The Manawatu Times. SATURDAY, JUNE 22, 1878.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 73, 22 June 1878, Page 2

The Manawatu Times. SATURDAY, JUNE 22, 1878.

The meeting of the Saw Mill-owners held at Feilding on last Monday is of far more importance, and fraught with greater interest to the people of Manawatu generally, and, Eoxton more especially^ than at first sight would appear. With the mamobject—or at, least' what we were led to suppose was to have been the main object of the meeting ;. the reduction of the/freight upon white pine — we are thoroughly, m accord ; but there are wheels wi^iin. wheels, and as a straw will show what way the wind blows, so the statements of some of the speakers will give us a peep behind the scenes. The circular, if we remember aright stated thajb the meeting was to be held for an object which would advance the interests of of Manawatu/ and if we mistake not the invitations were confined to the millowners' of that district. However, we find that Messrs. Gross and Brown, from Wanganui, were not only present, but the former gentleman, as m duty bouiid, fotal'ly-ignored-the Manawatu' as a meanß of export, an# as the orator of the' meeting, dilated m glowing terms upon the facilities for the loading off vessels ;at Aramoho, at all times, of ■; the tide, stating that- with a trifling expenditure, ' berthage for four or five , yesselp cpula/be easily, ejected., "We t>y pp! means blamethat gentle^ man for advocating the interests he represented, but we were certainly amazed; to hear that* Messrs Bartholomew, Tarrant, Cbpeland, Lash, and" above all' Mr Jenssen; boincideji with the speaker when he asserted* that Wanganur was the best -port pif ; ghipmtot. But Mr; tTenb^en went; a step c "f i^rthei^the even| pi the, reduction, in '/the carriage on white pine beingobtained, he would m conjunction with the . other mill-owner^' ship froihWanganui." ! Of course the firm, which. &£$ Jenssen 'represents, feeing a: privajbe.jone, has a perfect, right: to, transiict 'its business -as • "»• it >de&nia most - pf opery but it; certainily. is .a . riddle. ta us to find out hbir, it . could • ,'lje „tp^ its. interesi ; '>tp jr send timber sixty^twov mileSj -over, a, tedious and-, dangerous route; m preference to <forwaraing'tp'!F6xtbiijtf distance of biit Wefag^iir^iMefi' ':lri charging Mr Jen^Ben w^th Keying' made such, a pledge, we xely upbiS the report of the " Herald,". 'ip^unfortuhStelir *T e had not ft'Jire^r^sezi^tjye^preß^nt^ but a¥ thi^ gentii6man^lwhp A lmdly f urnishejd us with 'a;rj^mß.:/.60h.&/. proceeding^ informed us that it was a curtailed Tfe^ortj'* 'catt ;^ac\ count for Mr Jenssen's utterances being pmitted, .'; But, it ..will , tie asseTrted that thef £> as not L the -facility for the expprt at Foxton, that there is at f\Vanganui; Well, supposing that we even admit the statement io be feue,! . wHy -, "ask should the null-owners : '-qi : Manawatu ignore the claim of , Foiton for wharf extension, and unamimously pass a resolution asking for "the extension of the wharf at the Wanganui Bailway Bridge,, and its use for the shipment offitimber?'' And here we may point out; a very grave discrepancy 1 invthe report published m the Wmgdnui Serald,mit]i regard to the yaripus tesolutions.. In the re-, portin-our columns it will be seen that there were seven resolutionspassed, while _i- our .;, contemporary contained ibut fbur^ and even* those . bore no resemblance to the motions carried by the meeting. In order to give an idea /how they were mutilated, we. extract the resolutions from the " Herald," as follow :-r Ist. To make reduction on carriage of white pine for sHpmenfc, explaining that m point of. weight rimu was to white pine sto B."- '■■■„' ' ■■'""■■. ■/■ 2nd. To allow .shipment of timber to be made from Aramoho Wharf, „

3rd. To urge the Government to supply more motive power and plant for the line, the presentrqlh'ng stock m use being inadequate to the wants of the district. - 4th. To, put. on a goods train m addition to the present passenger' traffic. Supposing the reduction m the traffic- on white nine he madeby the Government^ will the County of Manawatu be .benefitted to the extent that it should be, bythemillowners banding together to send the traffic to Wanganui ? "We say no ! It will certainly go to make good some of the loss on the Wanganui Section of the line, and contribute to the revenue of the Wanganui Harbor Board, but are those ends which ought to influence the residents of Manawatu ? 'An expression let fall by Mr Jenssen, to the effect that ";he "would act m conjunction with the other mill-owners, and ship from Wanganui," leaves the uncomfortable impression that everything was cut and dried before the meeting, and the fact of Messrs. Cross . and Bro^n, of Wanganui^ being represetrfcedyi and the former taking, , such- '>jl;" prominent part, .andT c^atged. jinth such „ "valu'able^stajistrcs, 1 ' is most favorable to that idea.;' We knowperfectly well that the; people of Halcombe have but little sympathy with the Lower Manawatu, Jand consider that town, a. kind of No Man's Land, bound to neither Pox'tqn nor Wanganui. But, we have it .from the lips of perhaps > the most prominent; resident of Feilding, ;that as a large trade has Been opened up with Wanganui for the supply of timber, . itia natural s its 'sympathies should, li© whith those who have become buyers ; and as Eeilding or Halcombe can supply nothing to the lower end of the ; County of which it is. not possessed, the! fact^goesl toj prove i/hat there can-be but little feeling iti common between each. We would be sorry to]||be the first to set up one section of a community against another, but as decidedly .the outcome pfjbhe Feilding meeting has proved to be that the port of the Manawatu is to be sacrificed for the promotion of that of Wanganui, it behoves the; residents of this County who are so yitally.interested to take immedicate action to neutralise any such steps. Wei would propose that a monster meeting- of tfie whole County be at-.' once held, and that, a memoriaTbetfs>resented to the Government asking that the reduction 'upon made on its transit £rom ! Halcombe' to Foxton,, 3ii addition^tQ the "valuable statistics " produj^eibj, Mr Cross, -very strong arguments can be used for the tea'iictibnon.this end of the line, which- eaanbt be .brought!; forward by the Wanganui people, and the first is, that the traffic can be* worked at^a considerably lower cost,, having a dire(st : ;,knd easfyj lirijay- requiring less fuel,]., and an immense, saving m -the i wearj and tear of rrpliirig v stock. In conclusion, we urge'the people of . Manawatu to meet 'together^ and^if : necessafy b^pd : % tiogephe?i : to neujbrar, lise the ,effortsVwhich; ; are nqw b^eing 'made to advaiiceth'e.icommercial interests of Wanganui at the expense of the Manawatu. v; y; ' :