The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1866. MEETING OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume I, Issue 215, 13 November 1866, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1866. MEETING OF THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL.

This morning, 16 members of the Provincial Council met in the Provincial Hall, in consequence of an intimation they had received from his Houpr the Superintendent to meet him for the purpose of conferring on. him additional powers, in reference to the negotiations necessary to be entered into with persons likely to construct a railway from Nelsou to Cobden, in exchange for the waste Lauds of the proviuce. The members : present were as follow: — J. W. Barnicoat, Alfred Greenfield, Thomas Dodson, E. Baigent, B. Macmahon, C. Parker, Robert' Burn, Win. Akersteu, T. J. Thompson, F. Kelling, S. Kingdon, A. R. Oliver, Oswald Curtis. Henry Adams, Henry Beitt, and Joseph iSimmonds. On the motion of Mr. Parker, seconded by Mr. R. Burns, Mr. Barnicoat was requested to occupy the chair. The chairman informed the members present that they were called together for the purpose of empowering the Superintendent to take action iti refereuce to the railway, to a greater extent than he felt justified in proceeding, by the votes of the Provincial Council during the last sessiou. His Honor who was present would state liis views on the subject, after which the members would have an opportunity of expressing an opinion also. His Honor the Superintendent then explained the circumstances that had induced him to call the members together, which had arisen out of previous resolutions of the Council, and an Act passed by the General Government. Entertaining the opinion that the lands of the province were not sufficiently valuable to induce contractors to take them in lieu of a railway, he wished to be empowered by the council to advance a step further, and offer other inducements to contractors to undertake the work. Having explained at some length his views on the subject, his Honor said he thought the object would be attained by passing the followiug resolution : —

We, the undersigned members of the Nelson Provincial Council, being a majority of that Council, would support, at the next meeting of the Council, a bill authorising the Superintendent for the time being, to enter into an engagement, or to ratify any engagement he may have made,, on behalf of the province, with any person or company, for the construction of a railway from Nelson to Cobden and Westport; and undertaking to pay to such company or person, on the satisfactory completion of such railway, by a grant of land of the quantity and description provide! by a resolution of the Council dated Ist May, 1866; and also to lease the said line, or any part thereof, on its completion, to such person or company for a term of 21 years, at a nominal rental, and with proper restrictions as to the charges and other conditions to ba made for the conveyance of goods and passengers on such line.

Having understood that the meeting was a private one our reporter did not reach the Hall till several members had expressed their views on the above. resolution. On bis.entering Mr. Beitt had just coucluded his remarks, during which he expressed an opiuiou that the laud iu question would be found ,to contain minerals.

: Mr. Curtis concurred. in .the .opinion that minerals would probably be found to be the great attraction, which if not discovered and developed at, once would.be during the progress of the work, and should be held out; as inducements to parties engaging in it. He said opiuions might differ as to the extent to which, the lease should be offered, the circumstance of a country chauging so much iu 21 years that some might think a shorter period a safer terra to mention. A Hue would be kept, iu repair better by a company than the Government. The Council had expressed

no definite opinion as to whether the line was to be single or double. He presumed a light line meant a single one He concurred in the desirability of giving the Superintendent the necessary powers, thought all the conditions and restrictions necessary should bo ,left to the Government, as well as the way in which the subject should be laid before capitalists, whether Australian or English. The question for the meeting to decide was, did they concur in the proposal to lease the line at a nomiual rental for 21 years. . He did for one, and .he doubted not all present shared iu his opinion. '.

The Superintendent read a letter from Mr. Wrey, who was engaged in England in raising capital for similar undertakings. The writer said, from the statements in the paper? it was not clear to whom it was intended the railway should belong when it was made. If it was thought that contractors would bo found to take 10,000 acres of land per mile of railway, and after it was made the railway would become the property of the Provincial G-overnment, it was useless to expect the proposal to be successful. Mr. Parker dwelt on the importance of holding out sufficient inducements to contractors to undertake the work, and the removal of all obstructions- iu the conditions that were not absolutely necessary to protect the public. Mr. Oliver whilst concurring in the spirit of the resolution, though the discusssion on the. conditions that should be imposed on contractors premature. Till the railway was completed, it was not possible to prescribe terms as -to its future management, and it seemed to bt» sufficient now to give the Superintendent power to lease.

Mr. Simmonds said, as the railway, if carriod out, would be a great public benefit, ,;the fewer restrictions imposed on contractors th» more likely they would be to enter on the work. A country was useless without roads, aud if a railroad was made, it was of little consequence into whose hands it fell, as it could not fail to fix population, and develope the resources of the country. Messrs. Burn and Kelling here expressed their concurrence iu the resolution, which the latter now read to the meeting, and moved. The Superintendent expressed an opinion in favor of makiug the conditions as little restrictive as possible, not only in reference to the terni for which the line should be leased, but in regard to the minerals that might be found in the land. If a company were induced to eucounter the risk ou the one hand, they were eutitled to all the advantages that resulted from the speculation ou the other, lie stated in reply to a question by Mr. Akersreu, that the Provincial Government would furnish a map generally descriptive of the country through which the line was to pass, oue copy of which would remain ia Nelson, a second be sent to Australia, and a third to England. Messrs. Adams, Curtif, Kelling, Greenfield, Simmonds, and Bum having addressed the meeting, the chairman expressed his concurrence in the resolution. Whilst thinking that the minerals the land contained would amply compensate the contractors, who made the railway, he was willing to offer them any advantages in consideration of the incalculable benefit the railway would confer on the Province. After a discussion the chairman put the resolution, aa given above, which was carried unanimously, each of the members affixing his signature to it.

The business for which the Council was convened having been disposed of, the Superintendent said, as he might not have another opportunity of officially appearing before them, he would embrace it to obtain their sanction to some unauthorised expenditure, and not leave it to his successor to do so. The first item .was a large one and it related to the Maungatapu murders. It was £1,769 and w,ould probably amount to £1,850. Ha was sure the Council required no apology for this expenditure which had been forced upon the province. Nelson, although it had impoverished its exchequer, might feel proud of -the vigorous manuer in -which the murderers were arrested aud prosecuted. T;he expenses of the telegraph, rendered iiec.ess'ary, by the murders, had amounted to £104 12s, 6d., and would probably extend

to £200. The sum of^olO bad been expended '\n a Queen's warehouse, £100 on thV* Paris Hud ' Bombay Exhibition, £61 11s. .9(V.'6h (lie road to I)ovedale>Valley, and£49.7s6don the embankment of the v Wairoa river, tn, reference to the waterworks he was sorry to say that a letter sent to". Messrs. Ransotrie and Simms, iu England, had by a mistake of the post office been rriissen't to Queensland, and gone all round the Australian colonies, by which a great delay had occurred in the arrival of the plant. He had now written directly to Messrs. Ransome and Simms for the plant. They are a respectable and reliable firm, and would hold themselves responsible for its quality. He pi-oposed to take £5000 out of the sum voted for roads on the West Coast towards the completion of the roads between the ports of the Grey and Buller. This was made necessary by the rush to the Pakihi diggius. He also recommended that the sum of £200 should be appropriated to public baths in Nelson. After a conversation in which Messrs. Parker, Macmahou, Keliing, and Oliver joined, a resolution moved by Mr. Curtis, approving of the conduct of the Superintendent, in relatiou to the unauthorised expenditure, was unanimously carried. The Superintendent thanked the Council for this expression of good feeling. As he was about to leave for England, he would take that opportunity of returning them his grateful thanks for the manner in which they had always supported him in his office as Superinten dent, he hoped his successor would be equally fortunate. He trusted it would be considered that he had always acted for tho welfare of the Province, if he had not it was certainly his own fault, for whilst he had been Superintendent he had met with no obstruction from the Provincial Council. He should always remember the cordial support he had invariably received from them, and the entire absence of all factious opposition and unpleasant restraint he had experienced at their hauds. The proceedings then terminated.