D.—No. 10.

an indefinite time, will, lam satisfied, greatly exceed its advantages ; and metalled roads, without the accompaniment of harbours adjacent thereto, will place the outlying districts in a very disadvantageous state, obliging them to purchase all articles of import at an advance of twenty per cent., and to sell their produce at a similar reduction on the average prices, thus necessarily retarding their progress in civilization as in countries similarly situated. The time of adjustment must come, when every Province must pay its just share of the cost o the war; but I regret to say that this Province will be unable to meet its liabilities in that respect, while in its present position as to land and finance. I now come to the question of a railroad, and I believe that one on the broad gauge principle, to carry a locomotive of twenty tons, may bo constructed (including surveys and rolling stock) for the sum of £5000 per mile ; and that 179,200 miles of rebel land will make the railroad complete, say from Mokau to Patea, 105 miles. By way of illustration let me suppose the survey finished, and the contract let at £5000 per mile. A block of land may now be surveyed in the centre of the Province, containing 40 square miles, 10 miles long by 4 miles wide, equal to 25,600 acres ; in the centre of this block let a township be laid out, consisting of 600 acres, with a frontage of one mile by a depth of half a mile on each side of the railroad, less 40 acres to be for sale, with an upset price of £3 for the rural land and an average price of £50 per acre for the township, the amount realized would be £105,000. At the end of every 15 miles other similar settlements may be formed, giving a result as follows: Seven Settlements, 15 miles apart, containing 25,000 acres, at £3. Seven Settlements, 51 miles apart, " Township," containing 600 acres, at £50. Amounts to, Eural land .... £525,000 0 0 Amonnts to, " Township " land ..... 210,000 0 0 Total . . . £735,000 0 0 105 miles Eailroad, at £5000 per mile .... £525,000 0 0 Leaving a balance of . £210,000 0 o And I am sanguine that this work could be completed in eighteen months after the conclusion of the war, and if the Government would give over the land for the construction of the work, I am confident that the Province would be able to pay its fair share of the cost of the war. I beg further to submit that the Government should construct this work beyond the limits of this Province. A railroad should unite Auckland and Wellington, making them the maritime inlets and outlets of the western side of the Northern Island; the cost of which, in accordance with the previous calculation, will be as follows : —From Auckland to "Wellington, 420 miles, at £5000 per mile, £2,100,000 ; and the amount realized by the disposal of the twenty-eight Settlements, at £105,000 per Settlement, would be £2,940,000, the produce of the sale of 716,000 acres of land. And lam of opinion that a railroad from Auckland to "Wellington could be completed in two years after the conclusion of the war, — that the land sold would realize a larger sum than I have estimated, —and would do more to colonize the country in five years than a metalled road (without the advantage of harbours for a distance of 400 miles on the Western Coast) would accomplish in twenty-five years. I beg also to offer my opinion respecting the Military Settlers, that 4000 men under arms between Auckland and Wellington, placed on blocks of land on the line of railway, say 100 men ten miles apart, or 50 men five miles apart, would be a more efficient force for holding the country against future Native aggression, than four times that number with metalled roads, which could not be made for an indefinite time. The extra 12,000 men would require more laud for their military service than all the land needed for making the railroad, 420 miles in length. In conclusion I would observe, that should the present Government construct this great work it will lay the foundation stone of New Zealand, and make it, in the words of a great Statesman, " The Britain of the South;" and should my proposition be thought worthy of consideration, I shall be prepared to answer any question that may be required of me. I have, &c. The Hon. the Colonial Secretary, Auckland. W. Bayly. No. 8. The Under Secbetaby to W. Bayly, Esq. SiE, — Colonial Secretary's Office, Auckland, 16th August, 1864. I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 13th August, 1864, in reference to the construction of a railroad through the Province of Taranaki, and am directed by Mr. Fox to thank you for your suggestions. I have, &c, ~W. GISBOEJfE, Mr. W. Bayley, Sen., New Plymouth. Under Secretary. No. 9. "W. K. Htilke, Esq., to the Hon. the Colonial Seceetaey. Slß,— New Plymouth, Taranaki, 21st April, 1865. Believing that the introduction of emigrants on a scale sufficient to occupy the confiscated lands in this Province is of the utmost importance for the prevention of future outbreaks amongst the Native races, and will greatly advance the prosperity of the Colony at large, I have the honor to suggest for the consideration of the Colonial Secretary a scheme by which not only a great increase to the European population could be effected, but also one by which a large and at present valueless tract of forest land could be opened out for speedy occupation without any expenditure on the part

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BETWEEN NEW PLYMOUTH AND WELLINGTON.