The Timarn Herald. SATURDAY, JULY 9, 1864

Timaru Herald, Volume I, Issue 5, 9 July 1864, Page 4

The Timaru Herald. SATURDAY, JULY 9, 1864

As the press is, m a great measure, #ie only exponent of public grievances, it is our duty — especially as it bears upon the misappropriation of public mone} ? — to bring* before the public a subject, the evils of which doubtless all know nnd complain of, but which has never yet been brought as prominently forward as its gravity demands. We allude to the very irregular manner m which the steamers under contract to the Provincial Government, are performing their services at this port. We understand that last session the Council passed a vote of £1000 a-3-ear as a subsidy for a steamer to run between Otago and Lyttelton, calling here and at Akaroa. The Otago firm with whom this contract was made, certainly, As far as Hie calling is concerned, fulfil their part of the contract ; but the time of arrival and departure of the boats they have treated as a matter totally irrevelant to the contract. Formei'ty the service was punctually and well performed, but during the last three or four months the boats have been most irregular, frequently two or three days behind time. In fact, upon one or two occasions they have passed this port without calling at all, taking goods and passengers on to other places. It is a matter of surprise to us that the public have so long patiently suffered this state of affairs, as not only does it cause great irregularity m the arrival and departure of mails, but it frequently has been a cause of great inconvenience to persons coming from a distance, trusting to the departure of the steamers at the advertised dates. We hope that our member at the next session of the Council will cause a strict enquiry to be made m this matter, for as far as we are able to judge the public are being quietly '* done" out of a cool £1000 a-year — for, as the boats are now[arranged, we shoidd be quite as well off without them. Would it not be worth while for some of our Lyttelton firms to run a steamer on this coast ? The Council, we should imagine, would sooner treat with a Canterbury firm than an Otago one. At present the boats being essentially Otagan, are managed, naturally enough, with an eye solely to Otago and its interests. The subsidy of £1000 a-year from our Government appears to be looked upon as a nice little waif and stray to be put to their credit; but that they should perform adequate service for it by calling at such a place as Timaru is quite another question, and is simply absurd. The Council will* no doubt, see the folly of continuing this contract m the present shape— but m one sense it has itself to blame, for if we ! are rightly informed, m the original contract no clause was inserted binding the boats to call, but left it optional with the

masters, who always have a most unanswerable objection, " Wind and weather j did not permit." We maintain that the ; boats should be bound down to time, with a penalty attached if late: never mind what is the state of the weather they should be bound to enter the roadstead, and not be allowed to go on until signalled to do so. It is very important that they should also be compelled to wait until all the cargo is discharged, as it has more than once happened that the steamer has arrived jnst before sun-down, and riot being able to discharge all the cargo that night, has gone off with the remainder. A caprice like this of the master should not be tolerated. j