THE PROPOSED DOCK.

New Zealand Times, Volume LVX, Issue 3094, 3 April 1897, Page 3

THE PROPOSED DOCK.

k Meeting of Citizens.

A meeting of citizens was heldyoeterdriy. for tho purpose of forming a provisional committee having for its object tho-obtaining of public feeling p.s to the necessity of immediately proceeding with the construction of a graving dock In ‘Vyellingtolt. • xi , . Mr John Dritbie was called to the chair, and.in his opening &ddrd?£J caM thftty though ho had taken! no part in ConvQaifig thS meeting, the subject was one with which he had always had a great deal of sympathy, in fadt when lid was first elected a member of the Harbour Board, some 15 or 16 years ago, a graving doCk wad & flftft of the programme which he had mapped .oiit fOf himself to advocate. „But tho'demaiid for further Wharf* age- UcboHiabdatidh., wgs ,of more, urgency at that time, and tho doek :Kad to be aban- • doned. He could not help feeling, however, that the time had arrived when strious corisidOfalion should bo given to i he matter. In ten years’ time the ll*rb(W Board loan would have expired, and a large anidunt Ot ferenUe would ha available to them without ta/atioiL If the funds o! tho Board could be ed brindled that it dotikl bo undertaken earlier so much the Ue£fef« foiij would bo a great advantage to tho port. It mttst bo remembered that theirs was tho iilost central pdft and the largest commercial town in the coltfiij'. Thd they delayed the construction of a dock, afid vyMlo had to their vessels to other plaoos for repairs, tlie longer shipping companies refrain from making VVcHjGgton their headquarters. The cbihuiefcial interest had for many years suffered in this, >yay from the. absence, of ..a dbck v because it V?aa qnjy,. when . they, ; were . able to got thoroughly into touch with the headquarters of shipping compiinie'K .tbet-concessions con}?' be got. This, at any rate, was the experience of other ports. In the dock question was centred the building up of iho trade of this port. Tho Harbour Beard had done good work, but the one thing that wa3 wanted now to make this not only a pro-cmipenfc commercial port but a great distributing centre was a shipping hear)—and this should bo Undertaken at tho earliest possible moment. Guesswork figures had been quoted against tho proposal, and tho usual objections Bad been taken to the construction of the dock, but thede could hot be considered to have much weight. The fact was while they offered the greatest facilities iCir handling goods, combined with cheap port charges, they received no adequate advantages from the shipping companies in return.. .Before they could take up the position which they ought to occupy they must hd.76 & dock. Ho , had much pleasure in taking the Ohair. Mr Quick said Mr Macdonald had put into shape some resolutions, one of which he was about to which would systematise their efforts to a certain extent. Tho resolution was. That. tßose. present fifrm themselves into a committee, having .for i‘js object the creation of a healthy public opinion in the direction of the necessity for the cpfistfuqtioh of a graving-dock for Wellington. They were very much indebted to Mr Gale taking tb© matter in hand in the businesslike way he had. Until the last few days he had felt with Mr Beauchamp that it would be bettor for the citizens and Harbour Board to allow vessels to be towed elsewhere for repairs than to go in for a dock ; but when a man of the keen business ability of Mr Gale showed them how they could have a dock without being oppressed with serious taxation, it was time for them to consider that it was not only necessary to have it, but to ptit their house in order,. to systematise matters, and to get tip an agitation in some shape or form to bring it into effect. After referring to the friction which took place between the City Council and the Harbour Board when the latter took over the wharf, and the entente cordiale Which was subsequently brought about partly by his efforts, Air Quick said tho citizens must consider that the harbour was one of their most valuable assets, and it was necessary for them to go hand-in-hand With the Harbour Board to bring into effect a scheme on, the basis laid down by Mr Gale. Also, if possible, an endowment should bo obtained to enable the work to be carried on at the earliest possible moment. In formally moving tho resolution he would like to add * and that this meeting feels its indebtedness to Mr Gale for the industry and perseverance he has shown in tho promotion of his scheme. Mr John Plimmor seconded the motion. It was well known, he said, that he had written letters upon this subject, and bad taken a great interest in it, for the last 14 or 15 years* Ho reminded them that the opposition to the Manawatu Railway Was as strong as that against the present project, and that the opposition came from nearly the same people. The dock question was in the same position as the railway was at that time, when he. had advocated it in that very room. The population had increased so that it was ten times greater than it was at the time when the agitation first arose for the construction of tho dock, and the trade which would be done as a result of the establishment of the doek woulcL he submitted, pay for the interest uponTts construction. Mr Fisher said, in supporting: the resolution, he would like to say that he would .be glad to use the power.and influence he possessed in forcing on the measure. He remembe r ed the interest that their chairman bad taken in the dock question during the time of the general election in 1883. Mr Duthie had said at that time that he did not see why it should not be well under way in 12 months. Ho remembered also at that time that Mr Duthie had predicted tho completion of the Panama Canal in three years. (Laughter ) Where was now that Panama Canal ? (Laughter.) He gave Mr Duthie every credt for the steps he had taken at that time, whether he succeeded or not. He (Mr Fisher) was one in commen with many wfco saw that the dock was necessary for the building hp of a great maritime centre, and if they would consult the Post of tmtober 12 and October IS they would SCO that at that lime he had propounded a scheme and argued quite as exhaustively as it was now being argued by Mr Galo On those two occasions it was argued as exhaustively as it could bo argued by the members of tho Board. In the Board at that time as now, there was an influence which always opposed this dock. He would give them a little back history. .When the Oity Council owned tho Queen’s Wharf they leased it for <£20,000 per annum, and tho man who paid it made a fortune out of it, and was now living in London in tho enjoyment of it. What had become of that .£20,000 a year now ? What had become ctftlio proceeds equalling the fortune made by Mr Jackson ? Who got that £20,000 now ? -or, better, who was getting £IO,OOO now?— for the trade had more than doubled since the time to which ho referred. To be plain, but not offensive, his reply was, the people had got it who made the influence which had all alon- prevented the construction of the dock. The profits went to the shipping and mercantile classes. . A voice : They go to the shippers. Mr Fisher interrupter could say it was the shippers ; he preferred it the other way Ho said that if twenty years ago the wharf yielded £20,000 a year it ought now to yield a revenue of £15,000 a year, tho amount required for the construction and maintenance of the dock. Even as Mr Beauchamp put it. it would qui e pay the cost of a dock which would cost a quarter of a million. The City Council used to get tho £20,000 a year. There were other interests which got it now —the shipping and mercantile interests. 'They were getting profits which they had not earned, and they ought to be asked to find the £15,000 per annum to defray the cost of the construction of the (Jock. The

imperial and Colonial Government had refused to endow the harbour, but the question should bo put to the Colonial Government that they should endow the Harbour Board more liberally than in the past. If there was to b® created a healthy public feeling in this matter they must hoM a very much larger public meeting than this. (Hear, hear.) A meeting ot burgesses should be called in the Opera House or some other au-table place and the matter thoroughly threshed out. Mr Maginnity complained that Mr F’sher was endeavouring to laud himself and rob Mr Gale of tho credit, of advancing the scheme by which the construction < f this dock could ho brought about. He (Mr Maginnity) said that Mr Fisher had never propounded a scheme containing tho same amount of detail as Mr Gale had furnished.

Mr Fisher said that a reference to the Pont would show that he had

vir .M.i'iiriTiity repeated that the gentlemen who had previously brmigul forward tins question had never furnished detail such as that placed before them by Mr Gale, and to him alone the whole community a debt of gratitude for the exhaustive manner in which he had placed the facts and figures before them. At tbo time when he and Mr Fieher were appointed members of the City Council they were supervising the Queen’s Wharf, and very improperly expending .the funds derived from the shipping on improvements to the town instead of the port. He opposed the of tb« wharf to tho Harbour Board at tho time, but he had been glad ever since that the latter had taken it over, as he was convinced that the City Council was totally unfit to Cope with the requirements of the port. What the Harbour Board had done stood to their credit. They had provided facilities second to hone in the Southern Hemisphere. If it had been left to' the City Council they would have had no bsfbour whatever. He was glad to' see this moverr.ent in favour of a 'dock, which must enhance the value of the harbour as an asset, and he would assist it by every means in his power. Mr Fisher disclaimed any intention of robbing Mr Gale of any credit. Mr Gale had been a member of tho Harbour Board for four and a half years, and it was not wonderful that he had thought out a scheme in that time.

Mr Luke said ho did not think it would be advisable to force a scheme ou tho community involving the expenditure of so much money without first ascertaining the views of tho people on the subject. This construction of a dock had been a foremost question for the past 15 or 20 years, and it bad helped a good many men into prominence, and some of them into Parliament (Laughter.) It might be said he was an interested party. Well, ho was interested, iu common with tho whole of the people in the community. As far as the Patent Slip went it had rendered very excellent service in the past, and up to a certain period had enabled them to meet the requirements of the port. But they were traet that date. He thought the time had arrived for a graving dock, and consideringthe wonderful progress which the port was making he thought it Cottld bo made to pay expenses. Mr Macdonald said this meeting was merely of a preliminary character. The meeting of the Harbour Board yesterday had emphasised the necessity for public action in tho matteri . Members who had opposed the dock Wore Clearly not aware that the people of Wellington wor’o aliliost unanimously in favour of a dock. Mr Gale bad taken tbo bull by tho horns. The opinion had been expressed that the burden of constructing and maintaining the dock would fall on the ratepayers. It Was not the community but tho shipping companies which had enjoyed the benefit of tho expenditure on the harbour for many .years, and the difference between Mr Gale’s scheme and others which had been placed before them was that ho proposed to place the expense upon the right shoulders. Every shipmaster was warm in praise of the facilities in Wellington, which enabled them to handle cargo quicker he£e than anywhere else south of tho line, and to keep pace with thoir rapidly-increasing trade a dock was fi. necessity. It was only natural that the' shipping companies* representatives should fight ftgainst the innovation, but it would be found that in the face of overwhelming public opinion they would fall in and pay tho money. Messrs Beauchamp and.. Jack had set themselves up against public opinion. They should be invited to tho public meeting, and if they were prepared to ihodify their views after that well and good* if not they would surely see tbo advisability of resigning their seats and re-con-testing them with ratepayers* representatives who were for advancement, and let the matter bo tested per medium of tho ballotbJThd motion wafl put and carried. , . Mr L. L .Harris then moved, That a public nVeeiing of,Ratepayers and citizens be beld f-',t the Opera: House for the discussion of the quostltffc’ 6f tbo j early. establishment of a graving dock, and thwt the b'e invited to preside on that occasion. # 4 . Mr Cohen said he was convinced from what be had heard that the dock was not going to cost tho ratepayer** anything. A captain of a vessel had told him the oilier 4ay that tho accommodation which coat hiui JlioG iii XMaedj a cost him only .£ls iu ■Wellington, atid sitrtr)? thia being so the shipping people would not feft’l the imposition of an additional tax of 15d in every *€los herd* The* bad never before had such a sohemd as Mr ‘GaIS h*d kid before them. He seconded tho resolution. ..The’ motion was daWied. On tho motion of Mr Harris the following efOtflmittoo was set iijf tb hiakfc the Preliminary arrangements for a public mcetirig ?—M£ssts Fisher, FLui 4 mcr, Chapman. Richardson* Barnett, Maginnity, Macdonald, Quick; Luke, CobcHj Campbell,' Brandon arid tho mover. The ihoetirig thcii adjourned.