PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1922, 18 August 1888, Page 3

PUBLIC WORKS STATEMENT.

In the House to-day the Hon E. Mltehelion, Minister for Pabllo Works, delirered the Pabllo Worki Statement, fie mid :- Ms Speaker : At the qaeatlon of the Public Works of the colony Is becoming, m comparison wl h other questions, of leas importance as time goes 00, and as I think that this ia as it ■honld be. T propose to oonfiae my remarks on the tub j sot to day* within much narrower limits than has been the case hitherto. lAILWAYS IN COUBSE OF CONSTRUCTION AND PROPOSED RAILWAYS INCLUDING ADDIMOHB TO OPENED UNBB : — On the snbjeot of the railways m coarse ef oonstraotlon and proposed It will only be necessary to s»y a Tory few words The Government is dltt'.notly of opinion that the present finanolM poiltlon of the colony does not warrant the undertaking of any wilway works other than suoh as will be of an immediate productive oharaoter, and we hare therefore, deolded to teoommend that with two exceptions only loch amount should be voted this year as will enable us to meet the liabilities of thote lines already In oonstruotion with a ■mall ran to cover supervision and contingencies. The two exceptions are the Woodvllle to Palmerston North railway and the Qtago Central railway. On the Woodville to Palmerston railway, In addition to the amount required for existing liabilities, authority will be asked for £18.000 to enable a oontraot to be let for the Pohangina bridge ; and for the Otago Central railway, m addition to ex'stl~g liabilities authority for £35,000 will be Mked for,, of which £30,000 is for the completion of the requisite bridges •nd other works up to and across tbe Button Stream, and the balance, £6009, for the formation of a portion of the Mddlemaroh section. Tae completion of the Woodville to Paluierston railway is considered by tbe Government to be a work of the utmost Importance, and a larger appropriation would now be asked for if It were not that nothing would be gained by undertaking any otber workß. The Pohaoglna bridge has been pat m hand. It Is proposed, however, to ask for another vote next session for the whole balance of the loan allocation, and to th?n pot all the works m hand which are required for tbe completion of ttm railway •t suoh times as will emore their completion, contemporaneously with the Pohangina bridge and the tnnnel oontraot. It Is also Intended next year to a«k for a vote for the whole balance of loan allocais^k for the Otago Oentral railway, so as to enable the line up to Mlddlemaroh to be completed m about two years from now. '. The total length of railways opened on 31st Maroh last was, m the North Islend, 643 miles, and m the South Island, 1108 ; total, 3751 miles. There were also at that date 164 miles of railway m course of construction, of wbih 80 were In the North Island, and 84 In the South Island. The total expenditure on railways, including cost of Provincial lines and purchase of district railways up to tbe 31st of March last, was £14,466,705, and the liabilities on the 31<t Mnrch were £161,577, making In all £14,728 282 for railway works m course of construction, as a whole. The Amount voted last year was £460,000, of whloh £365,449 iras expended ; and for this year with liabilities at end of March last amounting to £247,951, we propose to ask for votes to the extent of £338,900, leaving £829,508 for future appropriation. To proceed now to deal with the existing condition of each several line as has usually been done In the past would, I think, under the present circumstances be •Imply tedious. That this should be done where works are proposed Is no doubt very desirable. In order to enable hon membera who may not all be acquainted with the several localities to understand the existing condition of things. As a first step towards realising what Is proposed to be undertaken when nothing Is proposed to be done, however (with the two exceptions already mentioned), beyond making progress and final payments oo account of tbe works already constructed, for It seems scarcely necessary to weary the House wfch a recital of what these lines consist of In eaoh several instance. Besides this, too, the Interval between this and my las* Public Work* Statement Is so short that the acope of the undertakings on various rail* ways I described has not materially altered. In the meantime it Is no doubt desirable, however, for record purposes that a brief summary of the condition of «aeh railway should be embodied m the Pabllo Works Statement. As usual I have, therefore, had one prepared, which will be appended to this statement as a supplement Thsre will also be found ■ome remarks whloh I would wish to bring under the notloe of hon members subject relative to railways generally, retrospeo ttve and prospective. In the case of all works other than railways, I propose to state the details In this manner. The expenditure on additions to opened lines hai been steadily decreasing and the amount expended during the year ended Slst March last is a farther illustration m the same direotion. The amouuts for the last few years were m round numbers ai follows :— IBB4 85, £140,000; 1885-86, £91000; 18&6 87. £80,000 j 1887-88, £38,000. This is exclusive of permanent way, and if permanent way 1b Included the amounts are — for 1884-85, £103,000 ; 1885-86, £109,000 ; 1886 87, £91,000 : 1887-88, £41,000. The item of rolling stock I have not taken into aocount. Tbe proportion of rolling stock added was little. If anything, more than equivalent to the length of new lines opened during these years. For additions to opened lines the amount voted last year was £40,000, of whloh £38,277 was expended, and for the present year with liabilities at end of Maroh amounting to £13,625 we propose to aak for a vote of £66,000. Up to about five years ago the undertakings of this obaraoter were undoubtedly rather lavish. No separate account had until that time been kept of works done In the shape of additions to the opened portions of railways as distinct from new extensions « Towards the dose of 1883, however, the matter engaged serious consideration of Govern. ment, and steps were taken to curtail the expenditure of this class as muoh as possible. With that object accounts were opened In the books of the Public Works Department In order to show exaotly how matters stood, and my successor m office carried this reform a step further In 1884 by bringing down separate estimates and taking separate vouohers for this class of works. By this means It was possible for the first time to merely rerllse what was being expended from year to year on snob undertakings, : end to keep c proper check on them, it ' was not, of course, possible to countermand undertakings whloh had already been entered on, but great care was exerolsed to avoid any unnecessary expenditure In the future, and I oan vouoh for It that certainly no expenditure of this class has reoently been undertaken which did not promise an immediate return for the capital Invested. The vote proposed for the present year Includes the sum of £25,000 for tie purohase of stock of permanent way to be fceld In hand for working ratlway requirements. This Is Intended to be drawn upon from time to time as may be necessary to provide for requisite renewals and as eaob draw is made there wil be a corresponding payment out of the votes fot working expenses Into a Suspecse Fund, end purchases will thereafter be pnede cut of that fund, to restore the stock of rail*. The £25,000 will always be represented partly m .rails and partly Jfl »on»y, By ftfe arrangement two

considerable advantages will be retained 1 —(1) That the Working Railways Department will always have an assured stock of permanent nay located iv the most convenient manaer to meat the r< qalremente whloh they cm look upon with certainty, and without the inconvenience of cost attending upon transhipments which have often been rcquiulte m the psst ; and (2) That the oonstruotion, stocks, and votes will not b.e complicated and disarranged by having to provide an indefinite quantity of permanent way at uncertain periods to meet the Working Railways requirements. WORKISO RAILWAY? As regards the Working Railways, the annnal report of the Goceral Manager will be found to give fnll details of the trßffio revenue and expenses, and It Is satisfactory to find that the efficient administration of the railways during the past eight years has by gradual improvement m permanent way, structures, appliances, and organisation led to corresponding economy m working. The total expen diture last year was less than that for any of the three preceding years, and the average cost of working pir mile was the lowest that it has ever besn. For these results, there oan be no doubt that the Railway Department deserves a great deal ot credit, as h y could only have been brought about by careful organisation and patient supervision, extending over a series of years, Still further Improvements are expsoted during the ourrent year, but it must not be supposed tbat eonomy oan be Indefinitely extended, as we have already arrived at fairly good results m view of the relative situations of our various lines, the character of tb.6 traffic on some of them, and the extent of the requisite renewals. This year the ratlway from Ljttelton to Selwyn will have been opened 21 year;, and on this and others of the older litres rebuilding bridges and structures and paying for new rails and sleeper* Is a heavy Item of expense. The average cost of keeping lines m order is under £70 a mil 3, apart from actual rebuilding of structures and bridges, purohase of new rails acd sleeperr, and other new works. The whole coat of maintenance, Including such it 3ms, Is only £141 per mile. The -average grass charge per ton of traffic on i the New Zjaland lines is the lowest In tbe Australian oolonfei, being only 63 lOd. This fact Is not co much to our mileage rates being low, as the average distance carried being shorter m New Zealand than In the other colonies m consequence of our numerous ohlef towns and por ( s. Be the cause whatever it may, hovevever, the producers In this oolony must as a whole derive an advan* tage bb compared with producers m other colonies from this low average rate of oarriage from the place of production to a point, and the consumers m the ohtef towns as a whole must have a corresponding advantage compared with consumers m other colonies In the low average rate of oarriage from tbe place of production to the plaoe of consumption, At the same time it has to be remembered that our railways cannot make as muoh net profit out of this lowar average rate as the railways of the other colonies oan make out of their higher average rate, even though tbey may have io carry goodß a somewhat longer distance for the averagerate which they get The reason for this is that a larger proportion of the cost of performing eaoh transaction is a constant expense, irrespective of the distance oarried. Nevertheless, If we are not getting 20 large a revenue as we might do with higher rates, we gain a corresponding advantage In other ways by fostering production and industries of all ; klndß. We must, however, await the ( growth of population before we can gain 1 •ny large increase m traffic Our railways 1 m many oases have been oarried into the ■ oonntry without sufficient population, and < cannot pay expenses m tmh p!aceß until 1 Battlement and production have advanced. ( The next subject Is . . ROADS OF ALL GLASSES. | The length of rondß and bridges con- ( struoted and Improved out of the Public , Works Fund last year was 8478 miles, j The total bridge work m both islands is 1 771 bridge?. Under the head of main ro&ds the work required to be done which practically means the m%ln- , tenanoe of arterial lines of comma* nlcation passing through uninhabited ] districts, is being gradually reduced to . lowest possible Hmlto. Under the votes \ of last year twelve of these roads were j provided for, but m the votes proposed for this year the number is reduced to six. The amount voted under this heading last , year was £18 650 of whloh £13756 was j expended, and for this year with liabilities , to the end of Maroh last amounting to . £6311, we ask for a vote of £15,000, the \ whole of whloh, however, will not be ■ expended. ' MISCELLANEOUS ROAD 3 AND BRIDGES ; The amount voted last year was £34.000 1 of which £25,989 was expended. For 1 this year witb. liabilities at the end of , March amounting te £12,642 we propose , to ask for a vote for £34 354. SUBSIDIES TO LOCAL BODIES. As regards subsidies to local bodies under the Bodies Finance and Powers Aot, it has now been decided that If these subsidies are to be continued they must be oharged to the Consolidated Fund and no provision has therefore been made for them In the Public Works Estimates of this session. WOKK FOB UNEMPLOYED. Under the heading, work for unemployed, the sum of £10,000 was voted last year and we propose to BBk for the same amount for the current year. Of £10,000 voted last year £5361 was expended and we had liabilities existing at the end of Maroh amounting to £1863. The £10,000 proposed for this year may possibly be more than will be required but it Is thought better to provide sufficient i for emergencies which may arise. KOADS TO OPEN DP CROWN LANDS. On the very Important work of clearing and farming pioneer roads through Grown lands preparatory to settlements, the expenditure last year was £61,488 and the vote proposed for this year la £50,000 leaving £33,612 for appropriation m succeeding years. VILLAGE SETTLEMENTS, For village homestead settlements last year the sum of £72,200 was allocated under the loan funds to meet then existing engagements and of this sum £12,053 was expended leaving a balance of £60.147. Of this sum however only about £45,000 will be required to meet engagements now found to be due. This will leave £15,000 dear which we propose to ask Ptr'lament to authorise Government to expeod on new settlements The vote proposed for this year is £20,000 of whleh £12,000 is required for expenses incurred In locating and for ooni inning the stipulated advances to the present settlers and £8000 for f nrther extension of the system if authorised to be expended as I have suggested. The settlers have had the benefit of expenditure on roads la their district, but this expenditure which was frrm the vote for roads to open up Grown lands for sale cannot continue to be reasonably applied for the benefit of the village settler*. It '■ proposed therefore m the Sapp'euentary Estimates, to enable the assistance to be continued, and In asking for this vote the Minister of Lands will make a statement to the House of the condition of the several settlements and the amount of help that they severally require. BOADS OK QOLDFIELDS. The expenditure daring tha five years ending March 31st last, has been m round numbers £131,000, and of this amount about £25,000 was expended during last year! The amounts required for the present and following year are £35,000 and t £11,707 respectively, and this will exhaust ' Loan Funds at present available for this » olih Of workfi

WATERWORKS ON GOLDF.ELDS. On acoount of waterworks on the goldfields the expenditure during the five years ending Maroh 31 last was In round numbers £42,000 of whloh about £10,000 was expended during last year. It is not proposed to undertake any new works of this character, and the amount required to be provider) for the present year is £765, leaving £229 for next year. EXPENDITURE ON BOADS OF ALL CLASSES. On acoount of roada of aU classes the amount voted out of the Public Works fund last year was £263,620, and the amount expended was £219,519. For tUs year, with liabilities 8t the end of Maroh last amounting to £150.670, we propose to BBk for a vote to the extent of £168,€54. Thla will leave under the present loan allocations £151,741 available for appropriation for road works m succeeding years PURCHASE OF NATIVE LANDS. Under tbe heading of purchase of Native lands m the North Island generally as distinct from purchases out of the loan for the North Island Trunk Railway, I find that during tbe year ending 31st Maroh last the purobase of 210,000 acres m whloh large turns had previously been advanced, w&b completed at a total cost of £40,000 equivalent to about 3s 9d per acre. This area includes some valuable antiferotxs land »t Corona a del. The expeaditare during last year, inoludlog £15.073 recovered from the vote of purchase of lands along the North Island Trunk railway, was £16,587 and the balance remaining for expenditure under the loan allocation of last session is £14,485 Of this amount £9000 is proposed to be voted for expenditure during the current year, leaving £5484 for next year Coming now to the land purchases out of the lorn for the North Island Trunk Railway, we completed dariug last year the purohase of 100,000 acres, at a total cost of £8000, or about Is 7d per aore. The sum of £5571 still remains available, and it is proposed to be voted for expen diture during the current ytar, and by the 31st March next, as the reeult of the expenditure of tie £KiO,ooo, it U estimated a total area of 700,000 acres will have been acquired. This would mean an average prloa ter aore of about 2a 10 i. No further land purchases along the line of the railway oan with advantage be gone on with at prtsen*, but we propose next session to ask for authority to devote a further sum of £50,000 out of the North Island Trunk Railway loan to this purpose, and If this ia approved of by the HoU3e further desirable land purchases oan then probably be made. IMMIGBaTION, As regards immigration, as hon. members are already aware, the acoeptanoe of nominations within trie colony for passages was stopped on December 22, 1887 After that date no nominations were entertained, and the services of the Immigration officers and their staffs have been dispensed with. Since the date up to which information was given m my last Public Works Statement, namely since the 30th November, 1897, 623 eouls have arrived who had been nominated for psesagea prior to December 22, and towards the ooat of whose passage tbe Bum of £1522 has been contributed by their friends iv the colony. Since the same date 47 small farmers have also arrived, with a know n cat Hal of £5630. The total number of this class introduced Blnoe the commencement of the system on the 98th September, 1885, Is 397 with a known capital of £43,785. The standing liabilities m tbe colony and m London on March 31, 1888, including cost of passage and expensed, was £8,000. Some small contingencies In connection therewith will amount to £110, and a contribution proposed to be made towards the passages of some persons m England who are separated from their families here will amount to about £1000 making In all £9110 for which we now propose to aek for a vote: The total number of immigrants, Inclusive of small farmers Introduced. Blnoe the Inauguration of the Immigration scheme by the Colonial Government, Is 104,576. TELEGRAPH EXTENSION, On aooount of telegraph and telephone extension the amonnt expanded last year was £22,984, and the amount proposed to be asked for this yea; is £20,000 leaving £8370 for future appropriation. Of the expenditure last year, £13,029 was on acoount of telephone exchanges. PUBLIC BUILDINGS The amonnt voted for buildings last year was £109,105, of whioh £90,529 was expended, and for the year with liabilities at the end of Maroh amounting to £29,610, we propose to ask for a vote of £52,244. This will leave a balance of £69,637 of loan allocations for appropriation m succeeding years. As promised m my Statement of last year, the coat of the re-erection of the Wellington Post Offioe has been provided for out of the consolidated fund as has also the oat of Bohool buildings for this year. A beginning haß also been made towards gradually throwing the whole coal; of public buildings on the Consolidated fund. LIGHTHOUSES AND HAB 808 WOBXB. On account of lighthouses the amount voted laat year was £4,300 of which £2866 was expended. For this year we propose to ask for a vote of £3750 leaving £1684 for n6xt year. No provision is made m this year's estimates for harbor works, the loan allocation for that class of work having been exhausted. HABBOR DEFENCES. Coming now to the subject of harbor defences I find tbat the total cost of the harbor defences of New Zealand up to the 31st March, 1888, has been £392,286, of whioh £52.231 was spent on 04 pounder and 7 ton guns, torpedo boats, and reports by military engineers, etc., prior to the war scare of 1885, leaving m round numbers £340,000 aa the total cost on all accounts of land defenoea and I submarine defences, equipments, armaments, and material of war since the actual construction of the defence works began. The vote for the year 1887r88 waa £80,000, and the expenditure £73,459, with liabilities at the end of the year £36,422, of whloh £3145 was for works and £3377 for war material Of tbe total sum of £130,000 provided for harbor defences m the loan allocations of last session there remained on tbe 31st March last an unexpended balance of £56,541, which is proposed to be expended during the present year m discharging the liabilities already referred to, and carrying on the works- It la hoped by the end of March next both the land and submarine defences may be made effeotlve against any sudden emergency. To oomplete the works, however, to auoh a stage as wo hid enable all the guns and other material of war obtained at large expense from England to be barely utilised would, making allowance for prisoner labor, entail an expenditure of about £9000, m addition to the amount already provided, while to place them m a state of fairly complete equipment would entail a further expenditure of about £2000, that would ba In all about £11.000 In excess of the BjXiount already provided. BATES ON NATIVE LANDS. The amount required as an advance for the payments whloh fall due during tbe current year Is £11,500, and a vote for that sum will be asked for, EXPENDITURE ON PUBLIC WOBKS OF ALL CLASSES. On aooount of publlo works of all claaies tha amount voted last session was £1,128,077, of which £066,189 was expended during the year. Of the amount thus expended £440,854 was under part 1 of the fund for the various works and services therein provided for ; £162,31$ t waa uacfcr part 2

of fond for North Island Trunk railway including road works and Native land purohnre ia connection therewith ; and £372 990 was under pa.t 3 of the fund on acoount of the various railways comprised. In part 1 of the fond we had at 31st Maroh laßfc the sum of £50,392, and to this there is to be added amounts- due to it, making In all £652.126. As against this amount the liabilities at end of March tact were £374,555, wbloh will leave £277,571 available for appropriation m bucceeding years. Ia part 2of the fund, taking credit for tbe £1,000,000 loan recently fl i&t"d the amount available for expen- j penditnre from the 31st March last was £522,000 with liabilities at the end of March amounting to £75 904. We prcpose to expend £135,711 during the present year, leaving £386,289 for appropriation m succeeding years. In part 3 of the fund taking oredlr for the additional £600,000 recently floated.we bad available for expenditure from 31at March last, the sum of £896,245 with liabilities amounting to £190,668. We propose to expend dnrlng the present year the sum of £352,541 leaving! £543,704 for appropriation m succeeding years, THE PUBLIC WOBKS FUND. Asa whole therefore we had available for expenditure from 31st March last the sum of £2,070,471, with liabilities at the end March last amounting m all to £471,695. We p opose to expend during the present year the sum of £862,807, leaving £1,207,664 available for appropriation io succeeding years / f ter a lengthy reference to tbe figures given as coßt est mated, tbe Minister stated that it was not likely to be so great as Bet forth; It was necessary to provide for the maximum amount of liabilities which may acorue, and on this baeii be estimated that the actual total expenditure during the current year may probably be ) ept within £750,000, tbat is only m round numbers about £280,000 m excess of the liabilities existing at the end of Maroh het, If those anticipations as to th<) probible aotuil expenditure are fulfilled the amount remaining unexpended nt the end of March noxt will be about £1,320,000 PROPOSAL TO DO AWAIt WITH THS PUBIIO WOBKS DEPARTMENT As indicated m the Financial Statement of my colleague the Colonial Treasurer, the Government proposes during the recces to take etepa towards tbe early abolition of the Fublio Works Department. BAILWAY OOMMISSIONffKS On the subject of the Ohlef Oommlseloner for Railways, communications with the Agent General have not yet been brought to a close, but we hope to hear fully from him very shortly, and will then set up the Commission without delay. CONCLUSION. I have now, Sir, ooroe to tbe end of my ntatement, and I would wish to thank the House for the patient hearing which It has vouchsafed, While my t*s& has not been tho pleasant one of proposing an active prosecution of pabllo undertakings suoh as a condition of general prosperity would demand and jastlfy, I have at least the satisfaction of feeling that our proposals are founded on. a careful and well-considered view of the necessity of the undertakings proposed, and I am at the same time oonfident that one means of securing a sound condition of affairs will be found m bringing the public works expenditure within reasonable oompaps and conducting it on a so«le In proportion to the means of the oolony. [The usual reports by the several permanent officers of the Department attached to the Statement and also the usual tables showing the ooat of workß and result of working railways we have been compelled to hold over.l