THE NEW PASSENGER STATION.

Globe, Volume VII, Issue 757, 23 November 1876, Page 3

THE NEW PASSENGER STATION.

The ceremony of laying the foundation atone of the new passenger station at Christchurch look place yesterday. The ceremony was performed by Mr W. Kolleston, and there was a very good attendance of the public and others, including the Hon E. Richardson (Minister for Public Works), Mr Carruthers (Bngineer-in-Chief), Mr J, B, Fitz Gerald, Hon 0. 0. Bowen (Minister of Justice), Messrs Passmore, Lawson, J. G. Warner, J. Ollivier, and Colonel Gorton.

The site chosen abuts upon that occupied by the building used for the traffic manager’s office in Manchester street. The time fixed for the ceremony was half-past eleven, and shortly after that hour Mr Kolleston ascended the temporary platform erected for the occasion. A bottle containing the local newspapers and a parchment inscription, engrossed by Mr E. P. Crosbie, was prepared to be placed in the cavity under the stone left for that purpose. The inscription was as follows :— 11 This foundation stone of the Christchuich Railway Station was laid by W. Kolleston, Esq, M.H.B, for nine years Superintendent of the Province of Canterbury. J. G. Warner, Railway Engineer ; J, Tait, contractor, November 22nd, 1876.” The stone being placed in readiness for lowering, Mr Kolleston said he had very much pleasure in acceding to the request made to him that he would lay the foundation stone of the new passenger station at Christchurch. The work had been a very long time talked about, and he was glad it had come at last. In taking his share in the proceedings of that day, he looked upon it as one of the last acts of Provincial administration. During the continuance of that administration every effort had been made in the direction of progress, and he was pleased to be present on the occasion of laying the foundation stone of a building which he believed and trusted would be found of great convenience to the public generally. The site of the proposed station had long been a matter of dispute, and he was glad to find that the General Government had stepped in and settled that long disputed matter by fixing it where they now stood. So far as could be judged by the plans, the building would not only bo convenient for the working of the traffic, but would also be a credit to the city. [Hear, hear.) As he had before said, he had the greatest possible pleasure in laying the foundation stone, and ho hoped that the building which would be erected upon it would be placet on a surer foundation than the system which gave it birth, [Hear, hear.J Mi J. G. Warner then stepped forward and presented Mr Kolleston with a very handsome silver trowel, manufactured by Mr M. Saodstein, which bore the following inscription—“ Presented to W. Kolleston, Esq, on the occasion of his laying the foundation stone of the new passenger station at Christchurch—November 22ud, 1876.”

Mr Eollcston then declared the stone to be well and truly laid, Mr Bolleston then said before separating, there was a gentleman to whom the province

owed considerably more than to himself (Mr Rolleston) or any one else in the matter of the progress of railways amongst them, He alluded to the Hon Mr Richardson, the Minister for Public Works, a gentleman who had labored most assiduously and for the benefit of tbe whole colony in the duties of his office. [Cheers.] He would ask those present to give three hearty cheers for Mr Richardson,

The request was complied with most heartily. Hon Mr Richardson said he desired to thank those present for the very enthusiastic manner in which they had responded to Mr Rolleston’s request, and for the compliment paid to himself. He was extremely glad to see the stone of the buildings about to be erected as a passenger station laid, but he was also sorry to hear Mr Rolleston allude to it as his last act. Though this was the last act of the Provincial Administration, he felt sure they could not afford to lose the services of a man like Mr Rolleston. Mr Rolleston during the time he had been at the head of affairs in the province had worthily discharged his duties, and he trusted that they would have the benefit of his services in the more extended sphere of colonial affairs. This concluded the formal business of the day,, and those present then adjourned to the traffic manager’s office, where Mr J. W Morton had provided a stock of the right sort to drink prosperity to the new railway station.

Mr J. G. Warner occupied the chair, aud after all had been supplied with the wherewithal!, Mr J. G. Warner, railway engineer, said he would ask them to drink the health of Mr Rolleston. He felt sure that the whole of the people of Canterbury would be glad to find that he had performed the duty that day. He trusted the station would prove a great benefit to the public. With regatd to the plans, of course the proof of the pudding was in the eating, but he desired to give his assistants every credit for the excellent manner in which they had seconded his ideas. As to the contractor, also, he might say that from what he knew of him, he was satisfied he would discharge his duty properly. The toast was drunk enthusiastically. Mr Rolleston, after thanking those present for the way in which his health had been drunk, said that in 1875 the passengers carried on the Canterbury railways numbered half a million ; in 1876 they reached 700,000 and at the rate of progress they were making it might be expected that in 1877 the passengers on the Canterbury railways might reach a million. He thought therefore that the time had arrived when it was necessary that increased accommodation should be afforded, He desired to take this opportunity of proposing the health of Mr Warner, the Railway Engineer, to whom the plans of the building were due. Mr Warner had given his best energies to the work, and they now had that day done the first act towards the erection of the building. The toast was drank with three times three in Mr Ollivier’s well-known mode.

Mr Warner said that daring the whole time he had been connected with the railway the station question cropped up His staff had most ably seconded his efforts, and to give an idea of the shortness of time allowed, be might say that the plans were only completed in August, and tenders were called for and accepted at the end of September. He thanked them very sincerely for the way in which the toast had been received.

Mr Kolleston would desire to propose the health of Mr Tait, the contractor. To Mr Tait they owed some of the most workmanlike buildings in Christchurch, and he had also been one of the most successful contractors in the province. He (Mr Kolleston) felt sure that Mr Tait would carry out the contract as well as the others he had completed. [Hear, hear.] The toast was done due honors to. Mr Tait said he thanked Mr Kolleston for the kindly way in which he had spoken of him. He should in this, as he had done in all buildings passing through h ; s hands, endeavor to turn it out in a workmanlike manner and within the contract time. (Hear, heas.] Mr Ollivier said he desired to ask them to drink the health of an old friend. The gentleman he alluded to had pioneered the early public works of the province, and now he came there as the pioneer of a change which was to hand them over to that model of all Governments throughout the world known as the Colonial Government. He would not detain them at any length, but would ask them to drink most heartily the health of their old and esteemed friend James Edward Fitz Gerald, with every wish for his future welfare. [Cheers. 1 The toast was drank with three times three.

Mr Fitz Gerald said he was much obliged to them for the manner in which his health had been drank. During one’s passage through life it was often the case that an attack was made upon one. But he could not conceive anything more unprecedented than his being called upon to make a speech on such an occasion as that. It was the more so coming from his old enemy Mr Ollivier. He well recollected in the olden times the bitter diatribes fulminated against him by his honorable friend—if he might call him so—opposite. He was on those occasions described with all the withering eloquence of Mr Ollivier as the one bitter and remorseless enemy of all railway progress. [Laughter.] They might well imagine, therefore, how utterly at a loss for words he (Mr Fitz Gerald) found himself when on an occasion such as the present, when they were met to celebrate the opening of an adjunct to railway progress, he found himself dragged from the obscurity he had buried himself in, and held up to the public gaze. [Laughter.] -Ho had hoped that with years wisdom would have come to his honorable friend, but he was sorry to find that it had not. With that n sarcasm, of which he was so perfect a master, Mr Ollivier had taken this opportunity after the remarks he had made to hold him up as a bright and shining example of advocates of railway extension [Laughter.] Seriously speaking, ho was truly rejoiced to find himself amongst old friends once more, and to meet as he had that day with a hearty and kindly welcome, 1 Cheers.] Mr John Anderson,said he desired to pro pose one toast, which was the health of the Hon Mr Richardson, the Minister for Public Works. [Cheers.] He could have wished that the task had fallen to the lot of hie fluent friend Mr Ollivier, or some one equally versed in speech making, but while he said this, there was no one who had a more sincere respect for Mr Richardson, and an appreciation of the services rendered by him to the colony than he (Mr Anderson) had He felt sure that these sentiments were

shared by the whole of the colony, and that the arduous and zealous labors of Mr Richardson were fully appreciated throughout New Zealand. [Cheers.] He would ask them to drink with all the honors, the health of the Hon Mr Richardson. [Cheers.] The toast was drank enthusiastically.

Hon Mr Richardson said that he desired first to thank Mr Anderson for the kindly manner in which he had proposed the toast, and secondly the gentlemen present for the hearty way in which they had received it. As he had said on the occasion of the laying of the stone just previously, it gave him the greatest possible pleasure to see that at last a step had been made in the direction of obtaining a new passenger station. Whenever he had been visiting Christchurch he had always looked at the buildings ou the old site with pain, as not being capable of affording the requisite accommodation to the public and also not being able to give the staff a fair opportunity of working the traffic to advantage. It might be interesting to those present to learn that the site fixed upon by Mr Dobson for the passenger station was just where it was now placed, after sixteen years’ interval. He could only regret that the plan originally laid down by Mr Dobson and himself had not been adhered to, as by this means some thousands of pounds would have been saved to the province. By the erection of the buildings it was now proposed to build, not only would the public have considerably more convenience and comfort, but those in charge of the traffic would bo enabled to work it more economically and satisfactorily than they could now.

Mr Ollivier said on a recent occasion many of them had manifested a great desire.to see the now dredge in operation. There were present on that occasion many of those who were round him then, but he missed on that occasion the face of one gentleman who was doing good work for the colony. He alluded to the Hon O, O. Bowen, [Cheers.] That gentleman was the right man in the right place. He was every day of his life laying foundation stones for the good of the colony at large, in the shape of useful work, j Hear, hear.] He would now only ask them to do full honor to the health of the Hon C, 0. Bowen. [Cheers. |

The toast was drank with enthusiasm.

Hon 0, 0. .Bowen said it was scarcely possible for any man at that time of the day to rise and make a speech, except perhaps his old friend Mr Ollivier. He had heard a great deal of fencing about using the word Canterbury, which he did not like. It was true that certain changes had been made, and that divisions had taken place for the purposes of local government, but that was no reason at all why Canterbury should lose her identity, nor was it intended in any way to have that effect. He himself hoped to live and die a Canterbury man—[hear, hear]—and he knew no reason in the world why under the new system any man should be ashamed to call himself |a Canterbury man, The new order of things was the inevitable outcome of the scheme of Government brought into work at the foundation of the provinces. Mr Rolleston, when laying the foundation stone, had his little joke about abolition, but he was glad to find that he, like a distinguished statesman, felt that no matter what political differences occurred, the Queen's Government must be carried on. | Haer, hear.J’ The other toasts proposed were the “ En* gineer-inChief," responded to by Mr Oarruthers ; “ Mr Lawson,” responded to by that gentleman ; “ The Visitors,” responded to by Colonel Gorton, Mr Conyers, Mr Passmore, and Mr Fitz Gerald; “Mr John Ollivier,” responded to in a most humorous speech by that gentleman; “ The officers of the Railway Department,” responded to by Mr Fyfe; “The Press,” responded to by Messrs Hart and Grey. The company then separated, having spent a very pleasant afternoon.