REPORT OF THE DEPUTATION.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 133, 5 June 1878, Page 2

REPORT OF THE DEPUTATION.

The following report has beeu handed to us for publication : — To the Provisional Committeo ou the Nelson Port Railway. Gentlemen — Having been appointed by you as a deputation to the Government on the Nelson Port Railway we left Nelson in the Taiaroa, and arrived at Welliugton about 9 a.m. last Friday. We immediately visited the members of the Goverument separately, aud found them extremely anxious to meet our views and complete the railway as soon as their finances would allow them to do so. We had a formal interview with the Colonial Secretary aud Minister for Public Works, and represented to them

" That the Port line was not any new extension of the railway, but was included in the original survey of the Nolson and Eoxhill line, aud iv the vote taken for it.

" That its extension had been repeatedly promised by successive Governments, and additional sums voted in the nnrae of the Nelson and Eoxhill Railway in order to carry it out.

" That the present Traffic Manager, Mr Conyers, had reported iv favor of constructing it, and that it was necessary to do so in order to perfect the present railway and make it profitable.

" That after a long delay and many surveys the Government had finally approved of a plan and called for tenders for the formation.

" That in consequence of the action of the Government in calling for tenders a number of working men had decided to remain in Nels*>u during the winter, and strangers had been drawn here by the advertisement for tenders, whose presence increased the competition for work, prsviously inadequate, and they were all now by the postponement of the contract left without work, and many of them pcmiiiv.ES, with no means of earning food for themselves and their families, or of leaving the place.

" That tho Nelson public felt the action ofthe Government in disappointing these men of the work and Nelson people of the advantages of having their railway connected with the Porfc, all the more keenly as Nelson had always supported the public works policy, «nd had received an inadequate share of the public works expenditure, and even now, apparently, were likely lo lose part of that inadequate share.

"And th.it the general feeling iv Nelson was that of intense indignation, which required the fullest explanation to satisfy it." The Ministers prohrsed tb bold a Cabinet meeting that afternoon, and to give us au answer on Saturday. Accordingly, on Saturday morning, we saw Colonel Whitmore, the Colonial Secretary, who assured vs — "That the Government had found great difficulty in providing funds to carry on the public works, and had exercised their powers uuder the 7th section of the Loan Act, 1877, by obtaining advances against the loan, and had only stopped accepting tenders when it becamo dangerous to public credit to incur further liabilities."

" That they had postponed accepting tenders for several contracts before postponing the Nelson tender."

On the deputation asking io he furnished with more definite particulars of such tenders, the Under Secretary for Public Works was culled in. who informed us that about £100,000 of tenders had been postponed prior to that of the Port railway, and the works stopped included the Port Chalmers wharf and station, about £20,000; the Oreti bridge, about £6001); a large contract on the Waitotara railway and several other important contracts, and that in all about £160,000 of tenders had been postponed. The Colonial Secretary informed us that the Government would be strictly impartial iv accepting tenders, and that they would not accept any tenders until they were in a position to take up the whole of those postponed, and that they had caused the lowest tenderers to be informed of the position, and had arranged that the tenders might be accepted by telegram immediately on receipt of news of the floating of the loan; that they had most favorable news from the AgentGeneral, and fully expected to hear of ofthe loan being floated within a week, and therefore asked us to defer further action for that time within which they would write us definitely.

Should the loan unfortunately be not raised by the 30th June, the Government pledged themselves to insert the Nelaon contract iv the new Public Works Appropriation Bill, upon which they would stand or fall, so that unless the Government were turned out of office the work was certain to be done

Sir George Grey said to us that, on being assured of the floating of the loan, they would not postpone accepting the tender uutil the new Appropriation Bill became law, though the 30th June might then have passed ; but he did not feel so confident as Colonel Whitmore that the loan would be floated iv so short a time as a week, and warned that a little more time might elapse, though he was quite confident of ultimately obtaining it.

The Colonial Secretary further said that the Cabinet bad given the question of providing work for the men collected in Nelson their gravest consideration, aud, if possible, would have found funds out of the unauthorised expenditure, but iv consequence of an error in calculating the head money payable for education, half of the margin available for unauthorised expenditure had been swept away to supply that deficency, and the many pressing calls from other sources prevented the Government from paying out of that fund.

Ou Monday morning, before leaving, we again called on several Ministers, and also on Sir George Grey, as Premier, and found that he had just received a most favorable telegram from the Agent-General, and that there was every hope that the loan would shortly ba floated thiough the Bank of Englaud, when the Nels n contract would be at ouce accepted. We this morning heard that the New Zealand loan was floated in London, whereupon we immediately telegraphed (marked urgent) to the honorable the Minister for Public Works, asking him to accept the Nelson tender to-day, aud we also telegraphed to Mr Duncan, of Wellington, (who has afforded us valuable aid throughout), to urge its immediate acceptance. By noon to-day we are glad to say we received from the Government a telegram statiug that the contract would be accepted to-day. We congratulate the citizens of Nelson on the prompt fulfilment by the Government of their pledges to us, and on the successful accomplishment of the business your Committee took in hand. We have, &c, Joseph Reid Dodson (Mayor), Joseph Shephard, W. Acton B. Adams.

Concerning '•' sweeps " on the races the Greymouth Star says that the local public must be pretty well tired of them. It remarks:—"The mode of procedure has been the reverse of satisfactory. In one case we find the lottery had to be drawn for three times; iv another we find the prize takers unable to get their money. In Lynch's last sweep, according to the testimony of Mr Harris, the winner of Templeton only succeeded in getting £400, instead of £612 9s; aud, of course, the whole affair being illegal, has no way of securing the balance. With these constant bungles— not to say anything worse— before our eyes, it is evideut that something should be done, either to liceuse and legalise similar lotteries, or else pass an Act for their entire suppression." The Newcastle Herald vouches for the accuracy of the following anecdote :— " A rather curious circumstance occurred lately at Wickham, during fiie progress of a game betweeu the Wickharn and the Young Mechanic Clubs. One of the Wickham bowlers a Mr James Hughes, delivered a ball which carried the middle stump clean away, leaving the hails supported by the two outside stumps. The feat is certainly an astounding one, and perhaps, wittiout a parallel in the history of cricket. The batsman quietly walked away." Now, was he out? What must be the state of a Parliament in wbich it has been found necessary to bring forward such a measure as the Parliamentary Powers aud Privileges Bill, introduced iuto the Legislative Assembly of New South Wales, which provides a penalty not exceeding £1000, or imprisonment, for the followiug contempts of Parliament, viz.: — Assaulting a member within the House, challenging a member to fight, offering or accepting a bribe, obstructing or forcing a member to vote, disturbance or intoxication in the House, arresting a member during session, persistent disobedience to the Speaker's ruling. Members are not admissible to bail, nor liable for disobedience to summons, either as juror or witness.

It appears the present Provost of Glasgow is a teetotaller of a very objectionable type (says Atlas, in the World). .On a recent occasion he asked the officers of Her Majesty's 79th Highlanders to dine with him, and absolutely gave them nothing to drink but cold water, with the alternative of gingerade. No doubt this sort of entersainment suited the " douce man's" pocket as well as his principles ; but let me tell him, if not meant as a practical joke, it was little better than an insult. Even the unspeakable Turk or the most ascetic Hindoo, if entertaining a Eeringee, offers the latter the juice of the grape, although himself taking, nothing stronger than sherbet. What would this " abstainer" think if, on dining with the 79th they insisted on his having nothing but brandy*