The Welsh Coast Pioneer and Review for North Cambria

Prestatyn Urban District Council The Light Railway. Sunday Observance. Medical Officer's Report. THE monthly meeting of this Council was held on Wednesday evening in the Council Chamber, High-street, Prestatyn. Mr John Jones (Sefton) presided, and was supported by the Rev. Thos. Price, Messrs W. H. Coward, Robert Davies, J. B. Linnell, Goronwy Jones, J. E. L. Jones, John Pritchard, Dr. Griffiths, Messrs Ellis Roberts, Thomas Williams, the clerk (Mr Hughes), and ihe surveyor ("Mr Bell). The Vicar and his Land. AN ALLEGED INSULT. Mr W. H Coward asked whether a plan had been sent to the vicar showing the amount of land required by the Council in Nant Hall- road. The Clerk said he received a plan of the building it was proposed to erect a week ago. He showed it to the vicar, who desired another plan showing the amount of land required, and at five o'clock that evening he received the amended plan. The Rev. T. Price I told you distinctly that I would have no words about this matter. i must have a letter. I considered it an insult this day week to have it brought before me in such a manner. The Chairman explained that that was only a preliminary. He had no doubt the clerk would seid the vicar the necessary letter. < Mr Coward said he would insist upon the matter being carried out in a businesslike man- ner. He sympathised with the chairman very much in the way some of the official business was being carried out. The Chairman, addressing the surveyor, asked the reason of the delay in preparing the neces- sary plans for the vicar. Complaints were con- tinually being made about the same thing, and he HOPED THE SURVEYOR WOULD EXPLAIN the delay in presenting these plans. IVork of this description could be done in a few minutes. The Surveyor said his plan was sent in a week ago. The vicar then required a small block plan showing the same thing over again, and he had had no time to do it before that day. The Vicar asked the surveyor how he made out that 300 square yards were required, and who authorised him to ask for that number of yards? The Surveyor It was 200, sir. The Vicar You mentioned 300 to me. Mr Coward said he could not see how 200 yards were required. It was only a two-storey building, and, therefore, only i feet were neces- sary. The Vicar I distinctly say I shall not give 200 or 300 yards. The Chairman thought the discussion had better stop there. The vicar distinctly said he would require a letter and plan to be sent to him, and he hoped they would be sent to him in the usual way, and probably the vicar would send a formal reply. Re=appointment of Medical Officer. The Public Health Committee recommended that the Council reappoint Dr. Lloyd Roberts medical officer of health for the Prestatyn Ur- ban District at a salary of 620 per annum, and that the appointment be permanent, to com- mence on the 20th of March, 1900. Dr. Griffiths proposed that the recommenda- tion be not adopted. If the Council carried out the suggestion they would lose, to a certain degree, their hold over the medical officer as a servant. In case of any misconduct on his part they would have to satisfy the Local Govern- ment Board that such misconduct had occurred before the higher Board would sanction his dis- missal. If he was appointed every year he would be under the complete control of the Council, and they could discharge him after the usual notice. He did not say a word against Dr Roberts personally.. He was one of the best medical officers in the country aiid he hoped they would hay-e him as an officer for many years to come. (Hear, hear.) After a short discussion the committee's re- commendation was carried by six votes to two. The Light Railway between Prestatyn and Rhyl. SUNDAY OBSERVANCE. The Road Committee reported that a letter was received from the Board of Trade with res- pect to the memorial sent by the Council on the 23rd of May last, asking them to restrict the Sunday service of trains to one or two trains each way, and asking whether the Council per- sisted- in their request. If so, the Board of Trade would be ready to receive a deputation from the Council in support of the memorial.— After some consideration, the committee re- solved to recommefid the Council to send a deputation. Mr Roberts proposed the adoption of the re- commendation. Mr J. E. L. Jones seconded. He said there were only three members present, and each con- sidered that a full service of trains on Sunday would be detrimental to the place. Therefore, in the interests of the town, they decided that the memorial should be pressed forward. Mr Coward thought the noise and racket created by the char-a-bancs and brakes going backwards and forwards along the road on Sun- day, in the height of the summer, was a bigger nuisance than even the light railway would prove. The noise they made in front of his house was something awful, and he preferred the lesser of the two evils. He considered a light railway would PROVE A CAPITAL ADVERTISEMENT. In hundreds of cases the head of the family was only able to come down on a Saturday, and would stay till Monday, and then return to business.. Well, they did not want to stay in on Sunday. They wished to see the country, and what Ojifned out a neighbourhood more than a railway ■ Mr .Davies asked whether the memorial from the Council was signed and sealed. The Chairman Yes, 'it was, but not until I came into the chair. I found it unsigned, and I made good the omission at once. Mr Coward It is all right, but when I was chairman, my conscience would not allow me to sign it. The Chairman: It is not a question of con- science. No gentleman has a right to be in the chair if his t onscience prevents him carrying out the resolutions of the Council. Mr Davies said they were anxious to confine the number of trains on the light railway to the same numberl as was run by the North-Western at present, one or two morning and evening each way. Many of their visitors from Man- chester and Liverpool came there in search of peace and quietness, after the bustle and tur- moil of the larger cities, and if frequent trips were allowed along the light railway it would bring the place into disrepute. The means of desecrating the Sabbath, and facilities for drink- ing were only too ample in Prestatyn at the pre-ent moment, and if frequent trains were run up and down the line it would ADD TO THE MISCHIEF, which was already rampant.. Could not counsel or a solicitor represent them before the Board of Trade? He hoped he, would never see the day when trips were run between the two towns. Mr Coward We have them now. Mr J. B. Linnell opposed the recommendation of the committee. They ought to do all that lay in their power to encourage the promoters of the light railway. It was the only thing that was likely to improve the town, and he understood that if the company was prevented from running Sunday trains the scheme would not be carried through. It was a moral impossibility to keep young people in the house, -and of the two evils, brakes or the railway, let them choose the lesser. Dr Griffiths approached the matter from a wider standpoint. As to the question of Sunday drinking, they were better off than any country except Scotland. They had the Sunday Closing Act, which some people said had been a failure. He did not think it had been a failure. The greatest flaw in the Act was the three mile limit, which ought to be extended, and which would ultimately lead to a general adoption of the six day licence. That would draw an immense amount of good to the country at large. A tram- way along the sea shore was, perhaps, a good thing, but there were two sides to every ques- tion. If these trains were run as suggested, they wuld compete with the railway company, which meant nothing less than an interchange of loafers, and people with SATURDAY NIGHT HEADACHES coming to Prestatyn. (Laughter.) Perhaps a committee could take the matter into further consideration. Mr Goronwy Jones said it was entirely a ques- tion of Sunday observance, which was a very important matter. In this enlightened age they were obliged to look upon these matters in a much broader and more advanced spirit. They no longer existed under the hard and fast lines of the Mosaic dispensation and the Old Testa- ment precepts. But there was no doubt that under those lines lay some very important prin- ciples that had much to do with the welfare of mankind, both physically and morally, and whether it was a nation or an individual who failed to follow those principles, history told them that they suffered in consequence. Not long since,Lord Salisbury referred to the nations of this world, and divided them into two classes, living and dying, and although in the latter category he did not mention names, it was easy to see that the country he referred to was France. History told them that that country was a dying nation. The number of deaths were greater than the number of births every vear. Within the last ten years the standard of the army had been lowered twice because the men were growing smaller. The reason of all this deterioration was the everlasting restless- ness of the nation and more especially its vio- lation of the great principle of Sunday obser- vance. He should be sorry to see the day when they had A CONTINENTAL SUNDAY IN WALES. (Hear, hear.) He trusted the Council, at all costs, would uphold the committee's recom- mendation. The Vicar said the main question was either the desecration or the keeping of the Sabbath. Everyone who had watched the brakes coming from Rhyl on Sunday in the summer could not help but feel that they were an annoyance and a nuisance to the place. Therefore, he could not help thinking, if they could get a service of one or two trains each way on Sunday, that it would do away to a certain extent with much of the objectionable vehicular traffic. Mr Pritchard thought the light railway would do away with the brakes on a Sunday. If Rhyl was not objecting to the light railway running trains on Sunday, he did not see why they should object because it would be more advan- tageous to them than to Rhyl. A lot of talk was indulged in about the Sunday drinking at Prestatyn. He was afraid some Prestatyn people ran down their own town too much. He considered it was one of the most moderate places in Wales. They very seldom saw a drunken man in Prestatyn who belonged to the place, and as a matter of fact, there was very little drunkenness in the town. They could not help strangers coming there and getting fuddled. (Laughter.) Mr Thos. Williams said the brakes would con- tinue to come, even if the light railway ran a full service of trains on Sunday. People liked to ride in the open air during the summer, and those people who came here in railway carri- ages simply came for pleasure. He was AGAINST A DEPUTATION going to London on account of the expense, but he would rather two deputations went than lose their point. The Chairman expressed pleasure at the ques- tion being so well ventilated, and then referred to the fact that on some questions certain gen- tlemen would not vote. Such a procedure was not right or fair to their constituents to send them to vote on the different questions that came up. Every councillor should exercise his right to vote. With regard to the light railway ques- tion, he did not care whether it was going to make or unmake Prestatyn, he would have the courage of his convictions and vote for the re- commendation. He endorsed what Mr Pritchard and Mr Coward said as to the future of Pres- tatvn, but he failed to see that the interests of the town were bound up in bringing a lot of rag-a-muffins and bobtail into the place. (Laugh-, ter.) He had never brought a charge against Prestatyn people, but the policeman informed him that it was impossible for him to accom- plish the work of a dozen policemen. The drunkenness in the town was very great. Why put the light railway up, and all the riff-raff from Vale-road out for a suburban treat, 2d each way-(laughter)-would be in the town. For the morality of the place and in the INTERESTS OF THE CHILDREN and their women folk, they should vote for the recommendation of the committee. On a division six voted for the recommenda- tion and five, against The names were: For the recommendation, the Chairman, Messrs Robert Davies, Goronwy Jones, J. E. L. Jones, Ellis Roberts, Thomas Williams: and against, Dr. Griffith, Messrs J. B. Linnell, W. H. Coward, Rev. T. Price, and Pntchard. The question as to who should form the depu- tation was then discussed. Dr. Griffith proposed that all those members who had not been on previous deputations should go. (Laughter.) Eventually it was decided that Messrs Robert JDavies and J. E. L. Jones should be the depu- tation, their allowance to be £ 4 for three days. The Health of the Town. SUGGESTED IMPROVEMENTS. Dr. Lloyd Roberts reported that during the year 1899, 23 births and T3 deaths were regis- tered in the district. Numerically, these were both fewer than during the previous year. The birth-rate was 21.6, and the death-rate 12.2 per 1000 persons, as compared with 26.6 and 21.8 respectively during the previous year. The greatest number of deaths occurred during the 4ge period of 25 and 65 years. To a rising sea- side resort like Prestatyn it was an important thing that 15.3 per cent. of the deaths was due to tuberculosis, though the percentage was but little in advance of what prevailed in the sur- rounding district. No cases of infectious diseases were notified. There was but little ad- vance to record in the sanitary progress of the district. The inspector had used due vigilance and industry in dealing with nuisances. The work of the sanitary department had been some- what delayed owing to the fact that the loan for sewer extensions had not been secured. During the coming year more frequent pumping should be carried out at the sewer outfall tank to avoid waterlogging in the outfall sewer. The conver- sion of privies into w.c.'s should be pushed on with as much haste as possible, and all house connections with the main drain should be com- pleted at an early date. The condition of the canal cut was not satisfactory. With regard to the water supply, the medical officer reported that the company had converted one of the tanks at the source of supply into a filtering bed, which, however, was very small. He suggested the providing of a larger water tank to contain a few days' supply. Extensions of the water mains were wanted eastwards as well as west- wards. With regard to the slaughterhouse ques- tion, he suggested the erection of a public abat- toir, and he urged a careful inspection of dairies and cowsheds. Dr. Roberts said he would be glad to see the adoption of the Workmen's Dwellings Act, as some of the present houses were unsuitable for occupation, and these should be closed. Adequate accommodation should also be provided to prevent overcrowd- ing. A vote of thanks was accorded to the medical officer for his report. Dr. Griffiths hoped that some of the sugges- tions would be carried out.