Correspondence.

Lyttelton Times, Volume VI, Issue 420, 12 November 1856, Page 6

Correspondence.

To the Editor of the Lyttelton Times.

Sir, —The proceedings in the Provincial Council,on'Tuesday last, must be considered as highly important to the Colony. The majority of 14 to 6, on the Railway Reserves Bill, may be regarded as having once and for all decided that* no more of public money shall be squandered upon the Sunnier Road, either as a " tram " or any other " way." In another aspect, this vote may be viewed as one of want of confidence in our present Government.

In what other light can we look at the total rejection of the measure in any form, followed by the cautious proceedings on the Loan Bill.

Far be it from me at the present moment to run amuck upon our officials, surrounded as they now are with perplexities, arising from the unhappy^ failure of their schemes ; such an act would be equally as courageous as to strike a'tnan upon the ground. Their day of reckoning is close at hand, and in the hands of that horrid creature the ' Public,' I am quite content to leave the 'Barnacles.' The object I have in view, in again addressing you, is of a far more important character. It is, with your assistance and permission, to keep public attention directed to these points : that Lyttelton is, and will continue to be, the principal shipping port of the colony, the only place where vessels of any size can |and will lie in safety; that a direct and easy mode "of communication from our port to Christchurch and the plains is of all others the most important and crying want of the day; and, lastly, that this work has yet to be done, and, in order to be done cheaply, it must be done promptly. The prospectus of arailway and break-water which appears in your last number is surely a dull attempt at wit"; but if anything is seriously intended in regard to a breakwater at Sumner Nook, then, I say to my fellow colonists, • Look to your pockets.' Such a composition could only have proceeded from the fertile brain of a Director of the far famed ' West Diddlesex Railway.' Passing such questions as these, I come again to the road. In my former communication, I. traced what appears to a very gieatjiumber of persons the natural direction our road should take; and a careful walk I over the ground would, I am satisfied, confirm the impression. But, afler all, the business mode of proceeding appears to nn to be tliis :—To advertise for tenders to make a road from the Plains to Lyttelton, having the following requisites ; that it shall be the most direct, of the easiest possible gradient, and the one capable of being completed and opened in the shortest possible space of 'time;: but not of necessity 'the lowest tender' shall he the successful one. The payment to be made in land, as the work proceeds, and is approved of; anu certainly let it be a condition and part of the contract, that the ccntractor nhall under.

take to keep the road in repair, after com, pletion, for at least two years. Let such an advertisement appear in the principal New Zealand and Australian Newspapers, and I am firmly convinced that the right man would make his appearance. The Provincial Council have all the necessary powers for accomplishing Ihework in this form, and I earnestly, hope they will not end their present sitttings without putting the subject forward.

It' our grandchildren, or even our children, are desirous of indulging in the luxuries of electric telegraphs, of railways, nay, of ' Tramways,' by all means let them. That is no affair of ours. We, in our generation, must be quite content with a common road, that will enable us safely and expeditiously to convey the bulk of our produce and merchandise from the ships to the buyers, from the producer to his market. And if, in addition, we can but manage that the road shall be of such a character, thate very onewhohas his horse and cart may drive safely along, himself, not forgetting his wife and children, we shall have earned the thanks, not only of the present, but of many generations to, come. *S I repeat the hope that some member of the Council will forthwith put the matter into, shape, and urge it to a successful issue. I remain, Yours faithfully, X. Y. Z. Lyttelton, 10th November, 18 "6.

To the Editor of the " Lyttelton Times" Stk, —It is just possible that eventually some place may be found in the harbour of Port Victoria that will present advantages superior in some [respects to those possessed by Lyttelton, as a depot for the province, but. however this may be, it is not the question. We should think less of the interests at stake, or the mercenary view of the case, and more of doing simple justice to all parties. The real question is, what are the people of Lyttelton fairly entitled to expect, in the way of having their town connected with the country, and what is the Government bound to perform ? There cannot be the slightest doubt that the inhabitants of Lyttelton bought then- land in the full conviction that at the earliest period, before indeed any other work was done, some road to the port would be completed. The Association, in various ways, publicly acknowledged that it should be done whenever funds were forthcoming, and the Government of the province have incurred this liability along with others. The contract exists on the face of every map which has been made of the countiy. The Provincial Government may lay out as many spots for towns as they please in Port Victoria, it might, indeed, be wise* to reserve any spots which may hereafter become townships (the head of the harbour for instance), but it is idle to talk of the spots till lyttelton is connected with the interior of the country, not only byway of Stunner, but also by means of the road going round by way of Governor's Bay to the plains. If the'Govemment made another landing place, and connected it with the .plains and, neglected Lyttelton by leaving either of these roads undone, they would be guilty of the most flagrant dishonesty, but it seems absurd/to suppose them capable of so dishonourable a proceeding. No doubt the people of Lyttelton are somewhat to blame for not being able to come to some unanimous decision as to the best line of road, but surely in a question so greatly affecting their fortunes they may be excused for being no wiser or better than the rest of the world ; but I would call their attention to the fact that though they can demand as a right the completion of the roads I have mentioned, the Government are not bound to make any other road unless they please to do ho. And that if they refuse to do so, the public by insisting on another line; will be preventing the completion of v road which, whatever may bo its faults, is certainly as good as many approaches to port towns which 1 have myself .seen. With respect to the tramway, the Government ought to refrain from that expense till n plain cart road has been tried and found insufficient. If tram ways wore such excellent things,

I fancy we should have heard of their being more generally adopted in other places. Let us have a good cart road for all purposes and all vehicles; if tramways are wanted they can bo had at any time. I should not have troubled you with these remarks, had it not been for the tone of some of the letters written at various times on this subject, to accuse the people of Lyttelton with asking more than they are entitled to. They simply ask for justice, and it is to be hoped that those who ai-e found to look after their interests are sufficiently magnanimous to excuse some natural feelings of impatience at being so long deprived of that which is their due, and which is of so much importance to their welfare. Your most obedient servant, J. G-. I. Lyttelton, November 5, 1856.