The Daily Telegraph. WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 1888.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 5209, 2 May 1888, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 1888.

c ? ''■','-.". ' " ". r Tjie railway returns for tho: year aro any-* 0 thing but satisfactory. Tho lineß have ? earned some four thousand pounds less than r last year, while tho expenditure has decreased by nearly twelve thousand pounds. If tho reduced expenditure , was due to (" rttrendimont it would bo very satisfactory, but' when wO remember the mileage has beei\ increased, we are driven to. tho conclusion that efficient maintenance inay'havo been sacrificed to the desire for economy. c Engineers say that many of.the wooden bridges will have to be replaced by iron structures, and if so . a heavy charge is looming in the future, and .that charge must l>e placpdto working ij'xpenses, for renewals oan only bo looked upon as tho Tesult of fair wear and tear, and to provide for the renewal of bridges v. ill'some day be a very heavy item. I'ho earnings 1 too are unsatisfactory, for they "fall farshort of tho estimates. ' We have increased our mileage, but wo have not augmented our returns, a very strong argument indeed against any present extension of our railway system, and which should be sufficient to hang up indefinitely the proposal for the great North Island Main Trunk Line, which no one for a moment supposes would pay interest on tho cost of construction for many years to come. All it xvoidd do would 1 be to largely increaso tho value of many millions of acres of Maori land, but which , increased value would bo got at the expense 1 of the European taxpayer! Turning to ,thn separate lines, wo find that tho .Picton railway lost £271. _ Tim model railway of' eighteon n)ilos 'lonjy, "which 'cost nearly £200.000, did not "earn a penny of the interest of themoiiey with whicji it was constructed, biit the expenses swallowed up all the receipts, and the additional sum wo have mentioned. Tlie Whangarei line wljip.lv cost £70,000, tho interest of which will exceed £3000, only earned £80 aboyc its expenses, Tho Wanganui lino which cost nearly £1,100,000 earned loss than £10,000 above its expenditure, so that five-sixths of the interest of tho borrowed money must be found by tho colony. These aro "the most unsatisfactory examples, but with tho exceptions of tho Napier and Westport lines not a singlo New Zealand railway earned anything at all approaching the interest of tho money required for jts construction, It may be remembered that when Parliament appointed a committee to enquire into the working of tho Government Insurance department, there was general dissatisfaction expressed by policyholders at the manner iv which Sir Julius Vogel had been administering the affairs of tho institution. Thero had been indignation meetings at the various centres of population, and votes of censure passed at every one of thorn. Parliament therefore appointed a committee of which Mr Ormond was chairman, and certain alterations were recommended wliich tho Government haye siupo worried out.' i Amongst other things the committee recommended tliat tho management should be taken out of tho hands of a Board which wus largely composed of Mini, torial officials, and placed under a thoroughly competent manager. The Board was accordingly dissolved, and MrD. M. Luckio fell buck into his old position of genoral manager. But this was not what tho committee contemplated, nor did tho Government intend that tho arrangement should bo permanent. The following alterations havo now been made :—Mr F. W. Frankland, Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries, has been appointed Principal Ofticor of tho Government Insurance Department, in addition to his othor duties as Government Actuary and Statist. Mr D. M. Luckio is still to hold ofHcs (is CpmiflissiqnpF, but I4o' js to be subordinate to Mr Frankland, who has taken over tho management of tlie department. Mr Luckio, however, retains his statutory powers conferred on him bj- Act. Mr D'Arey Irvine has been appointed Superintendent as well as Inspector of Branches, and is only responsible to the ■ Actuary, and holds co-ordinate powers with Mr Luckie. The Secretary, Mr J. H. Richardson, is also responsible to tho Actuary and lias co-ordinate power, with Mr Luckie. Mr Frankland, wo may add, is regarded as ono of tho most able men in the colonies, and has a wonderful business grasp. Tho Government aro fortunate in retaining his service.. Mr Frankland, when in England recently was offered high portions iv somo qf tho leading English offices, but as ho considered himself bound to tho Government of New Zealand he declined nil offers to sevor his connection will) this colony.