HARBOUR BOARD MATTERS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 382, 7 May 1908, Page 3

HARBOUR BOARD MATTERS.

The following communications were received yesterday by the President of the local Chamber of Commerce, in reference to the proposed Harbour Board, from Mr J. Stevens :—“ I submitted the following telegram to the Hon. the Minister for Marine yesterday : ‘ Will it be convenient for you to receive a large deputation of Foxton Chamber of Commerce at Wellington on Thursday, about 3 p.m., for the purpose of arranging definitely whether or not the request of the Chamber for landed endowments and facilities for passing of a bill next session lor formation of Harbour Board at Foxton, can be complied with ? If Thursday is unsuitable to receive the deputation, please appoint a lime at an early date, or, better still, slate by telegram whether or not you can comply with what has been applied for in my letter to you on this subject, and if the whole of the request can dot in the meantime he complied with, what the Government is prepared to do in this matter ? As the question is one of great urgency, it is imperative that the bill shall be prepared at once, and advertised locally. The Foxton Chamber of Commerce and the people throughout the district are extremely anxious that the bill shall be passed during the next session. A telegram from you, indicating what the Government is prepared to do, may obviate the necessity of troubling you with a deputation.—(Signed) J. Stevens,’ and I have received the following reply from the Minister : ‘ Hastings.—John Stevens, M.P., Bulls. In reply' to your telegram of last evening, 1 shall be away from Wellington on Thursday, but I do not think there is any need for a deputation from Foxtou Chamber ot Commerce to wait on me in regard to subject of proposed harbour endowments. The matter has been under consideration, and it is only within the last tyvo or three days that I have got the area and value of the land which you suggest should be handed over as an endowment. This lam sending on to Cabinet for decision, as the granting of endowments to any local bodies requires consideration. There is one thing, and that is that I do not think there is any possible chance of the wharf being vested in the proposed Harbour Board. I will advise you as soon as Cabinet has come to a decision in the matter.—J. A. Millar.’ From this reply I infer that the Minister of Marine is not unfavourable to granting endowments, if Cabinet supports the application by its approval. He is apparently not favourable to the handing over of the wharf to the Harbour Board. If neither Wanganui nor Patea have control of wharf, Foxton will be in no worse position than they are. Will again wire the Minister on bis arrival in Wellington in a day or two, urging the most favourable consideration and expedition in coming to a decision. — John Stevens.”

From the above it would appear that the Minister is favourable to the Govt, granting landed endowments but that the wharf mist remain under the control of the Railway Department. We have been iamiliar with this fact all along. Mr Hennessy pointed out at a public meeting how the wharf would be controlled viz., by the Railway Department as at Patea and Wanganui which would collect all dues, pay working expenses and hand over the balauce of the revenue to the Board less per cent. As there appears to be some misunderstanding on the subject, the President has telegraphed to Mr Stevens to arrange an interview with the Minister. This is the wisest course to adopt, as delays and correspondence will jeopardise the passage of the bill during the coming session.