THE AGENT GENERAL IN LONDON.

Evening Star, Issue 2809, 17 February 1872, Page 2

THE AGENT GENERAL IN LONDON.

By the mail just to hand despatches have been received from the Agent in England, but they do not contain any thing of particular importance. Tenders for the supply of materials and plant for the Dunedin and Glutha railway had been accepted, and portions had been shipped by the Jessie headman, and Margaret Galbraith. Mar terials for the Canterbury Northern Bailway had been shipped by the Wild Duck and England. Nothing further is reported respecting immigration, save that the emigrants for the ship England, for Wellington, included eighty-one Scandinavian adults. We are given to understand that that it is almost hopeless to expect any considerable emigration from England if the payment of passage money is insisted on, but that there are hopes of obtaining a moderate supply on the same terms as are accorded to the Scandinavians! and Germans,'namely, by taking promissory notes for that portion of the cost

of passage which the immigrant is expected to pay. No doubt there'is a strong objection to the creation of a large class of State debtors which this system is likely to result in. It is often productive of serious political consequences, and judging by past experience, the liabilities are seldom paid. But the difficulty might be got over by the creation of a non-political immigration board or commissioner, whose duties should be clearly defined and discharged as any other public trustee is expected discharge Ws. We would remark that the Government in ordering railway plant from England appears to have ignored altogether any attempts to procure some of their supplies within the colony. We are satisfied that many of the more ordinary materials required could be supplied as cheaply and as well in the colony as in England. The rougher kinds of carriage —ballast waggons, goods trucks, &c., should be capable of being manufactured in New Zealand at even a cheaper rate than they can be imported from England. The Canterbury Government has found its local carriage factory a perfect success, and for some time has ceased to import carriages. The General Government might at least have invited tenders for the cheaper kind of carj-iages, and even if a slightly higher price hacl to be paid (which we doubt), the indirect advantage to the Colony would far more than compensate for it. It is to be hoped that the Minuter of Public Works will direct his attention to this matter.— lndependent.