OUR MEMBER AND THE GOVERNMENT.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 83, 27 July 1878, Page 3

OUR MEMBER AND THE GOVERNMENT.

■■; through the courtesy of Mr Thynne, the convener of the recent public meeting at Foxton, \we hare been favored with the following copies of correspondence between Mr falter Johnston ani the Gfoyernment with regard to certain r resolutions forwarded- to him f or submissioirto the Customs Department:— To E.:S. THtiriißy Esq., Foxton. • '- pear; Sir,—l enclose cbpy of corres- ■ poiid^nce with the Customs Depart-* ' :ment re -making Poxton i a port. of entry 1 . You will see the. Government makes nc v promise, hut I have no doubt the thing ■■_-: will be done, il will put a formal quc6- ; tion ; on the m the House next^] week/-— Yours truly, "V^. W.: Johnston! — WelKngt^n, 23rd Feb., 1878: '" :) . * J | To the Son. the Go JtjfiegfoNEß of CtrsTOMs; Sir^l have the honor to bring under your-npticej : thai; : at a: public ..meeting held m Poxton on the Ist inst?; a resowas to the effect, that m the "opinion 6t the meeting^^ there ought io bo no delay m declaring Poxton, a. Jpbrt^'of-seiitrV -andy warehousing suchy^elay -being prejudicial to the mercantile- and general interests of the County. • In Rapport of the resolutiojn, • I beg*' to. ask your consideratien to the : factthat Foxtoais the port for nearly ton -'■thousand; persons, and on this grouiid alone merits not to be. deprived of the privilege asked for. Moreoyer,. as there is now a ; line of railway com- . pleted tfrom Poxton to Wanganui, 'passing through or near to all the principal townships" inland, the importers and traders of Poxton fear that tJHjy will be unabl* '- ; to compete against Wanganui, „ eveiLifor, the supply of the townships and settlers ih the. County of Manawatu, unless the port of Foxton has the same Customhouse advantages as the port of "Watngahiii. "The country settlers m the Manawatu are also anxious that these advantages should be granted to Poxton. recognising that the increased importance andgrowth of the port will tend to impt'ove the value of their properties. 1 trust you w^ll give the matter your favorable consideration, and that ybu will grant to Foxton the privilege it asks Hf or,rr-I am* &c. t Walter W. Johnstok, -^Wellingtoiii 15th July, 1878. To W. W. Johnstok, Esq., M.HiB. Sir;— l have been directed -by the Hon. the Commissioner of Customs to a 'knowledge the receipt of your letter O v l^th inst., m whith, for reason s g yen therein, you apply on behalf of the inhabitants of Foxton, for that place to be declared a port of entry and a warehousing port. In reply I beg to state that the opening of* Foxton as a t p6rt\bf entry would have the immediate cost of collect^ gi|jn^-'fh% Customs' revenue without its ? amdunt being appreciably; increased ; that looking to the increase of and the rapid extension of settlement m the districts contiguous to Foxton, the Government. will consider whether the increased^ifaciKties and cOveniences to trade*which^might result from opening the port of r J?bxton as a port of entry and warehousing port, would be sucn as would at present justify them in' increasing the Customs' Estimates of expenditure to the extent necessary for establishing a Custpmhpdse/there.— I am, &c, "William . Seed, {Secretary and Tnspeetor.—Gustornis iDepartment, Wellington, 22nd J^y r lß7B^y^ : ' . :