The New Zealand Herald AUCKLAND, TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1866.

New Zealand Herald, Volume III, Issue 900, 2 October 1866, Page 4

The New Zealand Herald

AUCKLAND, TUESDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1866.

ai'KOTKMUrt AGENDO. " Give evcr>* man thine ear, but few thy voice r Take each man's censure, hut r»>ervo* thy judgment. This above all, —To thine owu be true Aud it iuus» collovv, us rlie night the day, Thoa oanst not then be falso to any rovi."

"We suppose wo may now consider tho removal 1 Voin Wellington (o .Sydney of tlie terminus of t'no main 1 runic line of the Panama steamers as a nine juu non of the continuance of the .service at all. Xew South Wales will not pay the half of the subsidy unless this change be made, and New Zealand is too embarrassed to be able to take upon herself the full charge of an annual payment of £110,000 for the performance of ft service which could bo just as well performed via Sue/, aud Melbourne for a fourth part of the money. The next tiling that suggests itself, now that Wellington is tio longer to be the terminus of t ho line, is, What business have the Panama steamers at Wellington at all P Is it to the interest of the colony of New South V; ales or that of New Zealand that the present route should be continued by way of Cook Straits? and, if not, by what'route should the scrvico be performed so as to best meet the interests of both colonies alike. Victoria is determined upon a fortnightly mail by way of Sue/., and if tho Panama service is to possess the coufidence of tho people of New South Wales the mails must be delivered with punctuality and despatch. This can never bo tlie case so long as the present route direct from Panama to Cook's Straits is persevered in. If this route south of Pitcairn's Island be persevered in, vessels will fail in keeping time, at least, every other voyage. In twelve months'" time the .service will break down. It-is utterly impossible that large vessels arriving light near the coast of New Zealand can make headway against the heavy westerly winds which prevail more or less throughout the year, and especially in tho winter season, and arrive light they must, just in the very part of the voyage where a strong head of steam is most needed; for by taking this direct route front Panama to Cook'.s Straits tho stock of coal jjiityt be drawn upon throughout the entire passage. In no way i.s the Cook's Straits route,the shortest. If a straight line were drawn from Panama to Sydney, it would not pass over Wellington, as has'been asserted; but, even supposing that it did so, it does not follow that the shortest lino from one port to another is tho most expeditious, any more than it does that by taking a direct line across .country to any particular spot, it would be reached more easily or quickly than by a more roundabout Jjufc more practicable route. Even on the great .circle principle, in smooth seaa oven, trade winds and favourable currents often render the longest way round the shortest way home, and this is peculiarly applicable in the case ot the easiest and quickest route between Panama and Sydney, via New Zealand. The quickest and safest passages will be made Irom Panama to Sydney, by the safe and easy route, in from 0° to 10® South lat. to as far as about 145 ° West; then to the westward of Rorotonga, through a sea that has been ntutdi traversed bv traders during 1 the last twenty years, and every part of which is well known. Tho position of the islands is well la<id down, many of them being highlands with deep water close to, and can be seen in those latitudes at long , distance both by day and night. i In taking this coursc, tho steamer j Panama would for the first three thousand ' miles meet wjth steady trades and a favour- : able current, would need to use but little coal, frequently indeed overrunning her j steam. She would thus save the bulk of her ' , I coal for the latter part of her voyage, when ;

she would most need it, the very reverse of what now takes place in pursuing the direct course from Panama to Cook's Straits. To say that the passage from Panama to Tahiti is a dangerous one is absolutely absurd. All navigators who have had any I experience in traversing the southern ocean j know this. Vessels would pass north of the j Dangerous Archipelago. Better passages could be made on the return voyage, calling at Tahiti, than will ever be made by the route now adopted. We have again and again pointed out the fact that the speediest route between Panama and Sydney will be fouud to be that above mentioned. In such case the most northernmost port of New Zealand will be the most suitable for the port of call at which to leave the New Zealand mail and passengers. Mongonui or the Bay of Islands, either of them unexceptionable harbours in every respect, have the rightful claim to be made the port of call. By this arrangement tho service to Sydney would be performed with certainty, and at the least in seven days less time than by way of Cook's Straits, and as the mail steamer would arrive at Mongonui fully six (lavs sooner thau it would arrive at Wellington, Mongonui would practically be a more central port than Wellington. The mail would reach Otago earlier, arriving on tho Ist day of the month at Mongonui than •it would if it arrived in Wellington, and were despatched from thence on the Gth. Both New South Wales and Now Zealand would benefit by the adoption of the Northern route. But most absurd of all is the ignorance manifested in some quarters respecting the comparative merits of New Zealand harbours. We start upon tho broad principle that in no part of New Zealand is there the accommodation required by the Panama Company, and therefore Mongonui is as well qualified to compete for the position of port of call as Wellington. In other particulars it is better qualified. It shows an utter ignorance of the harbours of New Zealand when Wellington is stated to be the best and safest. Safer or more easily navigable harbours than those of Mongonui, the Bay of Islands, or Auckland, it is impossible to have.