The Fielding Star. Published Daily. SATURDAY, DEC. 9, 1893. THE RAILWAY COMMISSIONERS DOOMED.

Feilding Star, Volume XV, Issue 137, 9 December 1893, Page 2

The Fielding Star. Published Daily. SATURDAY, DEC. 9, 1893. THE RAILWAY COMMISSIONERS DOOMED.

It is quite clear that the Premier intends to carry out what has been one of the main objects of his political ambition for some years — namely, the abolition of the Eailway Commissioners. In his Bpeech at Masterton the other night, he said he had consulted " the highest legal authority," whatever that may mean, and the Government had been informed since the close of the session .they could appoint whom they liked when the present Commissioners' term expired. We may infer from the remark Mr Seddon made to the effect that he would not disclose who the Government would appoint, that the subject had already been considered, and that a* member of the House would be given a seat on the Board. We are not sure whether Mr Seddon was repotted correctly—there are always doubtß on that point— but when he said, or implied, that the elections showed the country wanted a change in the management of the railways he was wrong — utterly and completely wrong From ono end of the colony to the other farmers and business men have almost unanimously expressed their satisfaction with the system of the Commissioners, and at the same given expression to their feelings of dread and alarm at the prospect of a return to the old system of misrule and mismanagement which obtained when the railways were under Ministerial control. Mr Seddon said the press never noticed that three v inner circles" had grown up under the Commissioners apart from the Government. He referred to the audit, the locomotive, and the traffic departments. Mr Seddon was talking on a subject he did not understand. All of these are necessary portions of the system, just the same as are the different wheels of a watch each a part of the whole machine. Take away one of them and the whole thing becomes useless. Mr Seddon'e chief objection to them was not that they were bad in themselves, but that they were *' apart from the Government," the unpardonable Bin in the eyes of Mr Seddon. Of course the Government are so strong that they may do what they like during the long interval which must elapse before the House meets, and then their followers must of necessity endorse the Ministry's action whether they approve of the same or not. We like the peroration of the speech: "The Seddon Ministry were a happy family banded together to do good to the country. They were not a one man or a two men Ministry, but all worked together. The country was not now governed by under-secretaries, as in the past, but by Ministers." There is a gentle gush about this which is very satisfying. We must say that we do not hold Mr Seddon to be bound by what he said at Maeterton, or that the other members of the Cabinet will be obliged to blindly obey the behests of tho Premier, but from what we know of the man, both politically and privately, we feel assured that he will spare no pains to accomplish his desire to obtain per* sonal control of the railways, and j that when he does so the colony will be made bitterly to rue the day. It has taken some years to build up the present system which is working well and profitably as far as the traffic will permit, aud to talk of " running the railways in the interests of settlement " is simple nonsense, only intended "to tickle the ears, of the groundhogs."