The Dunstan Times. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1880.

Dunstan Times, Issue 966, 22 October 1880, Page 2

The Dunstan Times.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22, 1880.

Beneath the rule of men entirely just th pen is mightier than t/teSWORD

A very inportant question was brought before the public meeting at Ophir, by Councillor Pitches, anent the extra telegraphic charge imposed on messages transmitted to or from certain stations : —notably to and from Ophir, St. Bathans, Alexandra and Roxburgh And, truly, anything better calculated to impair the efficiency of the Telegraph Department could not Yvell be devised. Viewed as a question of policy,, the exceptional charge is a crime ■ and as a question of business, it is that worse thing-—a blunder. The Government have established a close raouoply of the lettercarrying and telegraphic business of the colony, and the legislature has made statutory provision for the prevention of competition, by authorising the iufletion of heavy pains and penalties oh whomsoever may venture to infringe this state monopoly. This being so, the busiues should be treated as a whole. To divide it into sections and to debit each office with its own expenditure, and credit its revenue as apart from the total, is such an utterly pettifogging system that one wonders how men w.io have achieved the position of ministers ciuld ever have been guilty of such small-mind-edness. But maximaa in minimus is the motto of die Hall Government. They are absurdly gieat in small things, and lamentably small in great things; and so, in their inordinate zeal for economy—an ccnnomv which involves extravagance in Taranaki—they count, and wrongly count the cost of each telegraph station, instead of massing the whole, and charging all the community alike whether they live in Dunedin, or in Alexandra, or in Ophir. A more stupid blunder was never made. It must be remembered that messages sent to the expurgated offices, us well as messages sent from them are charged the extra sixpence. Consequently the revenue suffers at all points. And we venture to say that a marked falling off in the

general receipts, will be discovered when the accounts for the year are made up.

It is difficult to understand the way in which results are arrived at by official experts. A return showing the revenue and expenditure of the several extra-taxed offices was moved for by the Representative of the District, and laid upon the table of the House last session. We extract therefrom the portions relating to our own more immediate localities :

Now we know very well that at each of (hose four stations there is precisely the same staff, namely —one officer who performs all the duties ol postmaster, telegraphist, and messenger. How comes it then that there is such great disparity in the stated expenditure—ranging from D 159 in the case of St. Bathans to L 277 in the case of Roxburgh 1 And why is the item of telegraph expenditure set down at L 93 at Alexandra and Llll at Ophir, and the postal expenditure charged LloG at Alexandra and L7 '2 at Ophir 1 Verily these are puzzles that '• no fellow can understand.”

We are plesaed to learn that our member is alive to the fact that gr. at wrong is being done to Alexandra and Ophir by this excessive and unjust charge, and sincerely hope that he will be ab'e to relieve those stations of what can onlv be regarded as a vexations and intolerable burden.

Stations. 9 months. Telegraph lie venue. Telegraph Expendtre. Post Office Revenue. Post Office Expendtre. Total Revenue. Total Expendtre. £ fi. d. £ H. d. £ 3. d. £ 8. d. £ s d. £ 8. d. Alexandra ... 80 0 5 93 10 2 92 0 0 150 0 0 172 0 5 249 10 2 Ophir 09 0 10 111 13 10 82 7 2 72 10 0 151 8 0 184 3 10 Roxburgh ... 99 13 11 139 17 5 140 7 0 137 10 0 240 0 11 277 7 5 S. Balkans... 54 o 9 79 0 3 70 12 10 GO O 0 0 124 15 7 159 0 3