THE RAILWAY REVENUE.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7829, 6 April 1891, Page 6

THE RAILWAY REVENUE.

[Br TSL-OEAPH.J

17R0X OUR COBR-BPOXD-NT]

WELLINGTON, April 3.

The Railway Commissioners have now received complete returns for the year expired, aud, subject to the revision and scrutiny which they are now undergoing in the Accounts Office, they may be taken as very closely approximating the results of the financial year's operations so far as railways are concerned. The last week or two of March proved better than was expected, and tuva the gross receipts for theyear have been considerably augmented, making the total larger than was looked for even a few days ago. Tbe gross receipts for the year amounted to £1,113,000, as against the Commissioners' original estimate of £1,080,000, or £33,000 to the good. The expenditure was 43701,000, as against £678,000 estimated, or £.3,000 over, but ib necessarily follows that increased traffic means increased working expenses. The net profit from the railways was estimated at £402,000, the actual profit made is £412,000, or £10,000 more. The Commissioners direct my attention to the fact that these very satisfactory results had been obtained in the face of the adverse conditions presented by the labor troubles, which not only by temporarily paralysing trade and compelling the train services to be reduced caused serious loss of profitable traffic that otherwise would have been secured, but also heavily Increased the cost of working owing to tbe consequent rise in the price of coal; further, the burden of several additions to the opened lines at present the reverse of profitable have been made during the oast year, and this obviously adds to the unremunerative expenses. Tbe Otago Central line, as far as Middlemarch (some forty miles) is now being taken over by the Commissioners, who fear that at present it will not do much to swell the receipts, although it will certainly enlarge the working expenses, and will also augment the capital sum on which Interest has to be reckoned. It Is to be hoped, however, that it will develop a large traffic in the course of time. The addition of this forty miles length brings up the total distance of Government railways open in New Zealand to IB6o* miles.