The Feilding Star. SATURDAY, MAY 19, 1883. The Inland Railway.

Feilding Star, Volume III, Issue 106, 19 May 1883, Page 2

The Feilding Star. SATURDAY, MAY 19, 1883. The Inland Railway.

• The people of Auckland have taken alarm at the unwonted energy displayed by the Wellington Chamber ot Commerce in appointing a sub-com-mittee to enquire into the best Central hailway rome. This is the best thing that could hnppeu, inasmuch as the vigor which will characterise the movements of the Auckland merchants and those interested may have tbe effect ot inciting those of Wellington to increased exertion and combined action We will quote what the Auckland Star says on the subject : — " For consummate impudence we know of nothing more unique than the attempt , by Wellington men to control the route of the trunk railway through Auckland Provincial District to connect with the • lines already constructed from Wellington. A Press Association telegram announces that a committee composed of members of the Wellington Chamber of ' Commerce has been formed to influence the < overnment, and it was common talkin the lobbies last session th..t the Wellington members had agreed upon concerted action for the defeat of the Te Awamutu-Taranaki route. By clever scheming and local pressure upon Ministers, Wellington has managed to obtain I nearly double the amount of public 1 expenditure to ', which the district was 1 entitled on revenue or population basis. It possesses two lines of railway con- ' verging upon Napier on the East Coast " and Taranaki on the West Coast. The object of the present move is to make . the trunk line from Auckland give Wel- • lington a third railway through its Northern Centre, and keep Auckland out of the West Coast trade, where our merchants aie already pushing the Southerners out of the field. It is a very clever scheme indeed, and if Auckland merchants and Auckland representatives are sleepy enough to let the Wellington - Chamber of Commerce work its sweet will and arrange Auckland railway matters for us, the inhabitants of the Empire City will deserve all the advantages they . secure. The West Taupo route — the line which they favor — is nearly twice as long as the section between Te Awamutu and Waitara or Stratford, and if Parliament can only be persuaded to sanction it, Auckland may bid good-bye to the hope of union with the rest of the North Island districts during the present generation. The Auckland members held a caucus last session, and were unanimous " in favor of the West Coast route — which, if undertaken in earnest, might be completed within the next fiye years. But the Wellington schemers have • evidently not lost heart. They are understood to rank Mr Bbyce among their champions, and will play as a trump card the difficult nature of the country between Mokau and Waitara. They mean business, and more difficult things than this have beon worked by \ t judicious lobbying. It is evident that the only way to keep these gentlemen 1 in check, and teach them to confine Wellington scheming to Wellington , business, leaving Auckland to take care 1 of her own affairs, is the execution of a . threat made last session, which produced > a very salutary effect for the time being on Wellington public opinion — so much ' so that the Post, which champions tbe • West Taupo line, published an article , warning the Wellington members against adopting a hostile attitude toward.* Auckland on a queston which was mainly an Auckland one. The Auckland reprenentatives, hy throwing the weight of their voting power on the side of the Southern confederacy already favorable to the removal of the seat of Government to Christchurch, can seal the fate of the JJmpire City. The recent expenditure on Pailiament buildings, giving the capital another root in Wellington soil, has perhaps emboldened the wire pullers to take more aggressive action, but the Pro vincial buildings of Christchurch are commodious and substantial, and the vote required to effect the removal will not deter Parliament from taking the step it

deemed advisable. A hundred thousand I pounds would be economically spent if it would rid the colony of the pressure perpetually exercised over the Government to the detriment of the entire colony, m the interests of that wretched city of match-boxes, having its locating on the shores of Cook's Straits." The threat of removing the seat of Government from Wellington to Christchurch is certainly one that will strike a chill into the hearts of some Wellington " old identities," bur. to the younger generation it will have no terrors. Even supposing that a combination of members was made with the object of revensiug a i'a< cied wrong, and their end was actually accomplished by the removal of the Seat of Government, we believe that Wellington would bo benefitted by the change. Auckland was always a poverty-strick.n place when it was crowded with troops, and " the daily bread " of the business people depended on military expenditure. Alter the removal of the troops Auckland began to be self-ralient, and exerted herself to be independant, with the result that it is now lar and away the most prosperous city in the Colony. It is on the cards that were Wellington deprived of the Government expenditure in salaries, &c., a period, of temporary depression would ensue. But a few years would enable this to be shaken off, and she would be equally prosperous. The Inland Railway alone would more than compensate for the apparent loss. As to what Wellington will really benefit by the formation of the Wellington Manawatu Railway alone, we do not think that even the directors know, with perhaps the exception ot two or three who know the grand country thai will be then on light near to that city. We devoutly hope that the members for Wellington and West Coast constituencies will offer a bold front and not be turned away by mer3 threats. Besides, as a last resource, Auckland members can always be induced to "rat."