PUBLIC MEETING AT LINCOLN.

Globe, Volume XXII, Issue 2131, 22 December 1880, Page 3

PUBLIC MEETING AT LINCOLN.

Pursuant to notice, a public meeting of the ratepayers of the Springs, Lincoln, and Little River Road Board districts was hold on Tuesday evening in the district school, Lincoln, at 8 o’clock, there being a good attendance. The Hon. J. T. Eisher and Mr W. Montgomery were present by invitation. Mr J. Gammack was elected to the chair.

The Chairman introduced proceedings by stating the object for which the meeting had been called, and expressed the pleasure he felt in being present on such an occasion. He then called upon the convener of the meeting to address those present. Mr O’Oallaghan then came forward and explained why he had called them together. On several occasions lately he _ had been spoken to by the ratepayers of this and adjoining districts, asking him if it was intended to take any action towards calling the attention of the Government to the delay that had taken place in the prosecution of the railway work to Little River and Akaroa, and reports were circulated to the effect that it was not intended by the Government to proceed further with the line after the completion of the contract for three miles and a half. With regard to such reports, he had always said that he bad perfect confidence in the intention of the Government to carry out the whole of the work so far as the formation extended, and this faith was strengthened by the fact that he, having been one of a deputation who waited on the Minister of Public Works in Christchurch on the subject, received the assurance that the work would be done forthwith, and that there was no need for the deputation to take any further action in the matter. But it now appeared that the contract hod been stopped after three and a half miles were completed, and as to whether it was the intention of the Government to proceed any further, with the line they had no information. The workjwas stopped, however, and he considered it to be their positive duty, in their own interests and that of the country in general, to meet together for the purpose of asserting their just rights in regard to this line. They would all remember that it was now eighteen months or more since the original contract was entered upon for the formation of the line. After considerable delay the contract for plate-laying was let ; then preparations were made for ballasting the latter end of the line, and after all that work and preparatory trouble, the Government discontinued supplies when a matter of three miles was completed. He thought they would all agree with him in pronouncing this a most disappointing result after all their exertions towards obtaining the promises and assurances of the Government that the work would be completed immediately. He would now point out the reasons which, to his mind, made the matter so urgent. In the first place, the line, so far as it went at present, 'was palpably useless, or almost so, being of no service to the settlers and utterly unremunerative to the Government. On the other hand, ho thought they might safely say that if the line were completed for a distance of, say, seventeen miles, it would prove remunerative to a considerable extent, and that would bo a much brighter prospect for the Government than the knowledge that £25,000 had been spnk in what was quite useless for any purpose whatever. [Cheers.] He did not know whether it was the intention of the Government to simply delay the prosecution of the work, or whether it was their intention to wait until after next session—that would be after the harvest. No information on this subject had been received from the Minister of Public Works, beyond the remark that the work would not be lost sight of. One thing was plain, however, that unless the line were proceeded with at once, no benefit coaid be derived from it this year, either for the grain traffic or the winter timber trade with Little River, which of itoelf was a matter of very considerable moment. They were all interested in the line. At present timber could not be delivered there under a high price, and there could be little doubt but that the price would be reduced three or four shillings per hundred if the line were opened the whole length, whilst the proposed completion of seventeen miles of the route would still most probably bring about a considerable reduction. Another point he thought they ought to consider was this. At this season of the year the work could be pushed ahead—as they had seen in the case of the late contract —with wonderful celerity, considering the country they lived in and the time occupied in carrying out most of the public works, and he had no doubt, if the contract were now taken up for the completion of the work, it would be finished in time to be utilised during the forthcoming season. It should be remembered that the ballast pita were full of water during winter months in the low-lying country, and this, combined with other draw, backs peculiar to the time ol year, would militate seriously against the successful prosecution of the work. But he thought the most important point of all for them was the fact of their having received the assurances of the Government that the work would be proceeded with forthwith. They knew also that it was recommended by the Railway Commissioners, who went into the merits of the different lines projected all over the country ; their report stating that this was one of the lines which should be proceeded with without delay. It was not only the fact that the mo% already expended would' be, so to speasy wasted, but votes of money had been made by Parliament on three different ocoosions, especially for this line. During the session before last £20,500 was granted on behalf of it, and a portion of that amount, £14,000, had been expended in formation. Since then a further vote of £16,000 was passed, and the total result of all this was a railway three and a half miles long, which led nowhere. Under all these circumstances he felt that he had done right in calling the meeting together for the purpose of

urging the claims of tha districts interested in this matter, especially seeing that the Government were directly pledged to complete the line. He had great pleasure in moving—“ That this meeting views with extreme regret the cessation of the work of ballasting and plate laying on the Little Biver and Akaroa line of railway ; and begs most respectfully to lay before the Government the following facts in connection with the matter :—lst. That the line in its present incomplete state ia almost wholly useless to the inhabitants and unremunerativo to the country. 2nd. That any delay now in j»i_hing on the work on the line will prevent its being available for the coming grain season, and the winter timber traffic. 3rd. That the present is the most favorable season for the prosecution of the work. 4th. That, relying on the assurances of the Minister of Public Works as to the expenditure of the vote of last session, and the immediate completion of the line, many of the settlers have engaged Jin undertakings which will entail heavy loss if railway communication is not provided, as they were led to expect.” Mr O’Oallaghan then resumed his seat amid applause. Mr J. Qebbie seconded the resolution, and had great pleasure in being able to endorse all that the mover had said on the subject. There was still a balance of from £II,OOO to £12,000, which ought to be expended on the work, and unless some action was taken there appeared a likelihood of their losing that amount altogether. He strongly approved of the present proceedings therefore, being calculated, as they were, to obtain some definite idea of what the Government actually intended to do. He might also point out that farmers in the districts interested had carried on their operations hitherto in the full expectation that increased facilities for transit would be afforded.

Mr O’Oallaghan here mentioned that Messrs Montgomery and Eisher were present, and would answer any questions which might be put to them relative to the subject under discussion.

Mr Wm, Ooop said he was one of the deputation which had waited on the Government in reference to the present line of railway towards Little River. And he also gave evidence in Akaroa before a Royal Commission upon the paying capabilities of the railway. The line had been strongly recommended to the Government, and yet only three miles and fifty links of the permanent way had been laid. This small portion would be useless, and the £IB,OOO spent would, to all intents and par poses, be wasted, to say nothing of the injury done to certain industries of material value to the country. He considered the dilly-dallying exhibited by the authorities in reference to this important work was really shameful. He had great pleasure in supporting the resolution. The Chairman, at this stage, invited' Mr Montgomery and Mr Eisher to address the meeting.

Mr Montgomery said he would say a few words only, in which he ehonld be careful to avoid importing anything of a political character, this being a meeting of residents of the district, quite irrespective of party considerations, for the purpose of having a railway pushed forward which would prove of inestimable advantage to the district and to Akaroa. He could only express regret with Mr O'Oallaghan that this work bad not been pushed on without any delay. The amount available for continuation and plate-laying was £12,000 and he considered that the action which that meeting were now taking was incumbent upon them ; because if they did not sing out when they felt injured they would not get their injuries or grievances redressed. He thought in view of all the circumstances it would be a very great pity indeed if the work were not proceeded with before the winter, and in this connection the remarks of Mr O’Callaghan, and the seconder of the resolution, respecting the grain and timber traffic were exceedingly well applied. His own impression was that this would prove one of the best paying linos in the Province of Canterbury, Little River alone being capable of furnishing enough traffic to keep the railway usefully and profitably employed for a number of years at the least. Their title to be granted what they asked appeared all the greater when it came to be considered that really these districts had not received a fair proportion of the vast amount of public money that had been expended, and was now lying as a debt upon the colony at large. Seeing, then, that Parliament had voted a sum of money for this railway, and that its construction had been recommended by the Railway Commission, he thought they might fairly call upon the Minister of Public Works to proceed with it at once, and he believed himself that the Minister had no other intention than to proceed with the work, it being purely a question of time. He wrote to that gentleman about a month ago, and received in reply a letter which he caused to be published in the Akaroa “ Mail,” to the effect that the matter was not lost sight of. Since that time, at the instance of the County Council, he wrote again to the Minister of Public Works, addressing it to Wellington ; but delay oocurrred owing to the Minister being down South, and he had consequently not received any answer to it; but he had no doubt that a reply would soon be forthcoming, especially in view of the action taken by tins meeting, and he felt tolerably confident that the reply would be favorable. In any case, however, it was absolutely necessary to impress upon the Minister for Public Works that the work ought to be completed without delay.

The Hon. J. T. Fisher said he had attended in response to an invitation from Mr O’Oallaghan, and it gave him the greatest pleasure indeed to attend. He thought it a pity that the people did not more frequently hold meetings, at which their representatives might meet them in a semi-official manner, and thus become acquainted with their wishes and requirements. It would always give him pleasure to meet tbe electors of any district, who might have grievances they desired to see redressed, or some matter they wished to have brought prominently before Parliament. [Applause.] With regard to the subject under discussion, he quite agreed with the remarks which had fallen fromMr O ’Callaghan. It appeared that a large sum of money had been expended, and the result was a work which, unless carried further, must prove almost entirely useless, and he quite agreed with the course adopted for tbe purpose of drawing to it the attention of the Government. As one speaker had justly remarked, the railway would be useless for agricultural purposes unless completed before the winter, and the great object was to bring pressure to bear on the Government for the purpose of inducing immediate action. It eeemed to him that nothing farther need be said on the matter. The question amounted simply to this —that a sum of money had been voted for a certain purpose, and they wanted to know why it was not expended. [Applause.] Before he sat down there were one or two things he should like to mention, by way of consulting the electors. One of them was the proposed re-distribution of seats, whereby their district would be divided into two parts; and the other was tbe Fencing Bill, which would no doubt be brought in next session. In many matters of this sort he thought it was as well that the people should consult with their representatives, whoever they might be, to the end that, on entering Parliament for the dispatch of business, they might be fully alive to the opinions and wishes of their constituents in matters so very materially affecting their interests. Personally, ho would always be glad to attend any meetings got together for such a purpose if requested to do so. [Applause.] Mr Coop moved, “That a copy of the above resolution be forwarded to the Minister of Public Works.”

Seconded by Mr Herrick, and carried. Tbe Chairman remarked that now was a favorable time for carrying out the proposed work, which could be done at a very reasonable rate compared with what they had been accustomed to in the district. This, he thought, was a matter worthy of consideration.

Mr Bishop pointed out that the present terminal point of the formation did not go far enough, and he suggested that the Government might be urged to carry the lino as far as the Little River township, or further if possible. He would not move a resolution on the subject, but should bo glad to support one moved by some other member of the meeting having greater interest in the line and a better knowledge of the subject. Mr O’Oallaghan said the extension of tbe line to Little River had been recommended by the Commissioners, and he thought it would not be of much use their adding anything on the subject till after next session at least. This terminated the discussion.

On the motion of Mr Anderson, a hearty vote of thanks was passed to Messrs Fisher and Montgomery. Totes of thanks were also accorded to Mr O’Oallaghan, who convened tbe meeting, and the chair. The meeting then rose.