CORRESPONDENCE.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7770, 26 January 1891, Page 6

CORRESPONDENCE.

CARRYING SHEEP ON THE RAILWAYS. TO THE EDITOR OF THB PRESS. Sib,—Mr McKerrow, Chief Railway Commissioner, before different Associations in C*ri3tohurch, said that the Comdid not think that carrying sheep paid. This is a strange statement, as at least one would think he could speak positively. I will cry and prove by their own figures tbac ie doee pay. The department charge 33s 9d for a truck of sheep for fifty miles. Assuming thai; the gross weight of each sheep is 1121b* and 601b sheep are carried in a double deck truck, we have three tons. This gives a rate of 3d per too per mile. Mr Maxwell in his paper read before the Australasian Association, says that the average expense per ton mile on the Hurunui- Bluff section is 2.07 d per ton mile, so that there is a clear margin of 0.43 per cent. But then we must remember that the average weight carried in every truck per mile (c less than one ton, whereas the sheep trucks are always full one way, so that their average is l\ ton par mile. Therefore by their own figures sheep hauling pays better than their average traffic, in spite of what Mr McKerrow says. I will now take one of their reductions Iα rates. The Commissioners have reduced the rate on brown coal or lignite 7d per ton for a distance of twenty-six miles, charging 3s 5d where they charged 4s. Now to an ordinary Individuat it is very evident that such, a reduction would, not increase the sale of coal by one ton, no more than reducing a sixpenny letter to fivepence half-penny would cause more letters to be posted, so that in each case it would be an absolute loss to the department, consequently in twelve months' time if you spoke about redactions they would say they had reduced the coal rates without any adequate Increase of traffic. The Commissioner* might as well expect a fly walking on a drum to sound an alarm as that such reductions would increase the traffic. If the Commissioners are sincerely anxious to increase the brown coal trade, let them reduce the rate by half for six months; then they conld speak with some authority.—-Yours, Sec., _, E. G. Wright. Mount Somers, January 22nd, 1831.