To the Baitor of the "Normi-Ciuya Day News"
'Sm—Your correspondent Ecoxoaty his recent etter' concerning. that colossal extravagance, the Murlcipal Orchestre, ts probably. voleing the direct and tndirec taxpayers, The high-brows responsible for. is retention in. years post may have left the ely and T suggest that a public referendum be taken, To refer this matter again to. the annual meeting or ratepayers - leaves the views of {hose thousands of taxpayers" sill denied their vote, Unexpressed, "An orchestra of this Ind should be self-supporting and at the most only a small charge "on the come munity, This "orchestra's corning capacity outside the usual. concerts is negligible and therefore, for years {thes been a heavy drain of the Haxpayer and one" which has never been fustiied by the support given I by the foreign public of the Inter national Settlement. More than two: {hlrds of the persons all ending' the Sunday concerts come from outside the 'Settlement, The town's musical education could be setisted by any fiscal (ype of brass band of Salon orchestra and anything' more ex: pensive is wasteful and unnecessary, Sixty thousand dollars would meet the expense of running brass band for. the 'Recreation [Ground and 'a. Salon "Orchestra for Jesseld Park, say for six. sume mer months, playing every' evening from 8 to 7 "and 9 to li, Winter music could be left to private enter= prise.
Tt wilt be a pity to break up a Jconcern which has cost so much to create, but these times call for ruthless economies, Whilst on the subject of economy, municipal servants should realize that they have so far not been called upon to suffer very much, they have Jaot been sacked, home leave, passages, and all the odds and ends of privileges they have been accustomed to have not been withdrawn, The Jdisaster which has befallen hundreds Jot their friends net in the Municipal service must be known to them, }They are lucky in their state and therefore, it behoves them to give the public continued efficient service without grow! or grumble.. Something is happening in this city of ours and it looks to me as if it can traced to grumpy and dissatisfied service on the part of the servants of the public, Never have we seen such thy sidewalks and roads, Never have the approach passages to residential compounds been 80 thoroughly disgusting, Fiithy rick-Jshaws are now the only kind obtainable. Trams and buses are 50 rickety-rackety that it is nerve-shattering 40 ride In them. Beggars, thousands of them, now not only si Jon our sidewalks but actually accost and lay hands on pedestrians, and the roads, which at one time were the pride of the city, are now fast approaching the conditions usually noticed in a small Chinese town, Tt may be well to consider at this time that we are heading for a last round-up, and the public, parti-Jcularly the foreign public, are fedlup to the teeth. "All of us have had Jenough of the pin-pricks and insults of the recent months and if we are to have increased taxation coupled witha grouchy public service, it will create trouble, The Counei's job is one of ruth= ess economy, absolute efficiency at minimum cost to the ratepayers, New candidates should only be supported providing they are pledged to these.
Zaria, [Shanghai, Mar, 2.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.