WELLINGTON MANAWATU RAILWAY.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 957, 4 July 1890, Page 31

WELLINGTON MANAWATU RAILWAY.

| A DISCUSSION IN THE HOUSE. I A lively discussion took place in the | House yesterday week on the question lof purchasing the Manawatu Railway. Mr | Samuel asked the Minister for Public Works, I If the Government will take into considera- | tion the question whether it is desirablo | that the Colony should acquire the Welling- | ton and Manawatu Railway at an early I period, and whether it is advisable that, | with that object, the necessary notice should | be given to the Company owning that rail- | way ? He explained that his intention was that the Government should from time to | time consider the advisableness of giving one year's notice, which was necessary | before the purchase could be begun. The | line had cost about £740,000, and the 5 per I cent debentures, which the Colony had to take over, amounted to £680,000. • | The Minister for Public Works said the | question referred to was one that had been | under the consideration of the Government | for. some time. The pro 3 and cons had* been 8 discussed; and the necessity’for acquiring I the line had been urged on the Government |by the mombers for the distriot, but he re. 1 gretted to say that at the present time the • Government wore not in* a position to give | the required notice. They were aware that by the completion of the Napier-Palmerston 4 line the value of tho Company’s line would be greatly enhanced. They would look into the matter very oarefully and at some future time, if possible, make some proposals on the. subject.

-Mr Marohant (who moved the adjournment of tho House) called the attention of members to the very great disadvantages under which producers in the districts fed by the line suffered because of the Company charging short distance rates, while the Government line beyond it charged long disi tance ([rates. In class D (general merchandise), in consequence of this difference, they had to pay 58s 6d from New Plymouth to : Wellington, whereas on the Government i rates they should only pay 41s; from Hawera 535, where they should pay 36s ; from Wanganui 465, as against 32s ; from Marton 375, as against 28s ; and from Danevirke 38s, as against 295. Thus the producers were pay. ing 38 per cent, more than they should through the line being in private hands. In class E, grain, produce, and flax, the proportion was much the same, except that the producers had to pay 33 "ner cent. JT'an For sheep and cattle 'they had to gpay 116 s for a truck of sheep, where they would pay 83s under the State; from Wanganui, 99s as against Vis ; from Marton, 82s as against 63s ; and from Palmerston, 67s as against 645. For sheep, therefore, they had to pay on increase of 33 per cent, and for cattle the increase was 28 per cent. In other matters there was ;also a very large increase. He thought these questions only needed to be placed before the public, for the line was the key to the East and West Coasts of the Island. Then again| as to fares, the Company did not follow the State practice of giving return istations, so that one had to pay each way, ;While he could travel on to New Plymouth on return conditions.

i Mr Buchanan, as chairman of directors of !» freezing company in Wellington, oould quite bear out what Mr Marohant had said. .There was no question the Government did » great injustice when they allowed the line ;to be made privately, for they could not [expect settlement to progress in the face of [these conditions. L uodgkinson thought the House must jbe very blind indeed if it could not see that f.nia was another attempt to saddle the xT° D nn W *r 11 a n ' (“Hear, hear,” and L, 0 • It was just a sample of what had P®® 1 ? on . * or years—distriots were Mfvilling to pat the country to any expense pr their own benefit; and here was £740,000 Su „ :?. r * He advocated selling the railways, ft;' Ho, ) Well, that was what was done in Ffisny an other parts of the world, and had ■everywhere been successful, j Wilson pointed out, in reply to an

interjection by Mr Seddon that the Company did not pay dividends, that the Company had to pay local rates and property tax, which came to £6OOO or £7OOO, though last) ear the Company had a iittle over that amount. Thus the line would pay about 5 per cent in the hands of the State, Mr Fish deprecated the initiation of this debate for the interest of certain gentlemen whose interests were in the district. This was just another effort by the people of Wellington to saddle the Colony with a debt. They had 30 or 40 acres of foreshore given to the city, and this Companyhad been endowed with large areas of land which the State was evidently expected to buy back at 30s an aore. This was just an electioneering feeler, and he had no doubt members uninterested would see it. If the rates were anomalous, let the thing be adjusted by the Government raising theirs. The people of Wellington were never happy until they got the line, and now they would not bs happy till they sold it and got interest on their money. Mr Izard said the Company had never paid any interest to its shareholders, and had discharged a duty which should have fallen on the Colony. This line was provided for in the Pnblio Works Statement years ago, and the people who had stepped in and built the line out of their own pockets got nothing for it but abuse. Tho Company had almost been taxed out of existence, and bad honestly tried to do its best in. the interest of the distriot. (Hear, hear.) Mr W. P. Reeves satirised the argument of Mr Wilson as to the line paying if it did not have to pay property tax. With respect to the rates, he advised Mr Marohant to come down to tho South and compare the conditions there with those on this line. He (Mr Reeves) unfortunately represented a part of the Colon)' that had to be sweated and bled for other parts—so muoh so that their accounts were not kept separately. When that condition was altered, he would be prepared to consider this scheme. Mr Samuel resented the tone of Mr Fish, and assured the House that he (Mr Samuel) would not support the acquisition of the line except on the most thorough information.

Mr Beetham bore testimony to the large heartedness and enterprise of Wellington and Manawatu citizens in constructing a line which had undoubtedly enhanced the productiveness of the Government line north of Palmerston. Replying to insinuations that he had favoured the Manawatu line, he said the Government would have been in a much stronger position if they had constructed the line to Woodville, when they would have got much of the goods traffic that now went through the gorge. Moreover, if there had been competition between the two lines the Government would have been able to purchase to Manawatu line more advantageously. Mr Soobie Mackenzie endorsed Mr Fish’s remarks as to the impropriety of discussing such matters in this way. Those who advocated the purchase came before the House fully prepared with information, and no one was able to reply to them except on the spur of the moment. He hoped Mr W. P. Reeves would, when the proposal to buy the Midland Railway came up, take the same line of argument as he had on this question. (Hear, hear.) He also deprecated the failure of hon members who brought these questions up to recognise their responsibility. It would pay the Colony better to pay the difference in rates than to take the burden of this line over. Mr Seddon wanted to know where the money was to be got for this purchase ? It cams to this, that members Baid, “ The session isn’t going to last long ; let us talk to our constituents.” (Laughter.) Having no axe to grind—the Midland railway being pretty well fixed up—(laughter)—he was able to take a broad view of this question. (Cheers.) He thought the Colony must take the railway over, or by-and-bye it would have to pay more for it than it would now. He favoured taking over this and other private lines. Sir George Grey reminded the House that in 1879 this railway was being well carried on, but there were those in the House who wished to make fortunes by private railways. He refused to assist them, and was turned out of office because he would not assist those speculations, of which this was one, (Hear, hear.) He maintained that these railways had led to many jobs, and suggested that the inference was that the Government should have control of all the railways, so as to prevent large companies doiDg very great injury to the producers. Hon members forgot that they sat here to wind up the jobs that Jwere not yet completed, and for that end a new Parliament was not to be allowed to. assemble until these things had beon adjusted. Let them, then, do as quickly as possible the mean work they had met for ! (Hear, hear.) Mr Blake asked.whether the Company would keep the land and te paid this large sum of money.

_ Mr Fisher did not think this line bore ally similarity to othor private lines, such as the Waimea or Kaihu Valleys. He sliculd prefer, however, that the line remained in the hands of the Company, who had given a pattern and a model to the Government.

Mr Marchant, replying, denied that he had neglected a sense of responsibility, and explained that the figures he had auoted were supplied to him by the Commissioners.

The motion for adjournment was . then formally negatived, and the discussion ended.