PETITION OF INHABITANTS OF MARLBOROUGH IN FAVOUR OF THE "PICTON RAILWAY BILL."

Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives, 1861 Session I, G-03

G—No 3

PETITION OF INHABITANTS OF MARLBOROUGH IN FAVOUR OF THE "PICTON RAILWAY BILL."

ORDERED TO BE PRINTED, SEPTEMBER 3kd, 1861.

PETITION OF INHABITANTS OF. MARLBOROUGH

G—No. 3

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To the Honourable the House of Representatives, in Parliament assembled. The Petition of the undersigned Inhabitants of the Province of Marlborough:— Humbly Sheweth — That the Provincial Council of Marlborough, during its last session, unanimously passed a resolution authorising the Superintendent to introduce a Bill to your Honourable House, praying for leave to construct and maintain a Railway, connecting the harbour and port of Picton with the Wairau plain. That a Bill, authorising the Government to raise by way of loan the sum of Sixty thousand pounds, for the purpose of constructing the said Railway, passed the Provincial Council without a dissentient voice. That your Petitioners believe the proposal to connect the only available port of the Province —viz., Picton—with the Wairau plain, is an undertaking that meets the hearty approval of fourfifths of those having any stake in the welfare of Marlborough. That, until the harbour of Picton is connected with the Wairau plain by means of a Railway or Tramway, its inhabitants will still, as heretofore, suffer serious loss and inconvenience through the totally inadequate means of accommodation afforded by the only class of vessels that can cross the bar of the Wairau river, and will still be liable to the charges and risk consequent on the transhipment of all goods imported from or exported to England and Australia. Your Petitioners are satisfied that the outlay required for the undertaking is fully justified by the amount of the returns that would accrue from traffic, in conjunction with many other advantages it will secure to the Province, amongst which may be enumerated — Ist, A certain and rapid increase of the population; 2nd, A reduction of at least 100 per cent, in the present cost of carriage to and from the port of Picton; 3rd, The increase it will cause in the value of all property, both that of private individuals and the unsold waste lands of the Province; 4th, A saving of at least Ten thousand pounds in the outlay that will have to be incurred in the formation, and wear and tear, of the present line of road before it can be rendered available for the amount of traffic it would have to sustain should the Picton and Wairau Railway Bill not receive the sanction of your Honourable House; sth, At least half the amount of the cost of the undertaking will bo expended in land, timber, nd articles of home production: thus adding to the permanent capital available in the increase of the trade and production of the Province, a sum, the interest of which, at 10 per cent., will amount to little short of two-thirds of the outlay required to meet the charges for interest and sinking fund on the whole amount of the loan. Your Petitioners, therefore, humbly pray that your Honourable House will take this Petition into your favourable consideration, and give your sanction to the Picton and Wairau Railway Bill, And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray, &c. A. P. Seymour, M.P.C. Samuel Buckman, Cyrus Goulter, M.P.C. W. Pipe, Joseph Ward, M.P.C. Frederick A. Slow, John Godfery, M.P.C. William Ockley, Edward Faron, J. Bonnington, Edward C. Morgan, William Reay, John Smith, Nicholas Kelly, Thomas Maxtea, Francis "Walls, John McLoughlan, George Cook, Thomas Andrew, Robert Robinson, Thomas D. Nicolson, William Robinson, Alfred Sparks, T. M. Humffreys, Samuel. Eves, William Robinson, junr. C. Eves, Simon Ponson, John Newman, Thomas Murphy, Joe. Mitchel, Thomas Hart, W. Blackmore, G. Asher, John Fuller, C. M. Palmer, D. Wilson, E. O. Palmer, G. Gougle, William Thornton, C. Cowst, Alben Close, John Levys, John Barrough, J. Geraid, Donald McPherson, J. W. Barker, Frank V. Bell, J. A. R. Greensil, John Tindall,

G—No. 3

William Thomson, Richard Maxted, John Kennedy, Alfred Amos, John Kernan, William Wells, James Cotter, James Pickering, William Whitehouse, Donald Campbell, John Adams, Charles Cass, Joseph Hannon, John Kewly, John Murray, John Larey, William Hall, Alix Smith, William Marsh, Thomas Stickell, John Thompson, S. Wolf, George Watson, Jacob Essen, Robert Guest, Richard H. Toll, John Griffith, Cordock Beauchamp, William Smith James Jackson, James Ford Hathaway, William Keenan, Howard Lakeman, John Keenan, Arch. H. Lakeman, William Keenan, junr. Isaac Jenkin, Phillip Himes, John Armstrong, L. H. Burns, John Dayly, Daniel Love, Robert Carnwall, Daniel Harrison, J. M. C. Lester, James Jackson, George Storry, Peter Brown, 11. Godfrey, Hector Martin, W. Brydon, George Kise, Edwin Gear, Charles Lucas, William Strachen, John Hipelite, Henry Cook, Thomas Thorns, Daniel G. Boyd, James Norton, John Miller, C. T. Sawyer, William Gary, Isaac Wallace, Soloman Holroyd, Joseph Baker, Thomas Bain, T. J. Bowden, Isaac Simson, J. N. Flood, James A. Henderson, F. 0. Western, John Jones, John Smith, William Crisp, J. Ewart, T. W. Downes, J.P John Blaymiers, B. S. H. Broughton. James Twiddale, James Kilgour, J. A. Maplesden, Phillip Bevan, Josane Heard, William Freeth, Charles Thompson, Henry Peterson, T. Matterson, James Fuller, W. Whitelock, John Walker, Thomas W T otts, Thomas Evenett, John Peek, James Williams, R. Maxted, Isaiah Parker, E. W. Pasley, Rich. N. Samkey, R. C. Pasley, William Crowther, J. R. Gordon, Joseph Taylor, Joseph Taylor, William Beeres, C. H. .Jennings, Thomas Jones, John Colyer, William Bright, Francis J. Blundoll, Henry G. Clark, John Robert Shephard, Richard Howard, Tiiomes Carter, Charles Evans, William Allison, Edward Caldwell, James Carter, John Edwards, Joseph Carter, J. W. Callcott, W. Baillie, J. W. Neale, T. G. Maxted, E W. Clemens, Thomas McKinley, David Greig, William Hadfield, Henry Bright, William Blaymires, John Brooke, Henry Warrick, James Boon, John Mills, H. Bonnington, Cornelius Murphy, Frederick Hill, W. D. Smith, Thomas Doekery, W.H.Hyde, William Pugh, A. Rankin,

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IN FAVOUR OF "PICTON RAILWAY BILL."

G—No. 3

William Clark, Evan Jones, George Jones, Patrick Dunn, Thomas King Smith, Samuel Harris, William Craig, William Sabei'y, Abednego P. Jones, Alfred Bragg, T Sullivan, Nathaniel Bragg, John McKenna, Richard Bragg, John Gilson, Thomas Philpotts, Charles Maidment, William Jeffery, John Hilbourne, John Allen, John Burton, Mathew Jas. Goodman, Charles A. Wylie, John J. White, Adam Jackson, James Mcßeath, Robert Thompson, Robert Beauchamp, F. Nicholas, John Lingar Neeve, John Barton, J. H. Brewer, Isaac Gifford, Thomas Webster, John T. Hughes, James Cole, J. S. Ball, George Hambrook, James Mudford, John Procter, A. Vaughen, John R. Hornby, W. Moore, George Potherick, John Ward, Thomas Freeland, C. Maddock, Frederick Hebberly, James Thomas, George James, W. Haynes, James Avis, C. Young, Henry Godsiff, James Clims, David Lloyd, John Climo, Donald McCormiek, T. Herford, Robert Blaymears, C. Masters, John Caute, Simon Moen, Clement Brought, B. Herford, Philip Spowart, J. Johnson, Daniel Heard, W. Hinds, William Taylor, C. Rumble, Frederick Martello, W. Tannahill, T. R. Hackett, David Bell, Andrew McArtnev, H. Hill, William Seller, John F. Basford, James Alexander, Wm. Membery, T. W. Millington, James Wilson, John Nic. Humphries, James Basford, Courtnay Kenny, J.P. Frederick Smith, Joseph Baymiers, Robert Bennett, Joseph Clapham, E. Bennett, James Coleman, George Freeman, John Somers, F. Hambrook, David Scutir, James Powick, Widcomb Nichols, Robert Fiddler, Thomas Hall, Joseph Law, J. Glenryingheint, Henry Humphreys, Henry Clyne, George Landers, William Cullen, Robert Carver, Joe Firth, William Overend, John Master, John Kenynon, William Tarrent, G. Booth, William Coleman, C. H. Morgan, James Gullery, R. J. Wortley, Peter Doreen, senr. T. G. Baillie, Peter Doreen, junr. J. Kennedy, Hugh Cutherbertson, George Beere, William Esson, David Bays, P.itrick McMahon, G. Russell, Edmond Muagways, William Welford, George McEwen, William Neal, George Heard. , Arthur Beauchamp,

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PETITION OF INHABITANTS OF MARLBOROUGH, &c