THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1871.

Grey River Argus, Volume XI, Issue 984, 21 September 1871, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1871.

We noticed the other day the very broad and questionable statement made by Mr Curtis in the House of "Representatives to the effect that the jtfelson Government had constructed oh the Gold Fields under his control seven hundred miles of tracks, and that the Government had expended on the Gold Fields more than it had received from them. We have again to refer to it, as a statement of this sort, coming from such n. source, is likely to attract notice, and if it be allowed to pass nncontradicted, or probably it would be better to say unexplained, may seriously injure, the interests of |he inhabitants of the Grey Valley as an integral portion of the Province of Nelson. When the Superintendent visited the Gold Fields last year he addressed the people at the Ahau'ra, and, according to his logic, proved to them; beyond all manner of doubt, that they were most fortunate in having the good lrick to live under such a paternal form of government., and that is was not every community that enjoyed the inestimable blessing of having such a Superintendent. His Honor " boarded them in the smoke," so to speak, on that occasion, .and the residents were so dazed and dazzled at his brilliant display of blncbook-kwping, that they were unable to gainsay any of his statements. - It is true that one of the leading men there, with more pluck than judgment, ventured to express an opinion that it would have been more satisfactory if the Superintendent had told the meeting what he thought of the district in general, and especially what 'he thought of the Ahaura ; but he got his answer. Mr Curtis informed him, and through him : the "bone : and: sinew of the country," that if they expected him to tell them that' the Ahaura was the finest place he ever saw, they were laboring under a delusion, because he had seen London and Paris, and either of those places would favorably compare with the Ahaura. < But the assertion that there have been 700 miles of roads, and tracks made on the South- West Gold Fields will admit of an argument, and it is well that his Honor has given the opportunity of ing wh.it successive Nelson Governments have done in the matter of roadmaking in the Grey Valley for the last five or six years. The following is a carefully compiled return of the so-called roads at present iti existence. From Cobden to Langdon's Ferry, say ten miles, and between the Twelve-Mile Landing and the foot of Nelson Creek; five miles ; from Ahaura to Potham's farm, one mile ; and from the race-course to Totara FJat, two miles ; through Half-Ounce Creek, including the footpath through Gran ville, two miles ; and between Ahaura and Napoleon, six miles ; from the TwelveMile to No Town, five miles ; and from the Welshman's Dairy, at Nelson Creek, to Try- Again Terrace, one mile. The foregoing, with about three miles through Moonlight Creek, ftn .d two miles on the Saddle Range, comprise the whole of the roads made- by the Nelson Government in tliiflpart of the Province— altogether under 40 miles, and only about 10 of those in a fair sfato of repair. Of course there has been a considerable amount of bu3h jrack cutting done at the expense of the Government, but for every mile of such work done at the public expense, private individuals have done two. If the amount of track cutting done by the undermentioned people be taken into consideration

it will be found that the Government have done scarcely anything in comparison. Take the work done by Messrs Curtis, Montgomery, and Langdon, in their district; by Messrs Molloy, Watkin?, Bidgood, and Campbell ; about No; Town ; by Messrs Muir, Drehnan, and Stephens, at Red Jack's and Nelson Creek ; by Edward Fein, M. Erskine, O'Brien and Carroll, and Devery and M'Laughlin, about the Saddle Track and at Duffer^ Greek ; by Messrs Johnston, Moore, and Black, in the Little Grey District ; by Messrs M'Laughlin, Mackley, Lardi, Bannon, Lonargar, and M'Donakl, at Half-Ounce, Noble's, Brandy Jack's Creek, and Napoleon ; and by several others at different places, and it will be seen that the work of opening up the country has been done chiefly by private individuals. If the bush track cutting along the banks of the Grey be reckoned in the 700 miles, then so much the worse for his Honor's argument. The money spent in making those temporary and trumpery .tracks after every flood might just as well be thrown into the river," as far as concerns any public benefit derived from it. So much for the share of the Grey Valley in the 700 miles of road making done by the Government on the Nelsoi* Gold Fields; but, after all, it can scarcely be possible that "Mr Curtis could be in earnest when he made such a statement. It is more likely that he was playfully perpetrating nn innocent joke on the Assembly, but his Honor will, please to observe that we know all about the matter here, and that however ho may hoodwink the Assembly, he will no longer be allowed to bamboozle the residents in the Grey district.