The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1880-06-05 00:00:00

DUDLEY TOWN COUNCIL.

A. monthly meeting of this Council was held on
Tuesday, wen the Mayor (Mr. U. M. Wainwright)
presided.
A letter was read which the Mayor hld received
from the Mayor of Walsall soliciting sun •criotions
for the famities of the men killed and maim by
the recent boiler explosion. _ .

Alderman Wilkinson urged that a hearty response
should be given; and on the motion of the Mayor
a committee was appointed to take steps for obtain-
ing subscriptions.
The Officer of Health (Dr. Timmins) reported
that the gen-r 4 health of the borough was &Aid.
factory. During the month the number of deaths
had been 76, and of births 186. The death-rate was
16-9, HS against 20.3 in the corresponding month
last year. The birth rate was 41.4.
Mr. Challingsworth said the report as to the
health of the borough was a inattr for congratulation.
Ile found from the Re7isA,tr-Genet.al's returns that
out of twenty-four of the largest towns of England
the death-rare of Dudley was the lowest, with the
exce.tion of Portsmouth.
In m.;ving the adoption of the Streets and Gas
Cotninittee, Alderman George Bagott called atten,
tion to the large char4-es made by the South Staf •
fordshire Waterworks Company for meter rent. He
found that in •otne iostanc,s only Is. 2d. had been
pail f6r water, and as much ci.s Bs. for meter rent.
In other eases 2s. d. and 3s. 6d. were paid for
w;_ter, an,i Bs. for meter rent. Whilst the total
sun of £l4 Bs. 2d. had been paid for water, the
charge for meter rent was £8 2s. 6d.
Mr. Sheward urged that Holly Hall and Wood—
side should be placed un the same footing as
Netherton and Dudley as regarded sewers and gas
lamps _ _

Alderman North and Mr. R. N. Hall spoke in sup-
port of the suggestion, and the l'own Clerk said the
matter should be brought to the notice of the
committee at their next meeting.
Alderman George Bagott moved a resolution to
the effe,t that the Town Clerk be authorised to pro-
ceed with the case against the Gas Company.
Mr. Round seeonied the motion.

Alderman Dunn advised caution in ti atter,
and tnougnt it might be worth considering whether
a compromise could not be made.
Alderman Th ,mpson hoped the Council would
avoid expensive and protracted litigation.
The Mayor said there would neither be a costly
nor a prot:neted application t the Queen's Bencia
in order to obtain the opinion of the Court upon the
else about to be submitced to them It was a ,hort
and comparatively inexpensive process, and they
would get the opinion of a higher Court upon a
matter of the very greatest importance to that town
—(hear, hear). Ile thought Mr. Round was quite
right in anti dpaing a reduction in the price of gas.
As he understo.,d the reading of the Act of Parlia-
ment, the account that htd been furnished was
upon the principal laid down inthe Act 1871. There
w.is a large sum n of money in the hands of the Gas
Company w-Lich ought to have been applied to the
dimtnulion of the gas expenses, and what that
amount of money might be could only be estimated
by the production of accounts. Another important
matter which would appear from the accounts was
the amount of capital. Some of them thought—and
he, for one—that they had raised without proper
Parliamentary authority a very considerable ',slim
of tnoney indeed. Upon their original capital the
Gas Company were entitled to 10 per cent., but upon
taty atmunt of money which had been improperlY
raised they were not etitill,d to 10 per cent., and it
might be questioned whether they were entitled to
anything—(hear, bear). But for all those purposes
the accounts were absolately neceSsary. The
company were authwised by law, after maldfig
provision for the mainten Ince of their works, to
pay 10 per cent, upon such part of their capital as
they were entitled to receive, anl after that they
had no right to put by money as they had been
dt,ing ; but they were bound then to reduce their
rat, s, and to give the benefit to the gas cc:rummers,
therefore, desiring to involve the Corporation
in a long and expensive career of litigation, he had
no he itation in sa.yiug that it was a mat ter of
importance to every g Is c .nßumer that. the question
wnich had been raised should be tried out before
the Court of Queen's Bench—(applause).
The resolution was then passed.