RAILWAYS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume VII, Issue 471, 9 May 1857, Page 6

RAILWAYS.

(From the:' Sydney Moraing Herald.')

'By the vote of three hundred thousand pounds for rail way extension, the first Parliament of New' South Wales may be considered as haying committed itself practically to an affirmation of the necessity for railways. This decision will probably not be without its influence in affecting the decision on the same.question in the neighbouring colonies, for in each colony it is being agitated as one of the most pressing ;of practical difficulties. All thes» colonies have: reached the point in their progress at' which they haVe outgrown the traditions of the bullock dray; in all of them the absolute necessity for improved facilities for transit, has become apparent, but all of'them ai-e staggered by the difficulty of introducing' the railway system without incurring such an exorbitant expenditure as to burden the revenua with a disastrous debt. The necessity for doing something has been'so generally felt, that every one of the old responsible Government!! ventured oh some initiatory -steps; In ' thi« colony the Government took from private parties the ; undertakings which they found too much for them, and has completed and extended the works.1 In Viet l-ia,' the Government has done the same for the Melbourne and Mount Alexander Railway Company, and has guaranteed a, fixed interest on the capital of the Geelong railway. In South Australia, the Government took up the project; of the railway-be-tween the city and the port, whert it'was abandoned hy a private company; has carried it but, and begun a second line to-the' north. In Tasmaniano actual works have been^commenced," but the- country between Launcestoh ;;and Hobarton has been surveyed, and a 'Scheme for a railway has been formally propounded by th» Governor. In none of these colonies, therefore, do the newly constructed Parliaments come to the consideration of; the railway question: en-

tirely de novo. -In this colony the Government proposes to continue, to a limited extent the lines rireadycbminenced.and the Assembly, has concurred in the expediency, of ibhe,'proposal. This i 3 still a tentative and expentnentaLpolicy, The only thing positively decisive about it is that^it repudiates.a .sudden abandonment of railway construction.; Butthe country is committed tq no comprehensive scheme,of, a net-woi'kot railways.. AH that is resolved upon it is to pioceed .one step further; but beyond that nothing is settled. - „-, , - . There have been objections brought forward even ..'to this limited venture—objections not without great weight. It is undeniable that Jiat what has been done hitherto has not been atisfactory, that the public railway projects; n ave been in themselves, and considered, as, comhlete undertakings, unprofitable speculations. p hat being the case, it is said, Why,go, on with the error ?—why repeat the blunder?—why increase,the loss ? Yet, on the other hand, it is impossible, to admit the conclusion to which this question : inevitably leads. The country; cannojb make up its mind to do without railways For many years to come—to let other colonies give it the go-by in the race.:, The fact is, Y tliat whatever objections exist against railway extension are found, when examined, to be, objections mainly against the proposed.mode of securing it. The thing itself must.be secured somehow or other,!. The question whether we shall have railroads is almost merged in the question how to get them;' No doubt the past have borne witness to many blunders, yet we must go on. We have gained experience that is not to be thrown away. We must gain more skill. Each fresh trial will bring us near to the mark. We shall learn more clearly the conditions of the problem we have to solve, and understand better how to solve its difficulties. The first stage in a new undertaking is necessarily the most difficult; the most, expensive, and the mpst marked by blunders; But these characteristics may be fairly expected to (iisappear gradually, as operations are extended, while the benefits will become increasingly observable. By the time the £300,000 now voted has, been spent, the railway question will have assumed a new aspect; iri the .public eye.,, Its merits and demerits will be more clearly appreciable, and the colony will be in a better position to determine as to future ; actipn. ; "■::/;' -.'-"■•• ;s;;

We stiall hbfc be surgrisedto see a similar tentative policy adopted in the other colonies. No Government will dare to stand still and propose a finality policy with -regard to railways. _ Nor i 3 public opinion prepared as -yet to sanction a vast; and comprehensive (policy:, the full effects of which cannot be forseen. Railways will go on in all the colonies; but not in a wild and rash way. The,, Legislatures will sanction progress, but will not assent to more than Can be readily compassed. This will give, sufficient guarantee for enterprise and future advahcemieht, 'without mortgaging and perilling future prosperity.'-