A very powerful opposition was raised against the scheme. A memorial,
very numerously signed, was presented to the board of health against it.
Public meetings were held at which the whole thing was condemned as
unnecessary, expensive, and likely to be a failure. Eventually, after
much discussion, with a large minority against it, and in opposition to
the opinions of the citizens expressed in common hall, the board resolved
to carry out the scheme, and the works are now in progress. The general
plan is to construct two main drains, one on each side of the river
Wensum, to intercept the sewage and to carry it to Trowse, where a
pumping station has been erected, and engines will be set to work to pump
all the sewage over the land hired at Crown Point estate.
The drainage expenditure, though so enormous, has been only a part of the
expenditure of the board, upon which the duty falls of repairing all the
streets and roads, lighting, watering, &c. In the first half year of
1867, the estimated expenditure was as follows:—
£ _s._ _d._
Repairs to streets and roads 2008 7 0
Lighting the same 1776 11 9
Salaries 442 1 5
Sundries 475 5 6
Interest on loans 1336 16 0
Interest on bonds 372 0 0
£6411 1 8
Twice that sum would be £12,822 3s. 4d. for the year, quite irrespective
of the drainage works.
The annual abstract of the accounts of the board issued in 1867, shows
the receipts and payments from September 1st, 1866, to September 1st,
1867. The receipts amounted to £15,873 3s. 6d., the payments to £15,323
18s. 2d., which sum included £1204 16s. 7d. sewage expenses, (chiefly law
charges). Of course the receipts were derived almost entirely from the
half-yearly rates. The expenditure included £3314 9s. 8d. for interest,
the rest being for repairs to streets and roads, paving, lighting,
sewerage works, salaries, &c.
Mr. Morant, the present able engineer to the Board of Health, made his
first annual report in May, 1867, and showed the expenditure in his
department for the year preceding April 5th, 1867, to be as follows:—
£ _s._ _d._
Repairs to roads 2192 4 11
Paving 870 0 0
Sewers 576 2 2
Urinals 86 13 0
£3725 0 1
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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