MAIL SERVICES.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 824, 24 May 1910, Page 2

MAIL SERVICES.

REPLY TO WELLINGTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. Replying to a letter forwarded by tho Wellington Chamber of Commerce to tho Auckland Chamber of Commerce (tho text of which appeared in The' Dominion ' of Wednesday last), Mr. Gunson, chairman of tho Auckland Chamber, writes:— "A formal acknowledgment has been sent to your Chamber's letter of the 13th inst. I regret on carefully perusing your letter that'l find it lacks the optimistic spirit that the progress and prosperity of this young Dominion warrants. The ex- I perienco of the past and tho indications I for the future aro of such a nature as to , make us eager for an up-to-date and rapid mail and tourist service, and one that will meet the demands of the times; for my chamber is totally adverse to the 'Taihoa' policy, and I feel sure that your chamber is also chary of it. I regret that I misinterpreted your apathy in connection with and your opposition to my chamber's proposals as 'bluif to put us off our guard/ and I accept your assurance to the contrary. I am, however, astonished that you should continue ft) display such hostility to tho proposed Vancouver service with the Auckland call, when you must know that my chamber is working for the advancement of the Dominion. My chamber is not anxious to abandon the Suez service, and never' advocated shell; just the contrary, for to keep pace with »the times and in the interests of tho Dominion we require both the Suez and Vancouver services. If my memory serves me rightly you had, about 12 years ago, a Vancouver servico from Wellington, but lack of both support and energy slowly and surely wiped it out; against the inauguration of that service your chamber raised no voice of protest. Then there is the Tahiti subsidy—a service which - is practically useless to tho Dominion, and established at considerable cost, and of which I think, your chamber approved. When you now advocate tho opening un of tho Hast Coast railway from your end it causes fair-minded people to wonder why this patriotic impulse did not permeate your chamber before you secured the costly and useless Tahiti service of <i oto -15 days from London. Provided the railway proposed from Gisborne northwards be completed my chamber will then no doubt be prepared'to support the construction of a line between Gisborno and Napior. It is greatly to be regretted that you have sceu fit to adopt such hostile tactics towards the proposals made by my chamber in its' strenuous endeavours to better, by a vastly improved Vancouver service, the antiquated mail facilities that at present obtain between this Dominon, America, and Europe. My chamber's proposals were received most favourably by both Sir Joseph Ward and the present contractors, whose support they have received. What benefit your chamber could liopo to acquire by such 'a stand a.s you have adopted altogether passes my comprehension." Do you desiro us to think that you are swrious when you say in reference to tho Suez route: 'Tho service as a whole as a weekly mail is far more useful and valuable than any three-weekly service could possibly be/ If so, you fail lamentably of any conception of tho value of the Paciiic trade and tourist traffic, to say nothing of tho unequalled facilities offered by that route for mail matter. The annual cost to the Dominion of the Suez service alone is .£28,51)0 (not c £lo,ooo as asserted by you). If your chamber persists in its present attitude (I trust your own personal influence will be exercised to avert it), my chamber shall bo compelled, in spite of-your opposition and minus your support, to push this mail question to a successful issue. On this question I am now directing a letter to the leading chambers of the Dominion. If my chamber doe.s not succeed in connection with a call here by tho present Vancouver steamers it will at once consider Sir Joseph Ward's proposal for a 'fast fortnightly' Vancouver ('Frisco), ' Honolulu, Fiji, and. .New Zealand service. Such a service would, for reasons explained in my ' telegrams, make Auckland the first and last New Zealand port of call, and probably Wellington the terminal port. For this my chamber would bo prepared to work, but pending the result of the present negotiations it is unnecessary for me to dwell further on this 'proposal. I have previously appealed to you to stand in with us, and appeal I now bog to renew. Trusting that your chamber will yet favourably view this most important and pressing demand, I am, etc/'

Speaking to 3. "Herald" representative on tho matter, Mr. Gunson said there was one point iu particular in the letter from the Wellington Chamber which would not pass without being noted by tho Auckland Chamber, and that was the .suggestion for the early prosecution of the railway line from Napier to Gisborne. It was quite obvious that Wellington wanted the Gisborne trade. Now Gisborne was in the Auckland Province, and it behoved his chamber to take up tho agitation for the construction of tho line from Gisborne northwards. He had dealt with this question in his reply to Mr. Tewsley.

"As far as Wellington's attitude towards tho mail .question and proposed Vancouver service is concerned," said Mr. Guns/on, "my letter to the president of the Wellington Chamber speaks for itself. Where the Wellington Chamber has gone wrong in estimating the Suez service is that it has only reckoned the cost of transit from Wellington to Sydney, but in addition the.ro is the cost of tho Australian ovfrland transit, the Indian Ocean, and the European/'

With regard to the Tahiti service, .Mr. Gunson stated that on the last three occasions the times occupied in the running from London to Auckland, via Wellington, were 47, 42, and 41 days.

Mr. Gunson stated that the boat? enpaced in the Vancouver service from Wellington 12 years ago, mentioned in his letter to Mr. Tewsley, were the Warrimoo and Miowera.