THE PENINSULA. RAILWAY COMPANY AND THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

Evening Star, Issue 3763, 16 March 1875, Page 2

THE PENINSULA. RAILWAY COMPANY AND THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT.

The correspondence between the Company and the Provincial and General Governments is much too lengthy for our columns, but the principal points of it may be thus stated in brief. In beptember last the promoters of the Company waited upon the Superintendent to ascertain what assistance the Provincial Government were prepared to give, and on the 23rd of the same month were informed that in view of the public importance of the proposed line the Government would give every assistance in their power towards its successful working; would concede without compensation the right to construct the railway over lands under the control of the Province; would provide on similar terms a suitable site for a town station near Jetty street in the event of there being any difficulty in arranging for the use of the central terminus ; and if necessary the Government would, if it had sufficient plant at its disposal, be prepared to worn the line on such fair and equitable terms as might be agreed upon. , But as regarded the right to construct the' line along the foreshore of the Peninsula, below high-water mark, it was pointed out that it would be necessary to obtain the consent of the Governor, the granting of which would be recommended by the Provincial Government as soon as the company was in a position to proceed with the construction of the line. On December the company invited the Hon, the Commissioner of Customs; then in Dunedin, to use his influence with the General Government to procure for the company the three miles of rails and fastenings (not procurable in Australia) necessary to enable the company to open the line, and two days later the Provincial Government were asked to reply to the following points “ 1. The area of land in .Rattray street for passenger stations, &c.— say two acres—for use of railways, to be defined. 2. The area of lands in Jetty street for goods sheds, &c.—say four acres—to be also defined. The company to have a right to purchase the above areas within a given time, at a price to be fixed presently. 3. The right to construct the railway along the foreshore to Utago Heads, with right to construct piers and wharves for vessels to lie alongside of, and to take in and discharge cargo. If the Provincial Government connot give these rights, they <the Provincial Government) to obtain them for the Company from the General Government, 4. To work the line of railway, or any part thereof, or section, which from time to time may be completed, with their rolling plant, stations, and servants. To grant the use of that portion of the Glutha Railway to the junction of the Dunedin, Peninsula, and Ocean Beach Railway. To employ a sufficient quantity of rolling plant for all the traffic requirements of the Company s line of railway.” For these considerations the Company expressed its willingness to allow the Government on the gross amount of takings, viz, 33 per cent, for passengers’ and 50 per cent for goods traffic. Next the Superintendent received from the Hon, Mr Reynolds a communication to the effect that the General Government had been advised that his Honor had no power to enter into any arrangement with the Company for working the line or the use by the Company of any portion of the Government lines, and that the General Government themselves had no power to make any such arrangement, which could be done subject to ratification by the General Government; that the company, although registered, had no power to construct and use the proposed railway with locomotive engines without the authority of Parliament, and that the Company could not hold land for such or any purpose without express authority of the General Assembly; nor could the ComWl . tb ? ut the same authority or that of the Provincial Council, run the railway over or on any high road; that if the land along the foreshore, upon which it was contemplated to construct the line, had been Crown granted" to the Superintendent, it would be necessary to obtain an Ordinance to enable bis Honor to part • with it ; and that there must be bye-laws and regulations for working the railway under some Act of the Legislature—for all of which reasons the Government were advised that it was necessary for tlie Company to obtain powers from the Legislature to enable it to carry out its proposals ; and unless the Company pledged itself to take the earliest opportunity of placing itself m a legal position it was impossible for the Government to have any dealings with it impliedly or expressedly lending their sanction to the construction and use of the proposed lailway without legislative authority. But, continued Mr Reynolds, if the Company so pledged themselves the Government would sell them the rails required. On February 2 the directors of the Company pledged themselves to take the earliest opportunity to place themselves in every respect in the most complete legal position it could both with the General and Provincial Governments. Then, after a good deal of wiring the Minister for Public Works, on Febra ary 6, intimated to the Superintendent, bv telegraph, that “ before completing the pro posed sale, and making any arrangement for the Company to join on to and use the main r\ th^ Gom ' nmenfc must ha ve the proposals ° f “ASrW including the plans and proposed BiU, submitted for approval. You will see the absolute necessity for this, because of the many conditions affecting public policy, which require to be inserted in every private Railway Act, such as, for instance, the terms on which the Government may take over the line, if it sees fit to do so at any time. Ihese matters are of so much importance that they cannot be decided without due consideration ; and the Company have no cause to complain, seeing that they have not taken any steps whatever, previously to their commencing ( their operations, to put themselves in a legal position to construct their line, and have further commenced work, acting as if they had powers which even the

Government Itself does rot t fbssess. , ( On the Bth Mr Bradshaw telegraphed to the Hon. Air Reynolds that the ooupuiy undertook to fulfil all the „ conditions imposed ?4>y the General Government in Mr Reynolds’s letter of Jamiary .28 ; that they had purchased all necessary lands, and that the use of any vested in the Superintendent had been given on terms satisfactory to the Provincial Government; that the cotupany did not particularly wish to use any portion of the Ohvtha line (except that it would so far allow them to open the line Sooner for traffic), but would at. once make their own line into their own terminus, and’believed they could do so, and keep their promise to the public to open it in March; Mr Blair had stated there were.' rails to spare, which the company wore prepared to purchase at the price named by the Government, and that the company would come under any obligations to obtain whatever powers were required from the Legislature at its next meeting. Next followed a good many letters and ■ telegrams, between Mr Bradshaw and Ministers, and on February 26 the Minister for Public Works wrote :—“ There really has been no difficulty raised as to the sale of tbe rails, but Jibe intentions of the company having reached the Government, it was bound to take the steps "it has, to warn the company as to the illegality of the course it proposed taking,.and also to intimate to it and to His Honor the Superintendent the steps which, in the opinion ot tho Government, had to bo taken to enable the company to proceed with its undertaking in a legitimate manlier. Audi may here mention that ns this is the first case of the sort which has occurred in New Zealand, it became tho more necessary to deal cautiously with it as any action taken with regard to this Company would bo held as a precedent by other companies who may'have similar objeots in -view I have now to state that if it is still the wish of the Company to have these three miles of rails and fastenings, I shall be prepared, on behalfcof the Government, to give Mr Blair instmßtfons to deliver them over to the Company ookn k his receiving payment in cash for them. But the Company must distinctly understand that the General Government cannot allow it~tqjoin its rails on to those of the main line, ndl*Jfcill the Government permit the line to be worked for passengers or other traffic, with the applianoes -of tho General Government, till suoh time as the Company have obtained the proper legislative authority to enable I them to proceed.’ It was next agreed to over to the Company throe miles of rails for L 3,365; but before completing the transaction the Minister of Public Works felt it to be his duty to warn the Company that ** if they proceed to do any acts for which they have not the full authority of the mw, the Government will immediately interfere, and move for an injunction of the Supreme Court to restrain them, till such i&no as they have the necessary Act of the Legislature to allow them to proceed. ” And on receipt of a communication from the Crown Solicitor (Mr Haggitt) threatening to apply for an injunction’if the Company did not at once desist from interfering with the land below high water mark opposite Block VII., Dunedin Town District and elsewhere, and also froiiL interfering with or constructing any works on any land, being a public highway ( a “ of which the company denied doing), Mr Bradshaw, on March 10, telegraphed to the Minister for Public Works Please do not stop the line on any Consideration, Company has just time to get line completed before the races, and the returns then will pay good per centage on cost for the whole year. If this chance is lost it will materially interfere with the enterprise. If Government will let works proceed, Company will agree to work? fine entirely under control of the Government Ptogineer, and will submit to any terms Government can in reason require, and consent to introduce Bill for at next session' of Assembly, and to insert any clause in it which Government may desire, including a clause enabling Government to purchase fine at any time, at a fair valuation, on giving, say,-'biz months’ notice.” The next day Mr Richardson replied that the Government were advised they could not knowingly allow the Company to proceed in direct violation of the law as it now stands, and here, for tho present, the matter rests.