ANNUAL ADDRESS. VII. 



Turning from this side of the question to the other, viz., by the 

 employment of a properly qualified man who, having a reputation 

 to lose, is not likely to place his Council or himself in an 

 invidious position with the general ratepayer, there is an old 

 saying that the cheapest things are not always the best, and this 

 holds good in municipal engineering as in domestic or commercial 

 life. It might be said that a local body could not afford to pay 

 a professional man for his continual services ; this may be the 

 case with many bodies, but does not prevent retaining the 

 services of a qualified man to advise the local body in matters of 

 import. It is not rarely the case that most important matters are 

 left to the judgment of men, who may be thorough tradesmen in 

 their particular lines, but have not been trained in the fundamental 

 principles which govern the very case upon which they are advis- 

 ing one, and owing to the ignorance of these principles work has 

 been carried out which could only be characterised as absolute 

 waste. Had an experienced and qualified man been employed 

 the dangers would have been anticipated and provided for. In 

 such cases efficiency and economy would have been secured, and 

 this is an instance where municipal engineering interests the 

 ratepayer. 



In sketching an ideal municipal government in its relation to 

 engineering we must seek for models in Great Britain, which is 

 beyond all doubt the home of municipal government in its highest 

 sense. In Great Britain the municipal engineer and surveyor 

 holds a high position, and the duties are so varied and embrace 

 so many items of administrative and constructive work, that a 

 large amount of time would be required to deal with them in 

 their entirety. 



The last annual report of the Local Government Board shews 

 that since 1871 the local authorities have incurred upon the 

 strength of their borrowing powers an indebtedness of £150,000,000 

 for sanitary works and other improvements. This vast sum is in 

 addition to and quite independent of, the annual cost of works 

 defrayed from current expenditure. The amount of loans sane- 



