating all pro-
perty according to law. There was a resolution
on the minute book similar to the one proposed
by Mr. Plant, and the one now brought forward
wonld simply be a recommendation to the Assess-
' ment Committee. He did not altogether agree
with the resolution, but at the same time be
thought it would be very injudicious on the part
of the Board to adopt the umendment.
. .

Mr. Rollins:)n said if the proper 4 was not
rated according tO law, it was not the fault of
the Assessment Committee, but of Mr. Meredith,
the assessor, who was their servant— (hear,
hear).

Fereday said that Mr. Meredith received
his instructions from the Assessment Committee
as to the manner in which he was to assess the
mines-- hear, hear," and " certainly not.")
Mr. Brooks said he understood the motion of
Mr. Plant as a vote of censure on the Assessment
Committee.
Mr. Plant: No, no.

Mr. Brooke : The Committee have always
done everything to carry out the wishes of the
Ratepayers' Committee. Previous to the agita-
tion brought about by the Committee, the cost
of the Aseeseinent and collection of the rates of
Khunwinford was only -2140, whilst at the pre-
sent time they had two collectors at a salary of
£2lO. Mr. Meredith, the assessor, had .£lOO,
besides expenses which had been incurred by
the appeals, exceeding £2OO.

_
Mr. Plant, in reply, stated that previous to
the increased assessment the coalmasters gave
their returns of the price of the coal at about 4s
per ton, whilst they paid the enormous royalty
of one-third to the Earl of Dudley. He denied
that the motion w.ts a vote of censure upon the
Assessment Committee. His reason for bring-
ing it forward was for the interests of the rate.
payers at large, as well as the coalmasters them-
selves.

Tile Chairman said that at the last meeting,
in adopting the r(port a the Assessment Corn-
they virtually engaged Mr. Meredith for
soother 12 months, and if a fresh valuation was
I) be made by any other person, they would
have to take into consideration what was to be
done in respect to hie appointment.
After a long discussion,