New-York tribune., 1906-04-30
HIGH ENGLISH RATES
HoS0 Municipal O'rnership Work, !,
the Black Country.
Wolverha,,+o

/ but the local officials are sensitive s1.iea,
| anxious 70 explain 1t away as the consa.-- : @ad
| peculiar conditions which were ,,,a---,.
"oIVerhampton has experimental larvol-
ne" munlclpal policies. OF the No. s,a "a
tl156,S12, as much f667. .425 renr.,..s- -'o'
/ are known as reproductive undertati,.,- "n~s
Wheh the rate year ago was lbs "a :"
/ prohts from municipal ownership avau.SI- ns
l's REDUCTION were only equivalent to PA ~ 'F
| were drawn from a single source I. -Nsss
system Of markets. This was a noeao.. -pe'or I1'
Tor so large an investment Of CAPITAL :, e'a usa
services OF various kinds The corr,-..,. p.oHc
not own the gas supply nor the oernata-s-- uOss
In other respects it is in line with the 0ut
gressfve municipalities in England and -, p'o~
| IL owns the water and electricity s,ro,,- T. l.
operates the electric tramways: 1t cond,,cts =
| lic library art museum and art school. a.
trols markets and baths and It has in,ros..D.
scientific methods OF treating sewage a.
stroying refuse With all this enerpv -
ought 10 De substantial relief for ratA,.-.
from the management Of municipal sarvo.-
| The local authorities admit this 80
pec' 10 save penny this year by contr;hu.
ton to the rates from the eectr,ci,,,
Ihey might 90 more If they were less serum
lous In charging the reserve for deter,or.,.p-,.
"
succeeded in reducing the local rata tbI, -.
Us. 3D.. but the assessments have - "
creased on ratable property there ia No -.',-.
from the burdens of taxation. y-o1,,.-to---. s1
with all it's enlightened progress n. +ba, -.
local government, points tho moral FOR -,
cans that municipal ownership. while n ma, !.
justified on public grounds. is NOT nsca.s.-,..
source Of profit available for the re5uct,o, -
taxation.
The high rate in this town Is not car..a -
municipal trading in any form The trarvv.,'
electricity and water services are self-susta,,t.
and pay full interest on the capital fnvestaa !.
them. Municipal ownership may be onIv MAJ
erately profitable. but no deficits in ousra,,r,
expenses or defaults IN interest and s,rE,,.
fund payments are put back on the rates cra-
half OF the excessive local rate is fully sccou,+.s
for by increased expenditures for education a,
abnormal outlay for warehouses and outsoo-
relief and the clearance OF disease breas,ny
slums. A large share OF the remaining halt,
taken up with sewage, scavengering and drain.
age management. which has been attended with
exceptional difficulty and expense Wolvap.
hampton has one OF the highest poor rates IN ira
kingdom-within half-penny OF three shiIinza
and not far from third OF the total taxation
The burdens Of pauperism. moreover. have bean
temporarily increased by the building Of new
and superior workhouses. The cost OF education
here as elsewhere in England has been raised by
throwing the voluntary schools back upon the
rates. What was q denoninationaI Is now
public charge. and It cannot be kept down when
so many of the new schools 20 be provided for
need to be enlarged and improved The clear
ance Of the unsanitary area around ST Peters
Church in the centre OF the town has been
costly work. for which taxes have been paid FOR
long period: and the burden has still to be car
ried. 1t has been a great public work. which
has given the town one OF the lowest In pacs
of one OF the highest death rates In the king
dom: and IL has transformed the appearance u
the city, making the ugIiest and most sQuagd
section the most ornamental and attractive As
the properties condemned were either sold ont
right reserved for broad avenues. park spaces
or public buildings. there was no provision for
the future enrichment OF the town by rsver
sions at the expiration OF long leases. Il the
charges upon taxpayers have been serious thss
have received full value for their money in an
Improvement as necessary as II is splendid
The remaining source Of high taxation in hi,
industrial centre Of over 100000 population has
been the drainage. The problem was difficult
one even when the population was unimportaul
shed between Bristol Channel and the Humber
and small brook did not have water enough to
carry OF the sewage AS the population IN
creased and various metallic trades became
prominent, the eff1uent OF the sewage works
and farms became a cesspool OF pollution. ard /
the corporation was involved IN htigations aa
in costly schemes for purifying refuse Ins
veteran Town Clerk Mr.. Brevitt. Is eloquent
when he recounts the exciting events OF taas
desperate campaign when the corporation was
forced to appeal to Parliament for power %
violate the law respecting the pollution q
streams and TO disregard tntunctons gran'so
by the courts In the end the corporation u
urnphed in Parliament and IN the courts 0e' j
was under obligations to exhaust the resouf,''
OF chemical science and local authority n 20
treatment OF sewage tainted py acids anu "
posits in galvanized iron manuracturs ~
difficulties of waste pickle in scores or thos' lA
tories and of the snaIIness OF the brook mo
which the efluent from the sewage worAS -
charged have been overcome by a sEsl'-' !
rain water drains By precipitation processes y
absolute precision, by a sIudge-pressing piahse~
pable of producing 100 tons weekly anu !.
an enlargement OF the sewage farm AL ul's
measures have been completely SUCCESSIVE
the council is now free from htigauoh OsS-
brook and In the possession OF the hlost 80. -.
sewage plant In England. The most 'iiP'-- 80 \
industry of the town has not been oEi'0D -
by rigorous regulations. and the draliS's0 =. i
lem has been worked out with sa'isla''O - 5
suits. The construction and lnaii'eN-
these works have been costly, even "le'' s-,.,
mics are practised as in the use oi So .l.,-
the refuse Instructors in the geheIs'tOl- sasv-
trio power: and the taxpayers have DeeH ,s.ss. e
expenditures If Mr.. Bevitt who has Nas
important part In the mai'as0-',. ,or,ns :
complex affair. had not been d $50. - sorcs 4
as we'll as an administrator OF exceV''ON- ,,,s
of character. he would have oeen W."