The Port of Foxton.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, 12 May 1891, Page 2

The Port of Foxton.

■ — » We are pleased to notice that our contemporary the Manawatu Standard is aware of the importance of keeping communication by water with Wellington and the South Island, open. The better the

port is looked after, the more vessels are enticed to it, and thereby freights are made lower. All thy. so on the railway line as far as Halcombe, Feilding, Palmerston and Woodville, sliould find that instead of Foxton being an opposing town, its real position is that of the Port for this large area of country, and every act that is directed at the Port is a blow aimed at the advan cern eilfc of these four townru All fioiir imported domes direct from the Southern ports to Foxton, thus saving the charge of a second freight to the consumer. All coal comes direct from the coal ports to Foxton, and thus places this most necessary fuel at cheap rates, for the numerous industries requiring it. This port is the cheapest outlet for all the heavy output of the freezing works at Longburn. The Railway Commissioners have now an advertisement for tenders for conveying sleepers from Foxton to the South Island. The settlers up country will feel any neglect to the Port of Foxton, quite as much as the inhabitants of the town, and every paper having the interest of its constituents at heart, should assist us in resenting the attempt at economy, in starving the pilot service at the Heads, especially as such retrenchment has beeu excused on a palpable distortion of facts and figures. We therefore gladly publish •the following which appeared in last Friday's issue of our contemporary : —We sliould like to see the Ministry take some steps to make the natural outlet for this district, the river at Foxton, a little more useful for that purpose* than it is at present. It hardly seems fair that large sums should be spent on the Wanganui and Mokau, as well as on the Hokitika and Greymouth rivers, while the outlet for a purely agricultural district should be leffc out in the cold. Of course we have the Manawatu railway to turn to, but land carriage can never compete with water, and as the freight charges are nearly as heavy from Palmerston to Longburn as from Palmerston to Foxton, the amount saved to the district would be something considerable. The Wanganui folks are 'going to bring direct steamers to lie off the mouth of the river there, and how much safer would it be for steamers to lie Off Kapiti, and be tendered from Foxton. The growing importance of this district warrants a little attention being devoted to its requirements, and we have indicated one of more than passing importance.