Accrington on Rails - The Tramways: A Complete History - Robert Kenyon

on the 3 rd instant, and which were subsequently reported in the Accrington Observer & Times and the Advertiser. His Worship the Mayor on behalf of the Tramways Committee stated to that meeting, that after the Council’s meeting on June 21 st , 1899, at which certain resolutions were passed by the Council, relating to a proposed extension to the lease made by the British Electric Traction Company, a letter was written to the Town Clerk of Rawtenstall on June 26 th , asking when it would be convenient for their Tramway Committee to meet the Tramway Committee of Haslingden in Rawtenstall, and it was only on April 19 th that such an interview took place. On October 7 th last the attention of my Committee was directed to a paragraph in the Accrington Gazette on the tramway question, and on October 11 th a meeting took place in Accrington between representatives of Accrington Corporation and my Tramway Committee, and that at this meeting your representatives gave assurances that nothing would be done by Accrington on the proposed acquisition of the Tramways, or any negotiations entered into by them, without first consulting both Haslingden and Rawtenstall. At this conference the resolution passed by the Council on June 21 st was referred to, and in compliance with the instructions then reached a copy of such a resolution was forwarded to you upon that same date. On November 6 th , a letter was received from you enclosing a print of the proposals of the Tramway Company above referred to, and requesting my Corporation to take the question into consideration from one of the following standpoints, namely – 1. Is your Corporation disposed to join with Rawtenstall and ourselves in a joint purchase of the present Undertaking, each Corporation purchasing the lines in its own District, with a proportionate amount for plant etc? 2. Is your Corporation disposed to waive its powers of purchase for 21 years, in case this Corporation agrees to purchase the whole undertaking and convert the system to Electric Traction? 3. Is your Corporation disposed to waive its powers of purchase for 21 years, in case this Corporation agrees to extend the existing lease? In this same correspondence you also stated that you were prepared to arrange a preliminary conference of small deputations from each Authority in order to compare views, prior to submitting the same to our respective Town Councils. That on November 16 th , my Tramway Committee held a meeting at which the above letter was considered, and the Committee resolved that with regard to query No. 1 they were prepared to accept. However, with queries No. 2 and No 3 they were not prepared to agree. That on November 25 th I wrote asking you to arrange for a Joint Meeting of representatives from the three Authorities concerning this question, and you replied on the 29 th stating that four representatives along with yourself had been appointed to meet the Haslingden and Rawtenstall deputations, and

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