The Railway Tariff.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IV, Issue 107, 1 April 1884, Page 3

The Railway Tariff.

Indignation; Meeting i Adyerse Resoluti ns. '■ * ■' (UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION.) Chkistchu en, March 29. There was a large attendance at the indignation meeting held tonight re th> gV:un tmiS Delegates al^o, attended . "ffroih'ihe Oliamhor of Comrai>rce,' and from kindred bodies. It was moved :- -" Tlm r , this moetinsj, which was convened under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce and of the Agricultural and PasUmil Association, Corn Exchange, and of. the . Industrial Association, respectfully protest against the action of the Government, in rising the railway tariff, as being unjust and oppressive, especially to the farming interest, and that the increase of the rates on grain is a special tax on the agricultural industry, because the lines on which th'e bulk of the grain is car- • riell already yield considembly bettor, returns than do the lines in other parts of the colony, where very little grain is cari'ten, and that the course adopted im establishing such<Van irapbrtnnt increase without notice is greatly to r . be deprecated ; further, that this meeting respectfully requests the (government to suspend the o]>eration of the new tariff until the question shall have been considered by Parliament." After discwNsion,tbe resolution Was* agreed , to, with aijf insertion after the word "notice" of the following \-~ " And in O[)position to the unanimous - 'opinion of Parliament expressed in session 1882." Mr William Henderson then moved the following.:—" That ''this resolution be? a^ ; onpe. telegraphed , to the (Govern men t, and .signed by the respective chairmen of the local bodies specified." , This motion was" carried ' unanimously. Mr Cbrystall jtlien moved, "That; with m a -view to the more, efficient and equitable management ; of . the traffic on the railways, con«tructed in New Zealand) it is cjesir* 'ab)o, in the opinion x>f this mee!tingj: that such,, management shoulil/be ijelin-: quishpd by the Government, and should be. vested in a non -political board for each island, such board to be. constituted under Much conditions as the ■\Legialature may dutermine," flhis '\Vas carried unanimously. It was.further resolved, •? That pending the.assem bj ingof Parliam en t, tbiemeeting shall form itself into a convention forj the .purpose of securing efficient *»nd equitublc railway management in the Canterbury district, and that each of; the : local bodies represented is hereby iu..Yitedto ;eleot and send delegated to the Chamber of Commerce to form a standing committee to take such action "& may bo deemed .expedient to give effect to this and other resolutions adopted by thi«> meeting* it being clearly untlerstoo.d that nothing in. the .nature; of party politico is to be imported into the proceedings of such committee. The coxnnjitlee so appointed is to have; the power to add to its number fromj or irrespective of the membership of; the bodies mentioned in the fii*»t resolution." Mr Bruce moved, "That jthe last resolution be sent to the Government," and this was curried. When the first resolution was carried a large number left the meeting to catch tho country train, ,and ; by the time the resolution had beeii'put to the meeting, discussed, and carried, very few w|ere left in the hall. -Mr Guinness subsequently, moved the following : — "That,, in the ' opinion of this meeting, jJie. deiiciency: on the railway i revenue" should be met by a tax on all lanil according :io- its-t yalub br econoinic vent." This motion was carried. At this juncture there were only about ten, . persons, dresent. The Rev. M r Crewse then put the following motio'n : — '^That, while it is the opinion <»f this meeting "thab the Government have inflicted in their new railway tariff great" .injustice upon the farmers of Canterbury, it is evident that the said tariff is only part of a scheme which has .devised- by a Govern inent "which has proved itself incompetent to manage the affairs of the* colony to. meet a large, deficiency 6iv >the revenue for the year, and this meet- ' >iog Us/ therefore, of the opinion 'that "several of the fcity and suburban mem' 1 bers of the House of Representatives ' with the leader of the Opposition have 1 aoted Very unwisely and to 1 ward some important classes of the community by agitating for a repealpf the obnoxious: tariff before ascertaining to what extent other classes than farmer* would be affected by thai repeal;" The motioni was carried by a vote of five to three. -