COSTLY CHEAPNESS.

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 186, 11 March 1848, Page 3

COSTLY CHEAPNESS.

FROM THE SPECTATOR. Es3ays on the false che»pneS4 of the day are written in the chaiacters of death. We may oveilook its holInwness \vl en Us consequences only come upnn us in. the sbape of waste or bankruptcy-* but when against the penny bayed is let off a life lost by an appalling mode of execution, we begin to doubt the infallible economy of so-called cheapness The prevalent dogma has led us into grievous mistakes. The Government, for instance, benignly interfeied in railway alTaitsfor the benefit of the working classes) and compelled railways to be cheap — whence a ferule and continuous crop of accident*. The mode in which that result accrued has been made out before now. The interference of Government had the immediate effect of enforcing upon railways a lower «Cdle of fares generally than the rates which would naturally have been fixed by the market according to mere facility of production: the consequence was, that by that kind of forcing process, the passenger-traffic on railways grew with unnatural lapidity, and outran the physical means of providing for it. Railways, engines, and servants, have been overworked. The most frequented lines became insufficient for the pressure of traffic upon them. It is easy to say — " Make more, then"— but we know that, as it is, the monied public has been spending money too fast for its own solvency, in the making of railways. On gome lines engines could not be made fast enough — extra prices could not extort what there were not workmen enough to make in the most approved establishments. The next consequence is that ingenuity is taxed to make the excessive traffic fit into time and space, so as 1o produce the least amount of disaster : and ingenuity is not infallible. Crowded traffic and defective engines cause unpunctuahty — unpunctality causes delays, over- driving to make up for delays, and ' collision ' — ' word of fear !' la this railway matter, then, Government sowed cheapness and reaped accident. Again, in the cheap steam-boat affairs, it is clear that excessive cheapness carries with it the condition of exceisive unsafety. Excessive lowness of fares implies excessive lowness of expenditure, and that implies a, low scale of service. Accordingly, the additional evidence in the case of the Cricket, places beyond a doubt the fact that the ssrvants entrusted with the manage ment of the engine and the lives of the passengers, Wfre men of the lowest cultivation in point of intsllect and conbcience. The most reckless servants were actually preferred : those who made a practice of tying down the safety-valve— one of them positvely knew no better than to suppose that that was the proper way of working an engine !— were retained and shielded from reproach, while those who did know better and remonitrated were discountenanced ami dismissed. The superior officers of the Company deliberately adopted the ignorant, stupid, ret kle»suess of their worst " engineers. 1 ' It was an element m the "go aheaa" style of busineis, wffich rrade the small returns pay ; it was an ingredient in the boasted " cheapness." Yet, after all, death itself is scarcely so terrible as ridicule, esjieciilly when the ridicule is self incurred and self-reflectinu;. The pending investigations on the linen drapery trade are as pregnant with instruction as the disasters on rail and liver. The " economical housewife piques herself on beating down the tradesman's prices, chaffering for every odd half- penny, under threat of transferring her custom. Ihe tradesman yields the half-penny, but pnys himself by short meatuie. Cheapness, however is still in demand, and the tradesniau looks out for the wholesale dealer to give him goods at the " lone3t figure.'' The whclesa'e dealer and the manufacturer resort t> the short nieisure compensation ; which is at length earned so far as to outrun the reuil dealei's command of face at the c junter or ea culation of profit-* on the sa'e. A hundred yards of cotton, " warranted," turn out t> measure but 92, or 86, or 75 ; a t( nineyarda length" of tape may prove to be less than six yard;,. The tape is a wonder of cheapness to the purchaser—if it were nine yaids; but is it so cheap, bdng only six? Ihe fraud is dissipated wnh an explosion mo c shocking to our feelings than tlut of a disruption boiler ; we thought ourselves so clever, and find oiu selves to silly — ttccooiphcea in u conspiracy wheie all are dupes 1