Public Works Statement.

Otago Witness, Issue 1500, 14 August 1880, Page 21

Public Works Statement.

[By Telegraph.]

Wellington, August 6 th. The Hon. E. OLIVER made his Public Works Statement to-night. He Baid: Sir, following the usual course. I propose to begin by briefly reporting the operations of the Public Works Department for the seven months which have elapsed since I had a like honour last December. I shall condense my statenaenfc as much as possible, as I do not wiahto weary the House with a multiplicity of details, and because it will, when printed, be accompanied by full reports from the various heads of departments, by copious tables, and by maps, which I hope hon. members will find useful, as exhibiting the progress we have made in the construction of the railways already authorised. NORTH ISLAND RAILWAYS.

Kawakawa Kail way.— Beginning with railway construction in the north of _ this Island, the work on the Kawakawa coal line has been continued. A bridge, which is the moat important work except the terminal wharf, is in course of construction. Whangarei-Kamo Bailway.— The works lnt on the Kamo contract of the Whangarei railway have been much delayed by the contractor, and are not yet finished, although the contract time has expired. The delay has seriously in. terfered with the development of the coal trade of the district; and witha view of assisting this industry, I have sanctioned the laying of a branch to connect the main line with a Bhipping place in the borough of Whangarei, the local authorities having permitted the use of the streets for that purpose. An exploratory survey between Helensville and Whangarei has been made, for the purpose of ascertaining the practicability of constructing a railway through that country. Another survey of a similar character has been made of the district between Whangarei and Kawakawa. Eeports on these routes, with explanatory maps, will be placed in the hands of hon. members. The Kaipara-Waikato railway has been finished satisfactorily, and the station buildingß are nearly completed. The line between the Newmarket junction and Waikomiti(?)hasbeen finished and opened for traffic. The gap, however, between Helensville and Auckland, caused by the non-completion of the WaUakarei contract still remains, and the condition of the ' work at the summit tunnel gives no promise that it will be finished in the contract time, which ends in September next. The workshop site contract at Newmarket is being pushed on energetically. The contractor for the reclamation in Auckland having failed to carry out his contract;, it was taken out of his hands, and a portion of it has been re-let to another contractor. The Ohaupo contract has been finished, and the Waikato railway is open as far south as Te Awamutu, about two and a-half miles from the confiscated boundary. Waikato-Thames Railway.— The Grahamstown contract of the Waikato-Thame» railway is completed, and the Sbortland contract nearly to tho Waikato contract, extending 12 and three-quarter miles east from Hamilton, is piogreseing favourably. A eurvey of this line haa been completed from Hamilton to Te Aroha and up ttie Thames Valley for 13 miles from Grahamstown, leaving about 19 miles still unsurveyed. FoxtonNew Plymouth this line was opened as far soutb as Scratford on the 19th December, aad a further section to N^rarei will, st is exprcted, bo opea in a few weeks. Soma other portionß of this lino, between Stratford and Carlyle, are under contract. Some are being done by day labour, and between O^rlylo and Wanganui the WWotara contract is approaching completion. The Waverley section of the Carlyle wharf contract has been let, while S'tfno portions of the works intheneighbourhood of Carlyls ere now bom« prepared for absorbing uoemi >i>yeil l»b mr Commodious workshops have ln.ei.l bu.lc at Warsganui, and a contract baa ! <■■ n iwde for a cow railway station and wharf a< Foxt n.

Wellington - Woortvillo Railway.— On the Wellington- Woodville railway tho works of the Carterti.ii h. c ii<n, over 20 wiles, have beetv vfgorou-ly I'tn t'cii 'Vi by tim dfipai^in ■•«(., t! c ave-Af *i" m'*r f nun employed b«*?i)>f 275 It is ex > • «i -bat by S<-p<ember ncxfc the whole dista o se; ween Wdinpton »ud Maaterton will be .'pen for traffic. The Greytown branch wjw opened on the 26th May, With the

view of finding work for the unemployed in this district some men have been engaged in earthworks and bush clearing. On the Opaki section, beyond the Carterton contract, and on the Crofton sections of the Wellington-Foxton railway, sometimes as many as 350 of the unem" ployed have been set at work. This number has now fallen below 100. Napier-Woodville.— The railway is nearly completed to Makofcoko, about 70 miles from Napier. The last contract of five and threequarter miles will shortly be ready for public traffic. The works are being pushed on towards Tahorite, about 12 mileß farther, and Burveys of the country to the south have been completed for about 15 miles more. Napier- Wallingford Line— An examination of the country from Napier to Wallingford through the districts between the Tukiki Kiver and the sea has been made, but the country appears to be very unsuitable for railway construction. MIDDLE ISLAND RAILWAYS. Nelson-Greymouth.— The works on the Nelson to Greymouth line on the northern end have been continued to the completion of the railway, connecting the city of Nelson with the port and an extension three miles beyond Foxhill by the Bellgrove contract, now almost completed. At the Greymouth end, the Stillwater contract — an extension of the original Brunner railway for three- quarters of a milehas been found to be a work of considerable difficulty and expense, the contract price for 63 chains being L 12,234 for formation only. The harbour works at Greymouth, which have been carried on as a part of the improvements designed to develop the coal industry in that district, were almost suspended for some little time, while awaiting Sir J. Coode's report. It arrived in March last, and it is satisfactory to find that the work already executed has been approved and adopted by him as part of his design. Hokitika-Greymouth Railway.— Some small contracts on the Greymouth-Hokitika Railway have either been finished or are near completion, and no new works were bsgun this year. Picton-Hurunui Railway.— The last one and aqaarter miles of the railway from Pioton to Bknheim have been completed, and the Btation buildings at Blenheim are in hand. Hurunui-Waitaki Railway, with branches. — The new works on the main line from Hurunui to Waitaki are the Waipara contract, extending from Amberley to the Waipara River, and the Weka Pass Bection, ntae miles Joug, a continuation of the line through the Pass to Waikari and Hurunui Plains. The latter Bection. was reserved from contract in order to provide work for the unemployed of Christchurob. Springfield Branch.— The Springfield cutting was completed in February last. Little River and Akaroa Branch, — The Ellesmere formation contract on the Little River and Akaroa branch was finished in March. A contract has just been made for a portion of the platelaying. Ashburton Branch.— The first 10 and threequarter miles of the Ashburton branch will open for traffic on the 7th of April. Opawa Branch.— On the Opawa branch the bridge over the Opawa River has been built by contract, and the remainder of the work, with the exception of another bridge, has been reserved in order to give work to the unemployed in the neighbourhood. On the Canterbury Interior main branch the only wcrks which have been carried on during the year are two bridges, those over the Eyre and Temuka Rivers, which aye now finished. Work on lines south of the Waft^ki has been almost entirely confined to the improvement of stations, the increase of wharfage, and other I necessary accommodation. BBANOH LINES. Further railway extension has been made on the following branch lines, viz. :— The Livingstone branch, the Catlin's Uiver, Tapanui, Edendale, Lnmsden, Otautau, and Orepuki branches; and on the Otago Central railway. On this latter the Wingatui section is under contract, and at the Hindon Bection work ha 3 been afforded to large numbers of the unemployed. The great depression from which nearly all our industries has suffered lately has thrown many workrsoßEt ont of employment, and the Government have been called on to alleviate the consequent d? stress by finding workfor them on the railways and roads which are in course of construction. We have thought it our duty to comply with these requests, and I am Borry to say that no less a number than 1674 of tbase men. are now being employed at low wages in various parts of the Colony. Although it is to be deplored that in a new country of such great natural resources as New Zealand this state of things should exist, yet it is by no means a new experience in the history of the Colony. At various times during the last 20 years the authorities have found it necessary to afford similar temporary employment, but, fortunately, the need for the interference of the Government has in every case soon passed away, and has been succeeded by a large demand for labour in the ordinary industries of the country and at the highest rates of wages known in any part of the world. I believe, Sir, that honourable members will agree with me in thinking that this season of depression will also pass away, and give place to another period of prosperity not inferior to that which we have until lately enjoyed. Tho disorganisation of the labour market is already bringing its own remedy by bringing into existence new industries in the > chief centres of population, and developing the self-reliant spirit of our working classes. There are also the most encouraging indications of a revival of the goldfields industry, which may be of the greatest value to the Colony at large. Meantime it is satisfactory to find that although many of the men thus employed by ua are engaged in work to which they are unacoustomed, yet from their labour the Colony has obtained a fair equivalent for the outlay. GENERAL PROGRESS IN RAILWAY CONSTRUCTION. The sums voted by Parliament for additional railway works in the last session, exclusive of preliminary surveys for lines not yet authorised, amounted to L 2.308.700. On the 31st March L 856.550 of this sum had been expended and liabilities incurred amounting to L 910,506, making a total of L 1,797,056,, 797,056, leaving an unexpended balance on last year's votes of L 541.644. Recognising the necessity for spreading the expenditure of the remaining Public Works fund over a period of at least the next three years, and believing that some of the railway works had been adopted in times of great prosperity, Parliament would not disapprove in our changed circumstances of having an opportunity afforded of reconsidering them, I have not been in haste to press on the construction of new works. In facfc in the Middle Island only one new section of railway has been commenced since the end of our last session. Many new sections were got ready for contract, and in some instances tenders were invited and received ; but the grave considerations connected with a falling revenue, and the increasing deficit from our finished railways, could not be evaded, and obliged us to defer tho acceptance of a some of thoae tenders, in order that time might be given for re-examining our future railway policy. ROADS. The expenditure of the votes for roads ia

this Island has for the moat part been entrusted to thfc Various local governing bodies. The main xoada under the charge of the Government h&ve been maintained as usual during the year. These include the Great South road (Auckland), the Tauranga-Taupo, and the TaupoNapier roads, as well as several other local roads. A considerable amount of work has been done. The road works instituted, on the West Coast, between Waingoijgoro and Stony Rivers, crossing the Waimate Plains, have been carried on satisfactorily, and the two sections of the road will probably meet in a few days. . The character of the country is very favourable, no natural obstacles having been met. The cross - road froxa Stratford to Opunakethrough the bush is also being^pwsi^^ on, and good progress is beiug made. The' amount expended in roads and bridges.in the< South Island during the past year is" very small, and no new works of importance haye 1 been undertaken. SNAG&ING THE THAMES RIVER, Although this is not such a public work as ie usually referred to in a Statement of this kind, I cannot refrain from mentioning the selfreliant and public-spirited efforts made by Mr Frith, Matamata, to remove the snags from the river Thames at his own cost. In these days, when colonists are too much in the habit of looking to the Government for almost everything, it is refreshing to see a public work so useful to the' community begun and carried on and finished by a private person, without even an application having been made to the Government for aid from the funds of the Colony. WATER-RACES. As will be seen from the report and statements attached, the expenditure upon waterraces does not appear to have produced the large benefits which might naturally havebeen expected from it. None of the companies subsidised by Government have been a ■ success, and in most cases the undertakings ■ have been abandoned. The total expenditure - and liabilities upon water-races upon gold--fie'ds up to the 31st March amounted to L 441,633. Of this amount L 42.329 gives no • return whatever, and works which have costL 86.485 have been handed over to local bodies,, while from those races which are comparatively succesful, viz , the Charleston, Nelson> Creek, Waimea, and Mount Ida races, costing; L 312,819, the yearly return v presents only about one per cent. The number of men, however, to whom these races afford the means of remunertive employment is 771, and their ■ earniugs per man average Ll4O a year. THE COAL INDUSTRY. Almost every mon.h brings new discover 7 of coal in some part of the Colony, and if J™ become apparent that New Zealand ia c* , O g!j tionally rich in this mineral. Our most i' J^tt. ant lines of steamers are now almost wh' ii J , _ " plied from the coalmines of the Go 7 J "/3 the more extended use of native ooa) l ■i/'o^, a saving of LBSOO on ourrailwaya* , jJSSgg Island for the current year, m » jSntoiS almost equal amount heretofore _~: i r"" Lc ~t in the North Island. Bayed on thoße WOBKING BAItW .„„ ™wS f f 51 d P° rts of gentlemen « c , c i ii a £« 1?A of * reafc service, and point «n^ISStL. * organisation and practice, Tl? JnS* * ' c beett alread y removed, or !?«,??««?? ' of removal 5 and the "iota question o£ W , management of the railways ia under cowdr rfttioll ia connQct i on w nh the repots ot tffr c Commissioners. The Working itwlways J7 , epa rtment began the last financial period w >er circumstances exceptionally unfavouralsf ), heavy floods in the South having interrupt*/ x fa Q tra ffi c over mQre than IQQ mile g 0 £ line, cj»' iß jng iogßi ogß revenue, as well as a, large expeV iiture for repairs. Amongst the fiist eife.t!f Bo f the commercial depression from which we, aavebeen suffering has been a diminution os our railway traffic. The result was to be and the efforts of the department r <rere directed to obtaining greater economy in our system of railway management, by working with a smaller staff of officers and men, and by reducing the number of trains, and the speed at which they were run. A considerable saving has been accomplished, while the convenience of the public has not been materially curtailed. The train service hast already been reduced by 370,000 miles a year. The staff has been reduced by 266 men, and it is estimated that these and other economies which have up to this time been effected will save in the year upwards of L 44,000. Serious and constant attention is still being given to economic changes. I am satisfied that the working expenses will be much further reddced, as these alterations to which I have referred can hardly be said to have commenced until after the prorogation of Parliament. They had but a small portion of the last financial period wherein to operate. I am sorry to say that for the nine months ending 31st March the railways only gave a return equal to riifrhtly under 2| per cent, per annum, while the rate of interest which we have to pay is over five. The loss on the cost of lines, which stands at L 8.629.582, was at the rate of L 237,730 per annum, and had to be furnished from taxation. In the prosperous years through which we have just passed we did notseriously regard the railway deficit, but thought, onlyof the immense advantages of railways in settling and developing the resources of the' country. We pointed to these advantages as justifying our expenditure, and spoke of our railways as a remunerative undertaking, whether they contributed interest on their cost or not. Now, if the Colony were a large jointstock company, with equal shares and an entire community of interests, this view might be correct ; but the benefits of railways are very unequally distributed, many districts being quite unprovided with them, while all have to contribute to the taxation from which the loss is made up. This charge on the Colonial revenue is so great that it is a serious element in the expenditure of the Colony, and it becomes questionable whether a desirable outlay in some of the departments of the Government can be continued if our railways be not made more nearly self-supporting. The failure to obtain greater direct return from our railways, such as is looked for in ordinary commercial enterprises, is no doubt mainly attributable to the smallness of our population. We are still a small community in point of numbers, and are thinly scattered over a wide extent of country. Our people are so few that they fail to furnish traffic enough, eitherof passengers or of goods, to make ourlines pay at the ordinary rates hitherto current. We have already many more miles in proportion to our population that either England France, the United States, Canada, or any of the Australian Colonies. In Great Britain there is one mile of railway to about 2000 inhabitants, while in New Zealand there is one mil* to every 406. For every mile of railway in Victoria there are 108 per cent more cus- - tomers than we have, and in the United States they have 43 per cent., in Canada 53 per cent., xn New South Wales 148 per cant., in Great . Britain 383 per cent., and in France 614 per cent, more people per mile of railway than in New Zealand. If this contrast with othercountries were confined to the South Island,

Which contains by far the larger portion _of our railways, it would show the disproportion still more foroibly, for instead of having 4Uo people per mile of railway, which I have Baid is the average for the Colony, the South Island has only 330 people per mile: In New Zealand our average reoeipts per mile last year were L 648, while m England they amount to L 3485. Yet even with these comparatively large receipts the railway dividends declared in England only average 4J per cent, per annum. Next in nn portance, in my opinion, among the reasons for want of commercial success in railway working is the needlessly low tariff adopted in many districts. Between two places to which my attention has been called, where before the railway was made the freight charged .was hd per ton, our railway rate is 16a 10d; m another instance the former rate was L 6, and is now 17s 2d ; in another it has been reduced from L 5 to 22* 2d. No doubt at the commence. by Stating travelling and cheapening the Sansit "f goods, to open the country and develop its resources, we now discover that we Save gone too far, and find ourselves face to face with a state of things as unpleasant as it was unexpected. I hope, Sir, that I shall not Je misunderstood as advocating any liberality in the management of our railways. The best policy is to reach the multitude. I fully adopt the opinion expressed by Mr Gladstone when discussing the best means of making the Metropolitan District railway pay. He said that, *'as a rule, the State or individual or company thrives the best which dives deepest down into the mass of the community, and adapts its arrangements to the wants of the greater number." But, Sir, our population is, aa I have already said, bo small, and the country so sparaely settled, that rules of the kind ciust quoted have, amongst us only a limited application.. The large use made of the railways, however, proves that if the people were as numerous a 8 the resources of the country warrant us in expecting they will become, our railways would pay for .more than merei interest on cost, even with our preset tariff. The tonnage carried on our railways compares very favourably with the neighbourine Colonies. Victoria carried 1062 tons, New South Wales 2299, tons, and New Zealand 2247 tons per 100 of population. The number of passengers on the New Zealand railways last year was- 2,932,279, being., 5/78 per cent, of our population. The number in Victoria was 3 829,256, being 4.37 per cent of the population. Wow our freight traffic is not capable of mdefiSteincrease however low the rate may be, nor can we raise our tariff beyond a fair pay. ment for the services rendered, however much we might be inclined to do so. Our principal railways flkirt the sea coast, and we are *cSrfSS in ,onr traffic by the competition of water-carriage. On the inland railways, too, the tariffs are at present more strictly limited than they would usually be, because of the cheapness of horse food and the competition of ordinary vehicles. Even if this were, not so I should not in any case advocate excessively high rates. It win take time to develop a true system of tariff adapted to our circumstances. Our efforts must necessarily be carefully made and constant y watched, but railway rates that are only designed to bring in 5 per cent, on cost surely cannot be considered high. If competition in modes of conveyance permit their adoption, we meed not despair, I believe, Sir, of our ultimately attaining a good result. We have covered the country with these stimulating and civilising agencies. In their neighbourhood aettlement, population, and industries will increase, and then the railways will become, if we desire it, aids to our revenue instead of a eourceof temporary embarrassment. AtpreBent, however, there is a feeling of great disappointment at the result of the half-yearly balance-sheeet, and amongst other remarks it ha 3 been proposed to sell the railways. No doubt, Sir, if we could find a purchaser for them at cost price such a course might seem to present' an easy solution of the difficulty. It fe a* suggestion that might have been expected, and' has at least one merit, that of exceeding simplicity. Given a system of railways worked' at a loss, and to end that loss sell the railways. Nevertheless I fear, Sir, the proffered solution will not help ns much, for it is clear that no company would buy our lines except at a price calculated to yield at least the current rate of interest, which may at present be Btated at 7 to 10 per cent.. These are the rates given for money advanced on freehold security, eubject to little risk, and requiring from the owner scaroely any personal attention ; while railway investments are exposed to dangers of various hinds, such as floods, heavy payments for accidental injuries, depression of trade,, and so on. If, therefore, we seek to sell our railways, which ate now paying only 2£ per cent, interest, we shall have to accept for them a sum representing only a portion of their cost. Probably we Bhould have to face a loss of millions of money, and certainly we should still be liable for the payment of the whole of the interest as at present, while we should abandon all chance of retrieving our position by improved management, and forfeit for the railway system the advantages of increased population and growing industries. If the Colony were to sell the railways to a private firm what would that firm do to ensure a profit? It may be answered in general terms that it would manage better. Well, Sir, I admit that the management is capable of improvement. I concede that the Government will probably never be able to manage so well as a private firm might ; but no private firm is likely to engage in such a gigantic undertaking, and gross mismanagement by large public companies is a state of things with which we are not entirely unacquainted. Of course a railway company would try to charge higher rates for carriage, but why cannot we ourselves do that ? Why should we submit to a heavy loss of capital to begin with, and then to the payment of extreme rate 3as well ? Not the least objection to the proposal is that a company occupying such a position would be a great power in the State, whose influence would probably not always be wielded in the interests of the people. I feel quite sure, Sir, that it will never be necessary to accept this alternative; for I believe that careful and intelligent management, and the natural growth of traffic, will yet make our railways commercially successful. THE KOTAL COMMISSION. Sir, the House will remember that at the end of last session the Government' expressed their opinion that the character of the various lines of railway in course of construction had not been sufficiently examined before their adoption; that in the prospect of an insufficiency of funds to complete them, they ought to be reconsidered. We announced out intention of endorsing the appointment of a Royal Commission "to make a fuller and more complete investigation of the cost and economical value of the works commenced and proposed tbat it would be possible for the Government to complete before the next Beßßion of Parliament." His Excellency (he Governor accordingly commissioned five

gentlemen from different parts of the Colony to make the inquiry. The Commission promptly entered on their duties, and after taking evidence in nearly every district in which railways are being constructed or are {proposed to be made, they have presented a very valuable report as the result of their labour. Copies of this report have by command been laid before Parliament, and although the conclusions at which the Commissioners have arrived may not be universally approved, yet we feel sure that the Colony will recognise the impartial system on which their inquiries have been conducted, and we believe that these gentlemen have well earned the thanks of the community. In saying that the Government [ would not be understood as adopting implicitly the whole of their recommendations, it is perhaps hardly, we think, within the bounds of possibility that a report dealing with so many works and proposals in all parts of the Colony should be accepted in every particular. For the present, however, even the restricted programme recommended by the Commissioners is far beyond our means. The estimated cost beyond the present liabilities of completing the lines of railways authorised by Parliament i 3 L 6,666,200. That being the case it becomes sufficiently apparent that we must greatly modify our scheme of railway construction, postponing some important parts of it until population and settlement have largely increased, and until the railways already constructed have i become more nearly self- supporting. We have not the funds necessary to complete it at present, nor will pur ordinary revenue bear the increased demand which every additional mile of railway makes on it for the yearly loss on working. We have no alternative, therefore, but to confine our operations to the extension of some of the incomplete lines to such nearest points as will bring them into use, and as far as [possible make the expenditure already incurred to some extent reproductive. Of the amount voted last year for Public Works, no less a sum than L 2,356,729 was for actual liabilities which we found in existence, and further expenditure to a considerable amount' was made necessary by these liabilities. .Realising the position of the Public Works fund, we have endeavoured, Sir, to minimise the expenditure, and to spread it over as large a space of time as possible. We have stopped many new works even after contracts had been prepared by the depart ment, and tenders received. Nevertheless the country has learned from my hon. friend the Colonial Treasurer that the state of the Public Works fund is most unsatisfactory. In his Financial Statement the Colonial Treasurer showed that the total ways and means on the 31st March last 'was L 3,262,410, and that the liabilities of the Public Works fund on same date amounted to L 2,455,813; reduceable, however, by L 315.763 advances in the hands of officers of bhe Government, thus leaving a balance of L 1,122,860 on 31st March, 1880, clear of liabilities. Since the 31st of March the ways and means have been augmented by miscellaneous receipts and recoveries to L 29.034, and during the four months ending 31st July the liabilities of the fund have been unavoidably increased to the extent of L 330.871. Adding, then, L 29.934 to the balance of L 1.122,860 on the 31st March, and deducting L 330.871, we arrive at L 821.923 as the available balance on 31st July. The position of the account may perhaps be stated more clearly thus : The ways and means on 31st July amounted to L 2.677.91 0178 Id; consisting of cash inhand,Ls93 910 17s Id; Treasury anddeficiency bills, L 1,121,700 9a ; investments, L 67.00 0; guaranteed debentures, LBOO,OO0 ;— .total, L2.677.910 17s Id. The liabilities on the same date amounted to L 2,202,474. There were, however, imprests outstanding on 31st July, i L 246,486, making L 1,856,988 the net amount of liabilities to be psovided for, and leaving a balance of L 821,923, as already stated, for new works and services. The estimates which I am about to submit make a further demand on this balance of L 674,238, leaving L 147.685 only for future appropriations from the Public Works fund. Bearing in mind the importance of spreading the expenditure of the balance of loan over the next two years, we should have | preferred, Sir, to ask for the appropriation of a much smaller sum, but we have not found it possible to do so. The votes for the various works which we now propose are designed to provide for the expenditure up to the 30th of June, 1881. After tbat date, and until we are again in a position to become borrowers, the only sources whence we can draw supplies for these purposes will be a portion of the proceeds of land sales and the saying from the Estimates for the purchase of Native land, a saving which we have reason to believe may be considerable, but which at present it is impossible to eetimate. WORKS PROPOSED. I will proceed, Sir, to briefly summarise the works proposed, commencing with _ railways. The present contract at Kawakawa will be completed, and the ramaining part of the line will be finished, with a branch to the town wharf, so as to admit of the coal traffic being carried on. The line from^Kaipara to Te Awamutu will be completed fit for traffic. The question of the propriety of constructing the Waikato-Thames railway has been raised by the Railway Commissioners, who have recommended that it should at present be completed only to the junction with the projected Cambridge line, and that the Cambridge section of 11 miles should be substituted. The Government intend to have the subject very carefully investigated, with a view to determine which proposal will be mosfe beneficial to the country, and will act accordingly. The vote will therefore be proposed in the alternative. The line between Napier and Makatoko will be completed. The Wellington and Opaki line will be completed as far as Masterton, and provision made for the unemployed at the extension to Opaki. The station works at Wellington will also be constructed. The Foxton section and wharf, on the Wellington and Foxton line, will be completed, sundry necessary work* on the opened line between Foxton and Kaiwai will be executed, and the extension to Waveiiy, which is in hand, will be finished ; the works in the neighbour, hood of Carlyle will be proceeded with, giving work to the unemployed. The contracts between Stratford and Hawera will be pushed on, and tbe formation to Normanby will probably be completed within the present year. The extension of the line from Foxhill to Belgrove, on the Nelson to Greymouth line, will bei completed, the Stillwater section now in progress will be finished, and the Greymouth harbour works carried on. The Picton and Blenheim line will be completed at the Blenheim end, where there are still some station works unfinished. The section of the main line from Amberley to the Waikari Plains is to be finished, the nine miles through the Weka Pass being reserved for the unemployed. A few urgent station works on the opened lines are provided for. The Wairaakariri Gorge, portion of the Oxford-Sheffield line, which was reserved for the unemployed about a year ago, will be carried on as the demand for work may required. The extension of the Opawa branch towards

Eairlie Greek will also be carried on by the same means, _. , The Ellesmere section of the Little River and Akaroa branch is to be completed. The general expenditure proposed on the Ofcago main line is for the completion of the stations and other works now in progress. The Duntroon branch is to be finished across the Maerewhenua River, the bridge over which is already built. The formation on the firßt section of the Livingstone branch, recently resumed to give work to the unemployed, will be finished by them. The sections of the Western Railways now m progress will be completed. The Hindon section of the Ofcago Central railway, which was opened to the unemployed about a year ago, will be reserved exclusively for them, aB it is now almost the only suitable work in Ofcago on which a large number can be employed. At present there are about 700 men at work there, and although this number will in all probability decrease during the summer months, I fear there is no prospect of a complete cessation in the demand which will be made on us for this kind of employment, and we have therefore made provision for supplying it on this section. WATEB-BAOES IN THE MIDDLE ISLAND. The work of improving aud extending the various water-races now in progress will be carried on. KOAD3 IN THE NORTH ISLAND. _ The proposed appropriation will admit of the road works in the Waimate Plains and other Native districts being continued, as well as of tho maintenance in a eeryiceable state of certain main roads which it is necessary to keep open for traffic. In addition to tho completion of the various works in hand, the road from Nelson to Greymouth and Westport is to bo improved throughout so a? to render it fit for traffic,and make it an arterial live of communication between the north end of the Island and the West Coast. [CONCLUSION. In conclusion, Sir, I would say that although, the Government have fouud it to be their imperative duty to abate the speed at which public works have until lately been carried on, yet we believe that the time is nofc far distant when the works now temporarily subpended may be resumed, and those now proposed to be curtailed completed. The resources of New Zealand are so great that for her there cau be neither retrogression nor standing still ; but, Sir, it is incumbent on us to recognise that for a State as for an individual a steady progress acd an assured prosperity can only be maintained by obedience to the dictates of prudence. I have now, Sir, to express my gratitude for the patient attention with which the House has heard me.