THE RAILWAY TARIFF.

Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 604, 9 April 1878, Page 2

THE RAILWAY TARIFF.

A meeting of the Sub-Committee of the Harbour Board appointed to consider and .take action with reference to the following letter from the Timaru Chamber of Commerce was held this morning, at the Board's offices : " Timaru, 2nd March, IS7S. . "To the Chairman of the Oamaru Harbour "Board, Oamaru. " Dear"Sir—At a meeting of the Timaru Chamber of Commerce held yesterday, it was decided to ask your Board to join us in a memorial to the Government to get the railway tariff placed on an equitable footing with regard to the ports of Timaru, Oamaru, j and Port Chalmers, as compared with Lyttelton. Enclosed I forward copy of Committee's report, aud would be glad to receive any suggestion from you, and your co-opera-tion —1 am, &c, "Fulbert Arciier, "Chairman of the Timaru Chamber of Commerce."

There were present—Messrs. Sumpter (in the chair), Steward, Shrimski, and Meek. After consideration, the following resolution, moved by Mr, Shrimski, and seconded by Mr. Meek, was adopted:—" That this Board, on behalf of the port of Oamaru and district of Waitaki, desires respectfully to urge upon the notice of the Government that the newly-adopted railway tariff, by the reduction to an exceedingly low rate of the charges for carriage of gva,iu and produce from Timaru northwards, while the rates southward to Timaru, or to Oamaru, have either l}een maintained at the old rate, or raised considerably, and by. the removal of the terminal charge of 2s. 6d. per ton at Lyttelton, while retaining it at Oamaru and Timaru, an unfair preference is given to t]ie port and merchants of Lyttelton, to the manifest injury of OHma.ru and Timaru. The Board understands that the reason for the change now complained of urged by the Railway Department is that it is necessary to reduce the rate of carriage northwards iu order to enable the railway to compete with carriage by sea ; but admitting the propriety of the department endeavoring to secure for the railways the largest possible amount of business, the Board submits the present tariff largely defeats its own ends, as the result is that the railway carries twice the distance (to Lyttelton) a large amount of freight which, were it not for the anomalies of the tariff, would be carried to Oamaru or Timaru for shipment, and would still return to the department an equal revenue at the usual mileage v:\te to that now obtained for carrying it double the distance at the reduced rates, and that, were it not for the new tariff, the railway would carry the same amount for a much smaller expenditure for haulage, to say nothiug of the saving in wear and tear of lines aud rolling stock. As another example of the unfairness of the present state of things, it must also be pointed out that while the amonnt o£ rollingstock available for the railway traffic is admittedly vastly insufficient, the effect of the arrangement complained of is to divert the trucks available to one part of the line to the further inconvenience of others, the shipping interest of Oamaru having already suffered greatly through diversion of rollingstock to the service of the port of Lyttelton. vessels lying here for days without being able to obtain means of loading or discharging solely for want of trucks, The Board submit that, in all fairness, unless there are special reasons to the contrary, which do not exist in this case, an even mileage rate should be charged whatever the destination of freight, aud, further, that all parts of the country have a right to expect that Government will place them on a fair footing, and not by artificial means divert trade from its ordinary and legitimate channels to the benefit of one port at the expense of others. It may further be added, that the charge recently made benefits solely a few merchants at Lyttelton, and does not benefit the producers, the lines paid for by the whole country being thus administered for the benefit of a few. It is therefore respectfully asked that the whole matter may be at once taken into careful consideration with a view to the removal of the inequalities now complained of." The Secretary was instructed to transmit a copy of the resolution to the Hon. the Minister for Public Works, and to inform the Timaru Chamber of Commerce as to the action taken by the Board, forwarding a copy of the resolution, It was also decided to telegraph at once to the Minister for Public Works on the subject.