THE PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

Clutha Leader, Volume V, Issue 216, 30 August 1878, Page 3

THE PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

In the House of Representatives on Tuesday night, . The Hon. Mr Macandrew commenced the delivery of his Public Works Statement by alluding . to the changes he had made in the organisation of the department, placing tho working of the railways under the management of a Commissioner for each Island, as recommended by the Railway Committee last session. The other principal recommendation of the Committee, relating to the leasing of one of the Auckland lines, had not been acted upon, and required grave consideration. In the meantime, he was much in favour of the State retaining the management of its railways in its own hands. Railway tickets would shortly be sold in all the chief centres otherwise than at railway stations. Although the returns on one or two small lines have not paid working expenses, yet they will on the whole be regarded as satisfactory, "A A WORKING RAILWAYS, MIDDLE ISLAND. 740 miles were open, of which 94 were opened during the past year. The net balance of receipts over expenditure available for payment of interest was L 145,346, against LIIB,OOO for the previous year, showing a per centage on the whole outlay .for construction of 2 -65, a not unfavourable result, seeing some of the lines included in the outlay have only been opened recently and others still are unfinished. The total number of passengers carried by rail was 1,159,147. The working expenditure on the Dunedin section had been heavy, owing to L 36 per mile having to be spent on the working expenses. The working expenses on the' Christchurch section had been considerably reduced. The earnings per mile had been : Christchurch section, L 764 10s 7d per mile per annum ; Dunedin section, LlO7l 19s 5d ; and Invercargill section, L 331 3s Id. WORKING RiiILWAYS NORTH ISLAND. 311 miles were open for traffic, of which 99 were opened during; the past year. The net balance of receipts over expenditure available for payment of interest was L 18,656, against L 13,656 for the previous year, showing a per centage on the whole outlay for construction of 15s. The total number of passengers was 313,728. RAILWAYS UNDER CONSTRUCTION, The reduction in the Head Office salaries by the substitution of an Engineer-in-Chief for each island, instead of an Engi-neer-in-Chief, and other charges, would amount to L3OOO. The change is likely to work well, and be beneficial to the service. It had been asserted that the changes by which the construction of public works and the working of railways in each island had been reduced under distinct' heads was the forerunner of some deep and sinister design on the part of some person or persons, and that it studiously intended to lead up to the political separation of the two islands. He need scarcely say that such surmise was absolutely without foundation. He would say that in his opinion it would have been well for the Colony to have had two Ministers for Public Works, one for each island, both being members of the Cabinet, with seats in and responsible to the House. He ventured to think that had such been the case there would have been much more to show for our money than there now was. There must be incurred, to complete the portion of railways already authorised, L 958,900 to complete 425 miles in the North Island, and L 1,007,000 to complete 874 miles in the Middle Island. Out of a total expenditure (L 2,045,000) required for this purpose, it is proposed to spend this year Ll ,176,500. THE FUTURE — NORTH ISLAND RAILWAY. It is proposed to fill up the gaps in the North Island system as follows :—Wellington to Foxton, via Waikanae, 61 miles ; Waitotara River to upper Patea Crossing, 51 miles ; Te Awamutu (Waikato) to Inglewood (Taranaki), 125 miles. This will complete an unbroken line from Wellington to Auckland of 476 miles ; Masterton to Woodville, 50 miles, WoOdville to Papatu,' 50 miles ; thus establishing unbroken railway^ communication from Wellington to Napier by aline of 220 miles ; Waikato to the Thames, 30 miles; branch line to Hamilton, .2 J miles : Helensville to Kaukapakapa River, 2^ miles. Except as regards the line from Waikato to the Thames there are no actual surveys, andthe following cost is estimated on the basis of a mileage rate. Wellington to Foxton ¥ L 440,00 0; Waitotara River to uppeßißate^ Crossing, L 357,000; Te Awamutu to Inglewood, L 111,500 ; Masterton to Papatu, via Woodville, L 63,000 ; Waikato to the Thames, L 168,000 ; branch line to 'Hamilton, L 10,00 0; Helensville to Kaukapakapa River, L 26,000-; Wangarei to Kemeo, 7^ miles, L 30,000. Total L 2,775,000, or a total including the amount required to complete the lines already authorised of L 3,733,000. The Hon/ Mr Macandrew continued [as follows : — The construction of the Hne through the Waikato country, estimated, as I have said, to cost L 1,115,000, will, it is hoped, be fully warranted by the acquisition of considerable areas of land suitable for settlement. I understand that the line will run through some of the finest land in New -Zealand, and from what has passed between . the Hon. the Premier, the Hon. the Native Minister, and the natives concerned, "there is good reason to hope that the acquisition of the necessary land will be successfully negotiated. It will thus be seen that one proposal embraces pne main line of communication on the West Coast from Wei-; lington to Auckland and the Thames, and another one to the East Coast- Wellington to Napier. To make the system complete it remains but to , establish a connection between these two main lines by means of a short link of 12 miles between Bunnythrope and Woodville. This would place Napier and nearly all the East Coast country in communication "with Wanganui, New Plymouth, and Auckland. The. probable cost of this link would be L 119,000, and there can be little doubt; that sooner or later this would be undertaken. As , regards the -north of Auckland . it will be seen by these proposals that if the Kaukapakapa station - can -' he advaiitangeously selected, railway communication for a distance of 50 miles will connect that city with/the great Kaipara7:estuary, • at a point accessible to vessels of ordinary tonnage. MIDDLE ISnAI«)7RAILWAYS.;7 v L c : >A Now as to the Middle Island/ the wor^r we . propose; : f or the. future; i r axe?:-^Otag6L * Central^ Dunedin 3 tp ■} Albei^oWjArijake!

Wanaka, 160 miles, Ll ,100,000 ; Amberley ;to Brunnerton, 110 miles, L 950,000 ; Greymouth to Hokitika 26 miles, L 220,000; Canterbury interior main lines, Oxford to ! Temuka 85 miles, L 380,000 ; South Ashburton to Ashburton fords 20 miles, L 55,00 0; Albury extensioii 20 , miles LIIO,OOO ; Tapanui extension to Herriotburn 10 miles, L 40,00 0; Fortrose to Edendale 26 miles, LIIO,OOO ; Otautau to Nightcaps 16 miles, L 750,000 ; Olutha to Catlins River 18 miles, L 95,000 ; Waimea to Switzers 15 miles, L 70,000 ; Lumsden to Marrow 35 miles, LIBO,OOO ; Shag Valley Branch Line 9 miles, L 35,00 0; Waiareka branch to Livingston 16 miles, L 105,00 0; making a total length of proposed railways for the Middle Island of 576 1 - miles at a total cost of L 3,565,000. Adding to this an amount of L 1,087,000, which is the estimated cost of completing and putting into working order the lines already authorised and opened for traffic in the Middle Island, we shall have a total of L 4,662,000 for that island. As regards the Otago control line, hon. members will recollect that this House last session, both by resolution and by Act, affirmed that a 100 miles of this bine through Strathtaieri to Clyde should be proceeded with, and the House also passed a resolution in compliance with which 396,000 acrea of Crown lands have been reserved from sale, with the view of devoting the proceeds when they are sold to the construction of this portion of line. It is now proposed to extend the line from Clyde to Lake Wanaka, a distance of 60 miles, for some 50 miles of which the •country is as level as a bowling green. The whole of it being in the hands of the Crown and available for settlement, my belief is that no other of the lines now proposed will promote settlement and increase the productive powers of the Colony to the same extent as the Otago central, and I venture to predict that many years will not pass without this line being extended to Hokitika, via the Haast Pass. The length of that extension from Albertown, the now contemplated termination of the Hne, is pnly 190 miles, and the highest point of range to be crossed is only 1700 feet, as against 3000 feet in the next line we propose to undertake — namely, that from Amberley to Bruunerton, a distance of one hundred and ten |mile 3. As regards the branch Hne, Waipahi to Heriotburn, it will be recollected that last session the House decided that the branch should be constructed as far as Tapanui. It voted no money for the works, but believed that it should be paid for out of land to be set aside for that purpose. I am pleased to say that this branch is now under way, and that no money will be required until after completion, the terms of contract being that payment is to .be made in cash in three equal instalments at two, four, and six months, after the line is completed. The amount is L 61,500, and the limit for completion 22 months from date of contract, so that we shall have two years and upwards in which to realise upon the 40,000 acres of land reserved. The probability is that the land, owing to the construction of the railway, will realise from Ll to L 3 and upwards an acre, and will thus yield double the amount of the contract. I may add that there were five tenders for the work on the above terms, and the one accepted, being the lowest, was L2OOO under the Engineer's estimate. This fact is worth any number of arguments to show how we might, to a great extent, construct our railways without increasing the amount of our pubhc debt or adding to the annual burden in respect thereof. It i 3 now proposed to extend the line ten miles farther, and by so doing the growth of cereals will be very largely increased, and 1 one of the most productive districts in the Colony fully developed. I have heard it objected that now, when the land fund is colonialised, it is unfair to the Colony as a whole to aHenate large portions of its landed estate for local purposes. To me such an objection seems, if I may be permitted so to say, simply absurd. We are not aHenating landed estate, we are changing the form of parts of it, and thereby greatly increasing the value of the whole. If portions of land go, so far as the Colony is concerned, the railways constructed out of the proceeds remain ; and if we manage our affairs wisely we shaU derive a much larger in- ' come from those railways than we even did or could derive from those portions of land. We do not propose to deal exceptionaHy with the proceeds of land set apart for the construction of railways. Those proceeds will be dealt with as ordinary revenue, while, from the enhanced value of the lands to be affected by the lines so constructed, we may fairly assume it as 1 a fact that the ordinary revenue will year by year be greatly increased, SUMMARY OF PROPOSALS. — -AIDS TO THE PUBLIO WORKS FUND. Summing up the proposals I have had the honour to submit, they will be found to involve an expenditure for railways in the North Island of L 3,733,000, and in the Middle Island of L 4,652,000, altogether L 8,385,000 .! We propose that the expenditure shall be extended over five years, which is, in my opinion, the shortest, period within which we could carry out work to this extent, unless we are prepared for the importation of labour to a greater extent than ;can be readily absorbed in the : permanent settlement of the country. Our object will be fso to regulate the administration of the Waste Lands of the Crown ; as to afford every inducement and facility to men who labour in the construction of: railways to invest their earnings in land by laying off allotments for sale along the : various lines as they progress. lam disposed to think that much may be done in this direction, and that a fair proportion of the money expended on 1 pubHc works* would find its way back to the Treasury. Out of the loan authorised last session,' there remained on the 30th June, available for pubHc works, about L 2,000,000. If we add to the public works " fund from ordinary revenue during the next five years, say L 3,500,000, the amount just., stated as available will be increased to L 5,500,000,, and there wiH remain atout L3,000 j000 to be raised by, further loans in. order; to meet the estimated cost of the whole of our proposals. It may, perhapsp be asked,- is jnot L3,500,000,.t6p~1^fge a sum /to^expect to be spared' rrdm 'revenue I Isithe revenue likely to be in a" position' to 1 .meet -such a i demand ? The hon. gentle- '. .man in reply ttf these questions here^en- r ' umewited the Various areas of -Grb^yii lands

that would be affected by the proposed railways, ancl the revenue from the sale of which would be enhanced. He anticipated that the revenue from this land at L 5 an acre and upwards, would amount to about the whole, estimated cost of the railways, L 4,650,000. He continued : — Each district in the Colony believes that its claim to be provided with railways at the cost of tho State ranks at least as high as that of any other district, and ; none probably wiH admit that any such claim ought to be met before its own This in truth is a great difficulty, which the House by past legislation has brought upon itself. That difficulty commenced from the moment when the legislature repealed that cardinal condition of the Public Works policy, that in the event of the proceeds of any railway failing to meet interest and sinking fund on the cost of its construction, property in the district should be rated to make up the deficiency. The difficulty is one which I confess I cannot solve. As things stand the Government are desirous to distribute to the best advantage whatever funds may be available for the construction of pubHc works, and to do this as fairly as possible. Under the circumstances we shall endeavour to carry on as nearly as may be simultaneously the various works that may be authorised, and to apportion the expenditure each year in such directions as shaH seem most Hkely to promote the speedy settlement and beneficial occupation of the waste lands of the country. Much of the difficulty of the situation arises from the fact that here in New Zealand we are expected to do in a few years what it has hitherto taken centuries elsewhere to accomplish. A few hundred thousands of people are bent upon doing in a lifetime that work which in the past has been the work of iniHions of men during generations. If New Zealand goes ' onward as she Is now doing until she - reaches her first century, it is hard to decide which wHI then be " greater," which the "lesser" Britain. The present proposals involve an expenditure of L 1,677,000 a year until the lines mentioned are completed, and if we can come to an arrangement as between ourselves, and the honourable understanding which ought to be held as binding as the laws of the Medes and Persians, that upon the completion of those Hnes, a similar amount shaU continue to be expended on productive railways only, it is a mere question of time when all the land throughout the Colony which it is required to occupy and \ render available by means of ranway communication shaU be so rendered available. There are at present throughout the Colony nearly 100 miles which are being taken in hand under the provisions of tho District Railways Act of last Session, and it is beHeved by slightly amending that Act, advantage wih be taken of its provisions to a much larger extent, and the Government will thereby be relieved of constructing many Hnes which sooner or later must otherwise devolve upon it. I look upon this as one of the most gratifying features of the future Railway poHcy of New Zealand. LOOAX WORKS. I must now soHcit the earnest attention of hon. members to a question which may virtually affect the whole scope of the future policy of the Colony, and which in my belief may largely influence the functions of the character of this; House. I refer to the question of roads and bridges. I need not remind you that one of the great advantages which was to be secured by the recent pofitical changes was, that the name of road or bridge was never more to be heard in, this House as connected with any askings for money. ' Such we were asked to beHeve was to be one of the first results of the AboHtion of the Provinces. As it is,, however, unless the House is prepared to make a decided stand,it is to be feared that roads, bridges, and culverts will become subjects of the most anxious and excited discussions to be heard within these waUs. What, then, is to be our poHcy with respect to these works? My coUeagues and myself are clearly of: opinion that they ought to be wholly devolved upon local bodies, by whom the requisite funds must be found. One thing seems to me to be beyond doubt or question. The Colony must undertake all such works or must refuse -to undertake any. Any other course must be brimful of inj ustice. Last session we passed various votes for roads and bridges with the understanding that the amounts were to be provided put of a loan. . Those votes wiH, I apprehend have to be made good in any case. Many of them are now in course of expenditure and we propose to renew aU the unexpended portions by putting them upon this year's estimates. This wiU, in round numbers, mean the appropriation of about LIOO,OOO for l»cal works ih the North Island, and about L 166,000 for similar works in the Middle Island. Thereafter j we propose to finaUy close the account, ahd to confine public works operations entirely to railway construction. I admit that if we are sustained in this course it wiH be productive of hardship to those portions of the Colony which are not fortunate enough to participate in the ssramble for roads and bridges last year. It seems to me, however, as I have said, that in fairness we have no middle course open. If we are to construct arterial roads and bridges we must take, charge of all such works, and subsides in aid of them which are now paid- to local bodies must cease. It is manifestly unreasonable to expect that ;the Colony can go on paying as it did last; year nearly three-quarters of a million to 1 local bodies if it, had to perform the functions which devolve upon such bodies hesides. > One way out of the difficulty perhaps would be to increase the borrowing powers of local bodies. To this, howeydrj many objections may be' urged; Some people are of opinion that the Colony should raise the money and leave the local bodies to expend it ; 7but here again ;we should trample under foot a fundamental principle on which 'the new order of ; things was so . recently ' based; — namely, that no money shall be raised by the Colony ihe expenditure of y which Is not to be placed directly .under the con- : trblof'-tliis House. v For my own part, I have never "tyeHeved that 7 that priiiciple ought to be' rigidly ;and . unreasoningly observed, but it was ! one of 7 the 1 cardinal points '".of ' abolitionism, L and !T •presume it ' ..will/ be adhered to by the present ; ParHa- : ment. Altogether I confess^ -that Athis is one of 7theAWost B difficu^ we axe now called upon to scdye,7and;th6re 7cany,;in -^ 6p^

two fair solutions. Either the Colony should close its bowels of compassion in respect of evory application for roads and . . bridges, however exceptional may bo the claim (and they are all exceptional in the opinion of the claimants), or it shoulddistribute its gifts to all upon some equitable basis. As it is, unless we go into tho money market, there wiU be nothing to distribute over and above the subsides already fixed. There remains therefore only the one solution, of every locality relying upon itself. I need scarcely saythat, under all the circumstances of tho case, we have been reluctantly compelled to turn a deaf ear to numerous and pressing appHeations for local works throughout the Colony. I omitted to observe that the two amounts above referred to are irrespective of a sum of L 225,000 which is required to meet Provincial liabifities, and L 35,000 for roads in' Native districts. It wiH be recoHected that last session a Bill was introduced intituled the Settlements of Works Advances BUI, the object of which was to enable the Government to open up lands for settlement before they were put up for sale. In many localities Crown lands are comparatively inaccessible and unless they are to some extent opened up by road 3, they aro likely to remain unoccupied or to be sold below their value to speculators. This Bill,, however, did not become law, as the Government did not specify the precise localities in which the proposed expenditure wad tb be appHed. We intend to ask for a vote of L 58,590 for this object. FuH particulars of the proposed expenditure of which wiH appear in the Public Works Estimates. It is estimated that this amount will, at an average of 2s lOd per acre, enable upwards of 441,000 acres in various districts , throughout the Colony to be brought into the market under conditions winch will largely enhance its value. It will be seen from the Public Works Estimates that a considerable sum of money is required for expenditure on various public buildings throughout the Colony. Among those to which I may specially refer is the Lunatic Asylum at Dunedin, wliich is too small for the number of inmates, and which it is proposed to remove to a more suitable locality, being an extensive reserve of 900 acres of Government land, the cultivation of which on the part of the patients "will, it is hoped, render the instituion self-sup-porting, thereby relieving the State of a large annual burden which must otherwise .continue to devolve upon it. It is proposed in the new establishment to mako suitable provision for the care of inebriates, to enable which class of patients to be dealt with, some special legislation will be necessary. It is also intended to erect upon the same reserve adequate separate buildings for the Otago Reformatory and Industrial School for boys and girls. The cost of the latter wiU be more than recouped by seUing the property upon which the school at present stands. Wlnle on this subject, it may not be deemed out of place to notice that the hulk in Wellington harbour, belonging to the Public Works Department, being no longer required, we propose to have her fitted up as a Training School and Reformatory, into which boys, convicted of criminal offences, may be drafted from aU parts of the Colony, instead of their being associated with hardened criminals in the common gaols, or mixed with those whose only crime is that they have been left destitute and neglected. CONCLUSION. Much as the Public Works and Immigration poHcy has conduced to the prosperity of New Zealand, there can be no question that if it is foHowed up as is now proposed the future results wiH very largely exceed those of the past. We know the extent to wliich railways have helped us to increase our settled population, our agriculture, and our trade, and we know that some of these raUways we have paid very dearly for, not alone in money ; but our experience, whatever it has cost us, should at least have taught us in what direction and in what manner we can best spend the money hereafter avaHable for such undertakings. Not only ought we resolutely to resolve thatwewiU never again sanction the commencement of a railway as to which we have not at least reasonable evidence that it will pay, . but we should equaUy resolve that as one point of our experience 10s shall be made to represent as much work as 20s have unfortunately- in too many cases represented heretofore. We now see clearly many things after which we could only blindly grope when we began to construct our railways. In expressing these opinions I desire to disclaim casting any reflection upon those who have hitherto had the professional "oTereharge of our pubKc works. /If there haveß&en.blunders they have been chiefly incidentaFto circumstances;' and to the nature of things. In • my belief they have been more political than professional. I conclude, sir, by once more commending to the approval of hon. members the proposals I have had . the honour to submit. I have had pleasure, too, in submitting them, for in mv beHef they, are calculated to meet the re- - quirements of settlement over a great portion of each, island. To give effect to' them wiH, I am convinced, be to increase, enormously the productive power of the Colony, the constantly growing tendency of which must be to lighten the pubHo burdens. Under these . proposals our in- ' dustrial population ought to be at least doubled during the next few years, and the great proportion of the incomers ought to be and may be so located that, while labouring lovingly to subdue the .earth 7' until that which is barren yields its kindly, -and matured fruits, they may labour stubfA;bornly because they are creating homes; .A Sor 'their children-, and proudlyLDecaiile' * thefr .names figure on -no man's. rent 'rolh^r ; It is in such a spirit that most of us have* struggled^ to create a great nation. in this: favoured land. Such was the spirit in which we strove through the r day of small things, L^nd now, when^qur.Tvision is clearer' ■ as to what we ;may 'do arid 7become, and when our 'grasp is firaier';npon 7-iaUrtha.t we' i undertake, 1 1 borifeiss thatl^ainAjealousto; 7haye 7 some .share '• : with" : shaU hereafter be s^d'tfiatjt|i^y -hadanflu- * ? • ence in promoting '; tHe ? v greatness of TNew. Zealand: , Jy AA 7A AA LL