The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1845-11-04 00:00:00

stantly, so could Liverpool. With respect to the allega-
tion in the memorial, that the companies tied practically
refused to supply small houses, unless the owners paid the
water-rent, while in larger houses the tenants paid, thus
drawing an invidious distinction between the occupants
and owners of one description of property and the occu-
pants and owners of another, he maintained that such was
the fact ; and that though the companies allowed 10 per
cent. to landlords for collecting the water rent. they al-
lowed nothing for unoccupied houses, and the landlords
had themselves 5 per cent to pay to their collectors,—re-
ducing the allowance to 5 per cent, and leaving them, in
cases where tenants did not pay, to lose not only their
house-rents, but to pay the water-rent also. He bad to
pay for his cottages whether they were let or empty. He
would not, however, object to all landlords being liable
for the whole of the rates.
Evidence was given as to the fixing of tanks or cisterns
for a better and more regular supply, but the witnesses
were of opinion that in many courts and houses these
could only be fixed over the privies, where the water be-
came noxious and unwholesome, and urged a constant sup-
ply through the pipes. Mr. Walthew recommended " that
the water should be always on; secondly, that a con-
stant stream of water should be turned into the sewers in
dry weather, and a pipe fixed in every court for the pur-
pose of cleansing ; thirdly, that the streets should be
constantly watered ; fourthly, that public baths sliculd be
provided, at a small charge, in all the lower parts of the
town. 'l'o effectuate these objects, it will be necessary
that the local authorities should have the supply in their
own hands altogether, and that they should purchase the
companies. The reason why I come to this conclusion is,
that they are more immediately accountable to public opi-
nion than a company can be. Having no private interest
to serve, no dividends to divide, it would be impossible
for the evils arising from insufficiency of supply ever to
have attained their present magnitude, much less to have
continued so long. Supposing the authorities to have the
powers now suggested, as there is no doubt they eventually
must have, I think the mode of charge by way of rent ob-
jectionable, as it is proved by the cases of people having
their supplies cut off in consequence of non-payment of
the water rent, from poverty or other causes ; the better
plan would be by laying a rate, as is already the case under
the recent local act. I should say that £500,000 would be
sufficient for all pureoses ; this, at four per cent.,
would require £20,000 per year, which would be
raised by a rate of 4d. to sd. in the pound upon all
rateable property ; and as the evils are not confined to the
parish, but extend to the whole of the municipal borough,
1 have included that in this calculation. Chambers' Jour-
nal, p. 131, vol. 1, contains the following remarks, with
which I entirely concur:—" We consider that the princi-
ple
of supplying water to towns by means of private enter-
prise is highly inexpeiient. It ought to be the duty of
the state, or, at least, of the municipality of each town, to
furnish this indispensable element of health to a pent-up
population on a large scale of gratuitous distribution to
the less opulent classes, and at a small charge to those
whose domestic conveniences are more particularly con-
sulted."
The interest of the purchase-money should, the
witnesses thought, be raised by a rate, and the principle
borrowed The corporation has, already, the act, and all
they wanted was to have its provisions extended.
On the 9th day a letter was read from the respective
chairman of four Building Societies, to the effect that
they, too, had memorialized for a better supply of water
for the town, and having been called upon to substantiate
their allegations, begged to say that they considered the
evidence given by the Houseowners' Society rendered it
unnecessary for them to do so.
Mr. Walthew gave long ard principle evidence of the
totally inadequate supply of water in troughs at the quays,
&c., for the great number of horses there employed ; and
also for the cattle imported from Ireland—to the number
last year of 427,000 head—as well as from other places.
" Water," he said, " was dealt out to the poor cattle in
the same way as it was dealt out to the poor people."
On the 10th day of the enquiry a letter was read from
Mr. Harmood Banner to the effect that having received
from tbeSecretary a letterrelative theenquiry, he should call
an early special meeting of the Directors of the Liverpool
and Harrington Water Works. A similar letter was re-
ceived front the Secretary of the Bootle Water Works.
A subsequent letter was also read at the meeting of the
committee on Friday, from Mr. Banner, to the effect that
after the Directors of the Water Works had received the
remainder of the minutes of the proceedings, (what had
gone before having been supplied, as printrd to both com-
L panies,) they would take the whole into their con-

aideration.
Mr. Holmes remarked that he had seen a letter from
Mr. Banner, in the Mercury, with regard to the manner
of supplying courts with water, by means of separate
pipes, stand pipes, or cistern, which differed materially
from the account given from the Houseowners' Guardian
Society—in fact contradicted them entirely.
Towards the close of the inquiry, a long investigation
took place relative to the want of an early supply of
water from the mains of the Harrington Company, during
the late fire in Mr. Seaton's premises, in Pleasant-street.
It appeared that the report sent in from the company, as
to the time when they were apprized of the fire, was con-
trary to that of the officers of police and others, being
styled to be considerably later. The Committee x-
press d great astonishment at the apparent discrepancy of
the Company's report, and further inquiry is to be made
into the circumstance. It appears that had there been a
timely supply of water, the fire would have been arrested
in the first story of the building, which, as it was, was en-
tirely burnt down.
While the Committee were sitting on Friday, it came
out that the same water company had sent in their bills
for their supply of water to the offices of the Commis-
. NV,

sioners

for two years—charging them precisely double the amount
they had previously done.
Finally, it was agreed that 1,600 copies of the pamphlet
under notice should be printed ; that 20 copies should be
sent to each of the water companies, and a copy to each
member of the Highway Board; that the Committee
should adjourn till to-morrow (the sth) to hear 4ny evi-
dence the water companies might adduce, and to prepare
a report of the whole evidence. It was also understood
that any evidence given by the water companies should be
published in a separate pamphlet.