PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 293, 13 December 1887, Page 2

PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

The Hon. E. Mitchelson delivered the Public Works Statement in the House of Repre. sentativeS last evening. The summary we gave yesterday, however, enumerated its more important features. Wβ' give in greater detail below tho points most interesting to Auckland. Ne-W Ssaland Kaflways. The total- length of railways opened on the 31st March last was: In the North Island 632 miles, and ill the South Island 1.090 miles ; total, miles. On tho 31sb of October last there wore open for traffic 1,734 miles, of which 652 were in the North Island and 1,102 in tho South Island. There were also ab that date 176 miles of railway in course of construction, of which 87 wero in the North Island and 89 in the South Island. The total expenditure on railways, including cost of provincial linos and purchase of district railways, up to 31st March last, was £14,082,711, and the liabilities on the 31st March wero £486,376, making in all £14,569,087. North Auckland Railway. On the railway from Helensville northwards, a contract is in progress for tho formation of 4 miles, and is expected to be finished during the present month. Until the line is completed to Kaukapakapa, a distance of 7 miles from Helensville, it will not carry much traffic, and it Lj therefore proposed to complete it to that extent as soon as practicable; but it is not intended to pub a terminal station at Kaukapakapa us a branch from Helensville until further extended. The funds already provided, with the addition of £25,000 now proposed, will complete the railway f6r traffic for seven miles up to Kaukapakapa, and will also enable tho formation to be extended for a further distance of eight miles. The rate of expenditure proposed is £10,000 for this year, and £27,000, £20,000, and £17,761 for the three following years ; total, to tho end of March, 1891, £74,761. Auckland to 2»enroso Doubling liino. For the Auckland to Penrose doubling line an allocation was made under the loan of 1886, but as it would have gone only a short way towards the completion of what was required, none of the necessary works have as yet been put in hand ; and as the balance necessary to complete the works, pome £77,000, cannot conveniently be provided out of the money now proposed to be borrowed, it is not intended at present to tako any further steps in the matter. GrahamGtown-To Aroha. On thcO rahamstown -Te A roha railway the rails are laid from (irahamstown to Kauaeranga,'about 5 miles, and the formation, without bridges, is complete between Kauacranga and Hikutaia, about 8 miles, and in progress from thence to near Ohinemuri, about 6 miles. Ifc is expected that the latter section will bo finished in July next. From Ohinemuri to Te Aroha, lo miles, the contract survey is complete, but tho works have not yet been put in hand. Total length from Grahamstown to Te Aroha, 32 miles. The funds already provided will complete the lino to Ohinemuri, 20 miles from Grahamstown, and it is proposed to put the remainder of the bridging and platelaying still required for this section in hand this year. The rate of expenditure proposed is for this year £10,000, and for tho throe following years £15,000, i'lo,ooo, and £6,921 respectively. Total, £41,921. Putarnru to Rotorua., On the Putaruru- Rotorua railway a contract has been let for formation, platelaying, and stations from Putaruru to Ngatira, eight miles, and the works arc progressing satisfactorily, and are expected to bo finished in Juno next; At the Rotorua end, five mile. , ? between Rotorua..and Ngongotaha, have been set aeide for Maori piecework, and a lonsider&ble extent of formation has already I een done by the natives in a satisfactory uianner. The intervening distance between Ngatira and Ngongotaha, about nineteen HiFles, has been surveyed for contract, but tho works have not yet been put in hand. The total length from Putarnru to Kotoma is thirty-two miles. The funds already provided, with thoaddition oi£lß.ooo(including £9,000f0r rails)now proposed to beallocated, will complete the railway for traffic from Putaruru to the Okohiriki Saddle, a length of 18 miles, that be in?; the shortest distance that can be opened with any real advantage, and will also enable uouinnusieaUon to bn established by roadfroir tliafc point to Ohitiemirtri, a' distance about 14 miles. Tho into of expenditure proposed, _ exclusive of amount required for rails, is £40,000 for this year, and £25.000, £25.000, and £7,377 for the three following years ; total to end of March, 1891, £97,377. North Island Tronic Railway. Coming now to the North Island Trunk Hallway, I tind with very much regret that tho original estimate of this line* was altogether misleading ; the cost originally indicated having been £1,360,000, whereas the present estimate, exclusive of the probable cost and charges of raising loan, and the amount allocated to purchase of native lands, is £2,085,000. If to this amount there is added say £100,000 for raising loans, and also the £100,000 already allocated for native lands, it brings the total to £2,285,000, and taking the £1,000,000 already authorised from this, shows £1,285,000 as still required to be authorised in order to complete the whole line from Te Avvamntu to Marton. If the works are to go on under the altered circumstances now disclosed, then the proposals which I have shown on table C attached to this Statement, and which 1 shall presently describe, would, I think, be suitable for adoption, in so far as regard/) the amount of money which might reasonably be expended during tho present and three following years at each end of tho railway. But before any further work is undertaken I think the House should have an. opportunity of expressing its opinion on the new aspect which the matter has assumed, and in any ease I do not propose to pub any new contract in hand until after next sesBion, With regard to the alternative route proposed for this railway, I find that the original estimate for the line fvom Stratford to Te Awamutu was £1,036,000, and at first sight therefore this project might appear to have a great advantage as compared with completing the railway from Marton to To Awatnutu, but excepting that the estimated rate per milo was much higher than that for the Central line, we have no guarantee that this estimate is any more accurate than that for the Central route, and it would therefore be premature to express an opinion on the subject until a trustworthy estimate of this line is completed for comparison with the revised estimate now made of the Central line. Ifc would, therefore, 1 think, In; desirable that a survey =hould be made of the T;n,maki route of a more accurate character than those which have hitherto been made, in order that something like a correct estimate may bo formed of the probable cost of a railway hi that direction. Tho cost of this survey ■ would not bo lost, even if the railway is not made, as the information gained could be utilised in the location of a road which must be made in the future, in the event of lid railway being made. The bSsfc point to diverge from the Main Trunk Eaflvvay, in order"to reach Taranaki, would bo at a point near Maruinata, about, 55 miles from Te Awn,»nutii, and the cosh of construction of a railway, complete and equipped for traffic, from Te Awamufcu to this point, including due proportion of cost df raising a loan, and departmental and other expenditure of every kind, is estimated afc £800,000. This is inclusive of about £250,000 for expenditure and liabilitieri already .incurred. The only doubt, therefore, as regards the probable cusb of i* railway UVW $9 AwawijtU t0

Taranaki is to the cost of the link between Maramataand Stratford, or wherever might befchebesbplace to join bheexisting Taranaki railway. The present estimate of the connection is £800,000, but as there is no trustworthy data on which such an estimate can be based it cannot be relied upon as being even approximately accurate. In connection with this phase of the subject it should also be stated that tho expenditure and the liabilities (with a reasonable margin for contingencies) on account ot works already undertaken between Maramata and Marfcon, including surveys, £60,000, roads, £40,000, native lands purchase, £100,000, and a due proportion of departmental expenditure and costsand chargesof raisingloan, willamount to within a trifle of £300,000, and if any further contracts are let at the south end of the line this amount will, of course, be increased. Having thu3 dealt with the subject generally, I will now proceed to state the present condition of the line, and the rate of expenditure per annum which could reasonably be undertaken upon it if it is decided to be carried on, and also the points to which that expenditure would probably carry the railway at each end by the end of the financial year 1890-91. North End. At the north end the railway is completed and ready for traffic from Te Awamutu to To Kuiti, a distance of mile», and from TeKuitito theUpperMokan Valley, alength of 9 miles, a contract for formation and platelaying is in progress, and expected to be completed in December, 1880. From tho Upper Mokan Valley to the Poro-o-Tarao range, 11 miles, the contract survey is completed, but the works have not yet been put in hand. Through the Poro-o-Tarao saddle, a'contract of 11$ miles, is in progress, including a tunnel of 53 chains; total length from Te Awamutu to tho end of the tunnel, 45 miles. Soub'h of the tunnel a survey contract has been made for about 8 miles, which is tho extent of tho programmo which I havo sketched out so far. It is proposed that the lino shall bo carried on steadily from Te Kuiti to near Maramata, in the Ongahue Valley, about 55 miles from To Awamutu, this being tho point at which a line could diverge to Taranaki, and tho rate of expenditure indicated is £70,000 for this year, and £75,000, £75,000, and £80,000' for the three following years ; total to of March, 1891, £300,000. South Enrfl. At tho south end of the railway tho section from Marton to HunterviiUe, 19 miles, is I nearly completed, and will bo ready for j opening about Christmas;. From Hunterville for about 25 miles to a point about 5 miles up the Hautapu Valley the contract survey is completed, arid a contract forabout Smiles of it i 3 prepared, but the works havo not yet been pu fc in hand. The contract survey is al'io in progress for a further distance of, about 19 miles to the end of the rough country ut Turangarere, north head of the Hautapu (Jorge, I 63 miles from Morton. As in the case ( of the works at tl'io north end of the line, the proposal indicated in table C is to carry on steadily from M.arton for tho four yours ending 3.lst March, 1891, by which time it is anticipated fchnr. the railway will havo reached to PowluTknra, near the mouth of the Hantapu VnlJey, n distance of about 32 miles from Mart* m, and the rato of expenditure suggested is £26,000 for this year, and £35,000, £40,000, and £42,000 for the threo following yeatS : totul to end of March, 1891, £143,00.). After carrying out these proposals at both the north and south ends of tho lino, it; is estimated that thero wiil bo I a balance of loan still avoilabln for further ! works to th * extent of about £54,000. Furfaer WorJw and Surveys. The prp/iminary purveys have been made for the railway to the extent of about 12 miles at various places between Waimarino j Plains And the Upper Wanganui Valley, ! and Service roads and tracks in connection with vho railway havo been made in whole or in. partfronvHuntcrville to Turungarore, 24 miles; Upper Kangitikei to Turangarore, 4 miles ; i'ipiriki to Okahuno, 2y miles ; Murimofcu to Upper Wanganui Valley, 50 wrilea ; and To Koura to Waimihn, 14 miles. 'Vho Wanganui River has also been Cleared rif snags and otherwiso improved from Wanganui to near Pipiriki, about 26 miles. The expenditure and liabilities on theso roads and rivet* works up to 30th September lust was £39,239. Purchase of Native Lands. j Of the £100,000 allocated for the purchase of native lands under the loau for the North Island Trunk railway, about £70,300 was ! expended last year, leaving about £29,700 for expenditure during the present year. Tho work done up to 30fch November till, i consisted of the purchase of 490,000 acres, at a cost of £54,100, and there is now under negotiation the purchase of blocks aggregating about 750,000 acres, on which t'33,000 I has alreadybeen paid. The lands purchased ! and under negotiation tire situated mainly around Ruapehu and Tongariro, with the Wanganui Hivoras their boundary on tho nest. The surveyed line of railway intersects the purchased land for 45 miles, and that under negotiation for about 15 miles, or 60 miles in all out of tho total 216 miles between Marton and To Awamutu. Roads Nortltt of Auckland. In tho formation of main roads, miscellaneous roads, and bridges, and grants in aid of roads North of Auckland, the expenditure for the year ending the 31st of March last was £30,738, and from the end of March to tho end of September there was a further expenditure of £2,957, leaving a balance then available out of the amounts provided for tin's class of works to the extent of only £913. Of this sum £420 is due to the counties under grants already made, so that there is only £493 remaining for any further undertakings. A further j allocation for this class of. work would be I Very desirable, but the area of country rej quiring development is so great, and the countifs requiring aid ure so numerous, that nothing short of £50,000 or £60,000 would bo sufficient to attain any material benefit, and the (Government has not seen its way to making an allocation to anything like that extent. Thermal Springs. The expenditure on Thermal Springs last year was £7,814, and the amount required for this year is £3,200, and for next year £300. This is principally for the completion of the water supply at Rotorua, and the planting and improvements of the baths and grounds, and as it is not intended td undertake rttiy further works than those at present in hand no further funds have been allocated beyond tho £3,500 for this and next year. Immigration. As regards tho important question of immigration, I lind that for the jieriod between lsb May, 1886, and 30fch November, 1887, 1,460 nominated immigrants have arrived in the colony, towards the cost of wlio.se passages the sum of £12,161 has been contributed by their friends in fchre colony. During the above period 80 fanners have arrived, who satisfied the Agent-General that they were possessed of requisite capital, amounting to £34,405 in all, as required by the regulations of 28th September, 1885. The total number ot immigrants, exolusive of small farmers, introduced since the inauguration of the scheme by the colonial Government is 113,953. The expenditure on immigration during the last tour years has been respectively in round numbers £107,000, £57,000, £12,000, and £12,000, and for this and three following years the expenditure proposed is respectively £16,720,. £20,000, £20,000, and £14,000, being a total allocation for immigration purposes out of funds in hand, and now proposed, amounting to £70,720. Working Railways. Coming now to working railways, I find that the receipts for the year ending 31st March last were £998,768, and the expenditure £699,072, th<3 net profit bainjj £299,696, fr i r 4 te i»w Mi eu tbq outlay. TUe vatee

of profit on the different eecfcxone Ha j c varied from £5 10s 2d on the Greymouth section to lid on the P^ oo , f, ctl ? n ' ; considering this profit it Should bo boine m mind that the railways do a large amount of free work for other departments, probably to the extent of about £35,000 ucr annum The mileage open at the end of the yeaij*** 1,722 miles, 114 miles having been opened ot purchased during the year. The table(attached to the report of the General BjJ» na g^ r ' which have already been laid before ™c House, show in what respect the trattic ilitf fluctuated. It will be seen thafc in merchandise, timber, and grain there is a less tonnage, while live stock, wool, and minerals have considerably increased. Hon. members will find it very interesting to study the tables, as there is no better index to the business of the colony than what we havo disclosed in the railway returns. Revenue is, of course, largely affected by the rates which are charffsd ; but the tonnage very clearly indicates the volume of business in the colony. Thus, in the case of. the farming interest, the tonnage of grain being much smaller than in previous years, and being indeed less than in any year since 1879-80, while the trafhc in live stock and wool has largely increased, shows clearly that greater attention is being paid to sheep and cattle, and that the area of country under the Crown has been reduced. Again, as regards the building trade, the timber tonnage on railways having been very much less, shows that tho trade during the year ending March last must havo been in a depressed state. During the year ending March last a large amount of additional rolling stock, which has been almost entirely built in the colony, has been supplied, and improvements of various kinds at stations* and on the various lines of railway hare been carried out, whereby public accommodation has been increased or working facilitated. None of the engines which are being manufactured in the colony have yet been comploted, but the delivery of some of them is expected about the end of the year. Ihe result of the working during the present financial year up to the period ending the sth October is that the revenue for tho 28 weeks of this year is nearly £20,000 in excess of that for the corresponding period last year, while the expendituro is slightly less.

Propoood Expenditure on Railways.

Of the loan for the North Inland Main Trunk Railway, we had unexpended on 31sfc March last the sum of £674,315. On the 30th September this was reduced to £615,258, with liabilities amounting to £137,474. Starting with a balance at the end of the year, viz., £674,315, the expendi ture suggoßted by tho Engineer-in-Chief to go on from both onde during tho prenent and next three years is £610,800, which would leave a balance unexpended on 31st March, 1891, of £54,615. Under Part 3 of the Public Works we had unexpended on 31st March laab the sum of £679,235, and by 30th September luat this was reduced to £556,645, with liabilities amounting to £304,004. Tho net amount available for further undertakings on tho 30th September was therefore only £252,641, and as this amount ie qttito inadequate for carrying most of tho railways in hand to points at which they would bo even moderately reproductive, it was decided to ask for further authority to raise a loan of £500,000, which it i» proposed bo allocated as follows : Ilolenavillo Northwards 25.000 Putaruru-Kotorua .. .. «. .. 18.000 Woodvlllo-I'almernton 120,000 Blenheim- A watoro 9.000 (Jrevmoiith Hokltiktt 22,000 Mount Sowers 7.000 Llviutfctonn - 1.000 Otago Central 100.000 Seaward Hush 10.000 Additions to opened lines 122000 .Surreys 6,000 Charges and oxpensen of raising portion of loan allocatiid to rnllwn.vn .. . 30,000 Departmental eiiKlncerhiK and isupervieloa WXX) Grand total for railways .. .. f>oo.ooo Adding this! .sum of £500,000 to the £769,235 before alluded to as existing atSleb March last, will give a total of £1,269,236 expenditure, of which, including expenditure which has alreidy taken place, we propose to spread over the present and next throe yonrs at tho following rate, viz. : — 1887-88, £332,500 : IRBB-89, £437,403 ; 1889----90, £298,917 : and 1890-91, £67,444, givinc a total for the lour years of £1,246,264, which will lenve £22,971 unexpended at tho end of the term. Conclusion. Finally, sir, I would wish to state that in approachint,' this task of dealing with the public works expenditure of the colony, tho < iovornment was convinced that however much the construction of public works may have tended to develop the country generally, and also to meet tne demands of prowing settlement, it was nevertheless evident that our rato of expenditure in tho past has been more than the colony could well afford, and that tho time has come when wo must materially curtail it, With thai) object in view, wo prepared the proposals which I havo now had the honour of laying before this House, and I may say that throughout the whole of thiij allocation onr object has been to do justice to all concerned, and to endeavour where practicable, within the limits of the funds at our disposal, to avoid stopping ruthlessly any works on which the expeindituro already incurred would bo altogether thrown away, or which would yi'ild a reasonable percentage on their cost if completed as hitherto intended. To the best of our belief these objects have been attained by the allocation which I have described, and we now therefore lay it beforo Parliament in the full confidence that hon. members will aid us in carrying these proposals out in thti interest of the colony as a whole, at whatever sacrifice it may be to their individual interest. Taken as a whole, thechief featureinour proposals jh to steadily reduce expenditure under loan from, in round numbers, £1,100,000 per annum for this year to £300,000 per annum for the third year from March next, and wo believe that in this way the loan expenditure may be gradually brought to an end after March, 1891, without on the one hand increasing our burdens over much, or on the other hand putting too sudden a check on the progress of colonial industries. I would also wish to say, sir, in conclusion that throughout the whole of the investigation necessary td frame the proposals calculated to bring about this result, and which I confess I have found to be a very difficult task, I have received tho most cordial assistance from all the chief officers of the departments over which I have the honour.to preside.