A Revised Railway Tariff.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5191, 23 December 1884, Page 3

A Revised Railway Tariff.

— ♦ — REDUCTION IN THE GRAIN RATES. (From the Lyttelton Times.) We are in a position to state positively that the railway tariff has been revised, and that a new one will shortly be issued. So much it is gratifying to be able to say at present, considering the interest which the agriculturists of New Zealand take in the matter. What the particular details of the new tariff are we have not yet ascertained. It would, of course, have been more satisfactory if these could have been ascertained. Of one thing, however, we are certain, and that is that the new tariff will show a considerable reduction on the grain rates now in force. It would perhaps be too much to expect that the old lowest level could be restored. There, the Government is handicapped by the action of its predecessors in office. Speaking broadly, we have reason to believe that the reduction will bo found by the graingrowers to be substantial. There will probably be a howl from the districts in which agricultural produce is small. They will be likely to raise the old cry, that the people who use the railways must pay for th* railways ; in other words, they will, in fact, clamour for a railway tax. This cry will perhaps be heard most strong in Parliament. There is a good answer :on the flat country, and more especially on the Mown-hill Branch lines, there is competition, which entails a loss of traffic. It conies to this, that the present high rates produce actually le3s than a lower rate, by driving off the traffic. Therefore it follows that though the tonnage calculated on the basis of last season's traffic may show a loss, there will, on account of tho extra grain attracted to the railways, be actually a gain. Of course, if less grain is grown this year than last, tho thing will not work out so well. But the advantage must nevertheless — we speak theoretically, and hope to be borne out by the official figures in due time — be with the reduced tariff. There ought therefore to be no political difficulty owing to the reduction of the tariff. The particulars of that reduction we hope to see gazetted at an early date by the Government, which, after all said and done, is unmindful neither of the interests of Canterbury nor of the requirements of justice.