THE TAUPO SCHEME.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1245, 29 September 1911, Page 2

THE TAUPO SCHEME.

4 j PROPOSED PRIVATE RAILWAY. ROTOIiUA'S OPPOSITION. The special Parliamentary Committee oil tho petition of tlic Taupo Totara Timber Company, Ltd., sat figain yesterday morning. The so present were:— Messrs. T. H. Davey (chairman), AV. 1). S. MacdonaW, A. 11. My«rs, 13. Newman, W. I'orlies, I). 11. Guthrie, V. 11. lie-Ed, and AV. Prater. The request of the company is for authority ti, extend iU tramway to Taupo, a distance of 1G miles from the present terminus, and to purchase about •.'011,01)1) acres of Native land, which would be opened up by the tramway. An Order-in-Council is requisite to enable thcbO things to bo don*. Tho case tor the company was placed before tin* committee last week by ilr. i. G. JJalzjell, who stated, inter alia, that the company was in negotiation to make over the land in question to a syndicate, which would construct tho proposed tramway or railway. Mr. Walwcll was present'at yesterday's meeting <0 ''flirotent the company. A Rotorua Witness. .Tames Bobsrt Raw, of Botorna,' was the first witness, heard yesterday. Jo opposed • the petition on behalf of the Hotoma Chamber of Cominorce. He said that the proposed extension ot the private railway would create a huge mouopolv, and would 1* prejudicial to tho interests of the thermal o',-strict and the Dominion. If tho settlement part of the scheme did not pay, the company won d bo able after ten years to hand the land back to the Maori Kind Board. Die timber would probably be exhausted m 15 vevil's, and the success of the would then depend on tourist traffic. That accounted for their desire to obtain options over sites for hotels, etc., and tliov no doubt hoped to be able to draw the tourists from the north along their railway and asms* I .alee taupo bv steamers, in which they might acquire an interest, and so to the Main I innk railway by Ivakahi. . The tourist traffic, over a large area with the finest trout fishin" in I lie world would thus pass into the control of a company of capitalists, with a huge monopoly, ol land, comprising half the thermal area of New Zealand. The Government ha<l spent a large amount of mop<»y in 'idyeriisiwj the tourist attractions of.Nsw //calami, and had its tourist agencies 111 the JJominion and abroad, but it the couipanj s dp«i ,T n were carried out Taupo must be cut out of tho Department s programme, or tlsc the Government must acl'as agents far tho company. Tho company could not be cxpected to induce people to go to Rotorua. J n 1 / a . ct; Rotorua. a State-owned town, would be side-tracked, and the groat expenditure of public money in developing it -would be nullified. In regard to the suggested right of resumption of tho company s enterprise, tho price would probably bo prohibitive. 1 The chamber was not opposed to the . development of Taupo's attractions. but tht?> held that Rotorua and Taupo should progress together, and they had long advoeated a railway between the two centres, Tho East Coast railway was to run within 25 miles of 'Rotorua, and should be connected with tho town. By these moons liolorua and Taupo could lie connected with the deep-water port of Tauranga, which was the nearest port. Ihe proposed line from Kotorua to Taupo should be extended to Kakahi, on tho Main lrunk line, and this would greatly shorten the journev between Rotorua and the south. The companv's scheme would create'conflict between"Rotorua and Taupo. A railway from Rotorua to Taupo would give access to the thermal wonders of Wairakei and Waiotapu.

State versus Private Enterprise. To Mr/Newman: The land to be opened up would be of no value to people without capital. The company had acquired ontions over ttw hotels and spas, and he believed they had acquired options over tho steamer services on tho-Lake, but ho had no evidence on tho last point. Mr. Dalziell admitted that the company had options over the hotels. lie denied the allegations as to other options. Mr. Myers: You admit that a million and a half acres of land are lying idle?— "To a great extent." And would it not bo to the benefit of the Dominion-to get it settled?—" Yes." Mr. Mvers also suggested that many of the tourists who went to Taupo through tho company's scheme would go on to Rotorua, and thus the number of visitors | to Rotorua would be increased. i Tho witness did not think many tourists would do so. In further reply to 'Mir. Myers, the witness said ho had failed, to find any State, enterprise in any part of tho worldcca r rieil on'wilh the same push and vim as was usual in private enterprises. If tho company was successful in its plans, and did other than push all the trade along its railway and get all the tourist traffic, it would not be acting fairly towards its own shareholders. That was what he and those associated with him were afraid of, because the State moved so slowly that a private company could run ring* round it, if it got the chance. It would bo to the interest of the company to induce as many as possible of tho people who went to Rotorua to go on to Taupo. Mr; Myers: That is a very candid statement and a business-like one; but it

amounts to ah admission that the tourist, trade in the thermal district; generally would be increased"Tho tradn and traf. lie of Rotorua would be increased, but it would bo to tho detriment cf Rotonia." But the State would gain because they would travel over State railways to Rotorua?—"l don't think that would mean more travelling ovor State railways, and 1 don't think it would affect tho number ol' visitors from oversea." But don't you think competition is the life of trade?—"! don't object to fair competition." To Mr. Macdouald: A line from Rotorua to Taupo would pass wilhiii 15 miles of the company's present terminus at Mokai uiul would 6pen up some of the same land as the company's proposed line. Mr. Dalziell said that; the statement that the company would liaml back the Nativo land to tho Maori Land Board if the scheme was not financially siioressml after 10 years was not correct. What ho had said was thai: tli-a land would bo sold for whatever it would fetch. It could not be handed back to the board.

ill-. Ilalziell (to witness): Can you toll us how people would bo compelled to go to the company's hotels? Von have many lmardinghouse'; in Rolnrna that have not licenses. Would it '.lot be tile same at T;uipo?— 1 "It depends on whether they could get the loud." Do you know what portions of tho whole township the company lias options over? —"They have enough to bring a railway there, anyway. I don't suggest that they linve collared the whole township." Don't, you think it would be better for the land to bo owned by a company that would have to spend capital on it than by the Natives?—"! do." . Witness also said, in reply to Mr. Daizicll, that some of the township sections in Rotorua had increased in value 100 per cent, or more since they were iirst. tensed. Most of them were held by other than the original les-sees. The rise in values was duo parity to Stale expenditure and partly to

private enterprise. . Mr. Dalziell: Then don t you think the Si'alo might do something to increase tho values of a great area of idle land instead of adding further to tho values of Rotorua?—"l might agrco with that', but not with the way you propose to do it'. Another Rotorua Witness. John N. M'Lean, also gave evidence oil behalf of the Rotorua Chamber of Commerce. lie expressed grave doubts as to tho capabilities of the Taupo lands for farming purposes. If a rush oi settlers would follow tho extension of (he railway why was there so little settlement along file present line? It was open to private individuals'to negotiate with Iho Natives for land, but tliev had not done so to anv great extent. A Pntaruru-lanpo railway could not. for geographical reasons, be part of the Stale system, tie stroiHv advocated tho Rotorua-Taupo Main Trunk railway connection. To Mr. Frasor: A Rotorua-laupo railway would be about CO mihvs long, ten miles at tho Taupo end would bo along the same route as the Moliiii-'laupo line. He did not think the State would go in for a scheme of improving the condition of land before offering it to settlers, but such a scheme might be a very gocil | "to"Mr. Newman: He thought the com- | pany was much too optimistic about the

iiiolily of the land. 110 did not know iiai iruit could be grown very succotsully on such land, nur tliat Millers wcro aising good root crops 011 pumice lands long llic Main 'J'runk railway without n.v extraordinary manuring, 'j'o Mr. Gntbrio: JOven il the company's ,ev lino took another mute, through Waitapu, ho would still object to it. If ho iad known Hint I lie company would pond a large amount: of money in ezlorimpnliiiß willi the soil, that, would uivo modilicd his views in regard to the and. Mr. Guthrie: That is their intention. • The committee will hear another Kolo- ■ •ua witness at 10 a.m. to-day, and will it again next Thursday.