The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. SATURDAY, AUGUST 1, 1887. RAILWAY RETURNS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1624, 1 August 1887, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. SATURDAY, AUGUST 1, 1887. RAILWAY RETURNS.

It is gratifying to learn that the New Zealand Railway traffic returns for the first three months of the present financial year, which are now complete, are ot a highly satisfactory character. In these dull days of commercial depression a gleam of sunshine is extremely welcome, and the more so if accompanied by indications that the clouds are rolling by, to give place to those bright days which at one lime, Recording to the political croakers, were destined t>p««»- * — •— •.. <=> ;>..»;0 constitute a fairly accurate and at the a»u*o tune a. remarkably sensitive commercial barometer. If business be dull the ratio, of expenditure to receipts increases and, vice versa, should commercial transactions show any material improvement this rate deminishes. These returns are thus summarised and commented on m a late issue of the "New Zealand Times: —''The gross receipts amounted to ,£261,940 as against for the corresponding period of last yearj an increase of jG I^^' Of this sum the working expenses absorbed 63 per cent, or £167,117, as against 68 per cent, or £167,229, last year, a decrease of £112, m spite of larger traffic and increased mileage. The number of passengers conveyed was 864,131, an increase of 65,224. There was also an increase of 10,931 m the number of horses, carriages, dogs, and parcels carried] and of 46,990 tons m the quantity of goods taken. The live stock conveyed were fewer by 24,107, the falling off being entirely m sheep; cattle, pigs, and drays were more numerous. On the Wellington line the receipts were £15,797 as compared with £14,412 last year, and the expenses absorbed only 73 per cent as against 79 — a very decided improvement. Even the Hurunui-Bluff line displays a change for the better, the receipts being larger by£io,ooo, while the expenses are smaller by £2000. The Auckland, Napier, and Wanganui iines also exhibit a substantial improvement. The Grey and Westport mineral lines also give very healthy results, and Kawakawa is fairly remunerative j but on the Nelson line, while the receipts are a little larger, the expenses have advanced as well. The Picton and Whangarei sections, however, are the " black sheep " of the flock. The latter's working expenses swallow up all the receipts and £23 besides j but on the former the working expenses absorb as much as £331 m addition to the entire receipts. The colony does not want more railways of this class." The results for the colony are iar more satisfactory than they reasonably could have been, or m fact, were, expected to prove. The ioprgased re^ ceipts give evidence of an improvement m trade while the diminished expenditure, notwithstanding increased mileage affords conclusive proof of care and economy having been exercised m their management.