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All who are interested in the welfare of New South Wales will be glad to h-r-ar that a review of the transactions of the Railway Department shows a steady increase in the prosperity of this branch of the public works of that colony. As profitable comparisons may be instituted between neighboring colonies, we extract a few of the more important items from the report of the Commissioner of Railways. The total expenditure up to the close of the year 1877 was £0.314,500, upon which the interest was £443,688, or about per cent. The net earnings yielded very nearly 4£ per cent, on the capital expended upon lines open for traffic. The Government had therefore only to pay about £ per cent, on the capital expended. At the close of the year 598 miles were open for traffic, 217 mi es were in course of construction, and were to be completed by the 31st December, 1880. The average earnings per mile were £1478, and the average expenditure was £759, so that the net earnings were £719. The merchandise traffic consisted of 580,657 head of live stock, 133,597 bales of wool, 1,024,411 tons of minerals, and 360,032 tons of goods. The number of passengers who travelled daring the year was 2,957,144. Of these 13 8 per cent, were class, the remaining 293 per cent, being season ticket holders of both c l aases. 'There was an increase of more than 107,000 first-class passengers, and of 245,700 second class, during the year. The only symptom of decline that wo notice is, that the working expenses were increased by £79,500 iu round numbers, aud the net earnings by £43,116, which shows that the wear and tear was increasing faster than the receipts. In any other respect the condition of affairs appears to warrant the flourish of trumpets with which Mr. Goodchap concludes his report. As it evidences the wisdom of a bold policy of constructing public works, if carefully proceeded with, aud ought to establish confidence with the more timid among us in New Zealand, we extract the paragraph in full : —“ This review of the transactions of the railways during the past year shows a steady increase in the prosperity of this large aud important portion of the public works. Not only have the lines of railway been considerably extended, so as ultimately to assist in developing the resources of comparatively remote districts, but in their immediate results have proved to be highly successful. This condition of affairs, showing as it does, that the greater portion of the public loans is invested in works returning a high rate of interest, cannot fail to increase confidence in the financial stability of the colony, and enhance the value of its securities.” The total expenditure on New Zealand railways up to June last was £6,843,000. This had sufficed to open for traffic 1050 mi’es of railways. The cost per mile, therefore, in this case is about £6500 per mile; but a considerable deduction wou;d have to be made so as to allow for the expenditure on raihvftys not open for traffic. In New South Wales the expenditure had been £8,800,000 upon 598 miles open for traffic, or about £14,660 per mile, considerably more than double the cost of tho lines in New Zealand. In tho North Island the profits were only per cent. ; in the Middle Island they were very nearly 2£ per cent. It seems strange that iu New South Wales the profits should amount to about 4J per cent., until attention is drawn to the fact that 600 miles of railway there carried nearly three million of passengers, whereas in New Zealand more than a thousand miles carried less than a million and a half persona. From this it appears that the people in New Zealand may icasonably expect to reap nearly eight per cent; upon their outlay in railway lines, if the population could be raised to equal that in New South Wales. At the end of 1876 the population of New Wales was 630.000, and is now probably nearly 700,000 In New Zealand by the last census it is 414.000. The importance of promoting immigration in connection with tho public works of the colony is forcibly brought before us by this comparison of statistics; 'Tho present Ministry have apparently abandoned ■ this part of tho great Public Works policy.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZTIM18781008.2.11

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5470, 8 October 1878, Page 2

Word count
Tapeke kupu
724

Untitled New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5470, 8 October 1878, Page 2

Untitled New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5470, 8 October 1878, Page 2

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