THE GREYMOUTH AND HOKITIKA RAILWAY DEVIATION.

Kumara Times, Issue 894, 12 August 1879, Page 4

THE GREYMOUTH AND HOKITIKA RAILWAY DEVIATION.

[FBOM THE OBEY BTVER ARGUS.] On Saturday evening a crowded meeting was held at the Town Hall, Greymouth, in compliance with the request of the Mayor of Kumara, for the purpose of taking into consideration the desirability of representing to the Government the necessity of the deviation of the present proposed line of railway, so as to afford railway communication to the towns of Kumara, Goldsborough, and Stafford, between the porta of Greymouth and Hokitika. Hia Worship the Mayor of Greymouth (R. Nancarrow, Esq.), having taken the chair, read the advertisement convening the meeting. He stated that he had been requested by his Worship the Mayor of Kumara to call the present meeting for the purpose of co-operating with the inhabitants of Kumara, Goldsborough, Waimea, and Arahura, for the purpose of obtaining, if possible, a deviation of the line between Greymouth and Hokitika. They all knew the difference between the line as proposed and that which the inhabitants of the towns he had mentioned deaired, and he thought there could be no two opinions as to which route would prove of the greatest benefit. Aa there were several' gentlemen present who had come from a distance, he would not detain them any longer, but would call upon the County Chairman to move the first resolution. The Coottty Chairman (A. R. Guinneßß, Esq.), said the resolution which had been placed in his hands read as follows f "That, in the opinion of this meeting, it ia desirable that the Hokitika and Greymonth Railway should be diverted so as to pass through Kumara, Goldsborough, and Stafford, as Buch deviation would be to the interest of Greymouth and the Grey Valley District, as well as the different centres of population, and would conduce to the prosperity of the West Coast generally." In speaking to the resolution he would not detain them long, as there could be no question as to which route was the most advantageous, or which would prove the most profitable. With regard to the construction of the Grey and Hokitika Railway, he thought that not much effort had been made in Greymouth towards obtaining it, as all the agitation had come from the other end ; but now that it was obtained—now that it was in course of construction, and, as they believed, would be carried through —they were interested in seeing that the money voted would be spent in the manner mot suitable for the general interests of the community. They found that the route selected" lay along the beach, avoiding the centres of population which railways were intended to benefit. There could be no two opinions on the subject, so far as which was the most advantageous route. The one which the delegates had visited Greymouth to advocate was the route passing through Kumara, Stafford Town, Goldsborough, and Arahura, which were populous districts, the inhabitants of which were large consumers of all the necessaries of life. They had good agricultural land at Coal Creek, and if the railway ran through centres of population the inhabitants could be-Bupplied with the produce they required from the Grey District—it would jalso act as a meanß of encouraging settlement. It was said that the line was i intended not so much for passenger as for coal traffic; but as such it would not pay workiDg expenses. The railway would] make the Grey a common centre, and it was necessary that Greymouth should be connected with the centres of population between Greymouth and Hokitika. The paßßenger traffic along the beach was simply nothing, as it all went by way of Kumara and other townships along the line of road. Kumara was 14 miles from Greymouth, and Hokitika 18 or 19 miles more, and that being the case, if the deviatian was resloved upon, the greater portion of the trade would come to Greymouth. Then there was the timber trade to be considered. If the railway ran along the sea beach the timber ;rade was practically worthless; whereas f it passed through Kumara the irhole of the magnificient forests of limber, through which the line would lass, could be available for shipment. The cost of the railway was estimated it L 220,000, and the difference of seven >r eight miles more would cost another WO,OOO or LBO.OOO. The only difference yas a question of cost, and he thought f all the facts were shown to the Govern nent they would yield, especially if it vas proved that the railway, if carried ilong the beach, would not pay working jxpenaes. There seemed to be one idea n the engineer's head, and that was the ' naking of a central railway that would bllow the sea coast to the Haast, but if his was ever accomplished it would be a natter of 50 or 60 years to look forward o, and this, he thought, was rather too ong for them to look ahead. He had ouch pleasure in moving the resolution le had read.—(Applause). Mr "Masters most cordially seconded he resolution. He did not intend to ske any part in the discussion upon the abject, and had, therefore, come unpreared to speak to it; but the advantages of he proposed deviation were so manifest lat it required nothing on his part to rge the claims of the resolution to their lpport. One of the great objects of lilways was to promote settlement, and lis could never be done if the railway as carried along the sea beach, as there as no land to settle on. The claims of opulation should be considered, and this ould be done if carried through the intres of population—not otherwise. To low the vajue of the districts through hich the deviation would pass, he might ate that the Waimea Water-race was ie means of producing LIOO,OOO worth

of gold per annum, and the miners using this water required supplies, and the railway could not be used to furnish them with what they required if it was carried along the beach. It was said that it was part of the main arterial scheme to carry this line along the beach, and if it was so he considered it wa3 of little value. Mr Bladieb, of Arahura, as one of the deputation, would not say much, as he had endeavored by means of letters to the various newspapers in in the three towns of Hokitika, Greymouth, and Kumara to draw attention to the subject. He had attended the meeting at the turning of the first sod of the Grey and Hokitika Railway, when the Hon. Mr Bonar made a grand speech, which he thought that all the sharks in the sea might have heard, and he (Mr B'adier) came to the conclusion that the West Coast after all was a good place. There were three kinds of sharks—there were the sea sharks, there were the bank sharks (which were very pressing kind of sharks), and the land sharks, and it wa3 these last who had bought the land up along the sea beach. Mr O'Connor also made a good speech—a soft oily kind of speech,— but he was not to be caught by that kind of speech, and therefore he interviewed Mr Blake, the Mayor of Kumara, and Mr Seddon, and they were all of opinion that the railway would be comparatively useless if carried along the beach, and neglected the centres of population. Mr Bladier related several amusing anecdotes to the effect that it was the people who made a district, and it was the people who made the West Coast, and that the people's wishes should be consulted. There was only one person who was in favor of the beach line, and that was the engineer. He had great pleasure in supporting the resolution. Mr Seddon (Kumara) said this was the first time he ever had the honor of addressing a Greymouth audience, and therefore he felt rather nervous, whether it was owing to the shaking he got in the tram or his native modesty, he could not say. The question which he and the other gentlemen who ca/ne with him to urge upon their serious consideration was an important one, and which they were all interested in. A railway had been commenced between Greymouth and Hokitika, and they as representing the inland towns—the centres of population were not satisfied with the route proposed and thought that a better one could be selected. They had seen within the last few days a report from Mr Blair, the chief engineer, against the BrunnerAmberley railway, and instead of a railway he recommended that the harbor works should be proceeded with. He congratulated Greymouth on that report, as anyhow Greymouth would be benefitted, and it was on this account that the inland towns wanted to be throwu into closer connection with Greymouth and this could be effected if the line between Greymouth and Hokitika was deviated to include the centres of population. The route along the beach wonld not pay wages much less working expenses; it would not pay to lubricate the wheels of the carriages. On the other hand if the route was deviated, so as to include the towns of Kumara, Goldsborough, Stafford, and Arahura the line would pay, and it was to the interest of the people of Greymouth to aid them in obtaining this deviation. If this line did not pay it would prevent them obtaining the East and West Coast railways. Mr Seddon here quoted from evidence given by Mr Carrut\iers to a Committee of the House, in which the beach route was recommended, and stated that Mr Carruthers had only rode once along the beac'i and the road, and formed hi 3 opinion from what he saw during that visit. The District Engineer was asked to report upon this report, and he did so confirming it. The coat of deviation would be about L6OOO per mile, and as there were eight miles to be constructed, would cost about 148,000. There were two large bridges across the Waimea and the Kapitea, the coat of constructing which would be saved if the line was constructed inland. Mr O'Connor said that the beach line was the only practicable line, and that the townships could be connected with branch lines. In the early days there was a tram to Stafford Town, and it was shown that it could be constructed from Hokitika, and the people of the Grey had shown that Kumara could be connected with the Grey also by tram, and that proved that the line was practicable. Mr Seddon here quoted a quantity of statistics showing that the line through the centres of population would pay. °lt was found that people travelled, as a rule through these centres, and therefore it was for the convenience of all parties that the railway should be deviated, and on a Saturday or Sunday, where Greymouth received one visitor from Kumara or Dillman's Town, it would receive twenty. It was their duty to point out, as good citizens, where the money of the State should be expended to the best advantage. Industry sprang up when railways were made, but no industry could spring up if the line was carried along the beach! Inside the ranges was some of the finest timber in the South Island, but it could not be used if the line was carried alona the beach, because of the Lamplou«h Ranges. [Mr Seddon here referred to a diagram showing the construction of the line as proposed, and also as deviated 1 The principal part of this timber traffic would come to the Grey. Mr Blair in his report, was in favor of the Brunner Amberley Railway being constructed by way of Arthur's Pass, to join at Nelson Creek. [Mr Seddon here showed the route as proposed by Mr Blair crossing the Teremakau to Bell Hill, and thence by way of the Arnold Valley.] He was of opinion that the line would "have been better if it were constructed by way of

Kuraara, but he would not say anything on that subject. Mr Blair, however, was not much in favor of either routes, but rather favored the construction of harbor works, showing that he thought that water carriage could compete with the railway. The District Engineer had said the Grey-Hokitika Railway was to be a coal railway. It was admitted the water carriage could compete with the railway, and the Waipara could take down enough coal in one trip that would last Hokitika for a fortnight. They (the inhabitants of the centres of population) claimed, as a matter of right, that a portion of the taxes Bhould be spent upon them, and they asked the inhabitants of Greymouth to aid them in getting a portion of their share. They came there to ask them to use their common sense, and say which route they thought was preferable and would most likely benefit all parties. Money had been spent foolishly, the Brunner bridge to wit, and it was their duty to prevent, if possible, more money being spent foolishly. The people of Greymouth had experienced the benefits of agitation, inasmuch a 3 12 months since they had objected to shingle being placed on their protective works and having it washed away by every tide. He hoped the people of the Grey would heartily support the resolution so as to bring it to a successful issue. (Applause.) Mr Blake (Mayor of Kumara) thanked the people of Greymouth for th 6 warm and cordial reception which had been accorded to the delegates from the central towns. Tney expected that the Mayor of Hokitika would have been along with them, but unfortunately had been detained. They came there asking the residents of Greymouth to help them, and they might be sure that in any matter in which the inhabitants could held Greymouth they would only be too glad to do so. He would not ask them to take into consideration the question of the two routes, as they knew that as well as he could tell them, but he would ask them whether a population of 20 persons should outweigh the wishes of 5000. The population between the Teremakau and the Aarahura, on the beach, consisted of 10 or 12 blacksanders, 3 Chinese fishermen, a couple of fossickers, and a pigeonshooter, and this was the population whose wants they were asked to consider against the large population of Kumara, Dillman's Town, Westbrook, Goldsborough, Stafford, and Arahura. It was true three or four people took up land on the sea beach in anticipation of the railway being constructed in that direction, but were their wishes to be considered against the wants and requirements of thousands. The population in the district to which he belonged deserved consideration, as they were of greater value to the Colony than any other. They earned more money; they spent more money ; and therefore they were of greater value. The railway would be of no use if carried along the beach, but it would be of use to them if carried through the centres of population. If what they asked could do the inhabitants of the Grey no good it done them no harm, and therefore he thought they were entitled to their sympathy and support. They were lost for three reasons.—The first was they were weakly represented ; the second they were out of the way ; and the third was the want of unanimity among them, and for mant of unity they often missed what they were trying for. As he said before, the delegates came there to ask for _ assistance in getting the railway deviated, and they lived in hope that it would be so deviated if they all pulled together. (Mr Blake then explained by means of the diagrams the various routes of the different lines effecting the West Coast). He asked them to sign the requisition, as it would benefit all, and if they expected to do any good they must stick by one another. He could assure them that the miners and business people of the inland towns would thank them for their support, as the whole of their interests were identical. United they could do much, single-handed they could do nothing. Mr Blake, who was frequently cheered during a most amusing speech, then sat down. Mr Madden- asked whether it was intended to pass a vote of censure on Mr O'Connor, because if it was he was entirely opposed to it, as he considered the gentleman was unworthy of it. Mr Seddost explained there was not the slightest intention of castin« any imputation on Mr O'Connor. It was then moved and seconded that the LBO.OOO required to make the deviation be expended in prospecting, but only two hands were held up in its favor. Mr Kilgouk strongly urged the neces sity of the daviation, as it would benefit the centres of population which were required. The Kumara District was a permanent and healthy one, and if a railway was to be made it would benefit this district. He had no doubt but that in a short time the Government offices would be shifted to the Grey, and it was necessary that all places should be in direct communication with it. McKilgour then stated that in consequence of some conversation he had had with the District Engineer, he had no doubt but that the railway, deviation included, could be constructed for the original sum of L 220,000. The resolution was then carried unanimously. Mr Hungeefobd moved—" That with a view of giving effect to the foregoing resolution, that a petition to the hon. the Minister of Public Works be prepared and signed by the inhabitants of Greymouth and this district." Mr Dupee seconded the motion.— Carried unanimously. , T |iree hearty cheers having been given tor the chairman the meeting separated.