RAILWAY GOODS DELIVERY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13463, 16 April 1907, Page 5

RAILWAY GOODS DELIVERY.

THE ABANDONMENT OF THE CON TRACT SYSTEM.

The following is a copy of a letter which lias been received by the secretary of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce from the Minister for Railways, the Hon. \Y. HallJones, relating to the resolution passed by the Chamber protesting against the abolition of delivery, under contract, of goods from the Auckland railway station: —

With reference to your wire of lltli inst., in regard to the resolution passed by your Chamber, protesting against the abolition of delivery, under contract, of goods from Auckland railway station. I have the honour to inform you that the tenders received showed such an advance 011 the previous contract price that 1 felt it my duty, in the interests of consignees, to decline them all. I may say that in Dunedin. where the contract was abolished some years ago. no protect has since been made, and consignees have apparently made satisfactory arrangemertts for the delivery of their goods. On one previous occasion, when the contract price at Auckland was at a very high figure, strong representations were made, urging that certain lines of goods should he excluded from the contract. I have every wish to assist the merchants and others dealing with the railway. but I am of opinion that it will be found that the alteration will ultimately work for the benefit of consignees, more especially as the contract system has a tenJencv to restrict competition by putting I lie work beyond the power of the smaller firms."