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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1319, 14 August 1880, Page 2

As wo anticipated, Mr. W right has shown that the condemnation of the Strath-Taieri railway by the Royal Commission was thoroughly justifiable. He declared in his speech yesterday that the members of the Commission were disappointed in finding how very little the interior of Otago had to justify railway construction at all ; that the recommendation of the Commissioners had been unanimous ; that the Commissioners had gone through the Hindon Gorge, a portion of the route proposed for the Otago central line, never gone through by the Engineer-in-Chief; and that after bringing every possible practice to work, and after making every possible enquiry, he had come to the conclusion that it would be better for the Colony to make a present of the whole district to any company that would undertake to make the line, rather than that the Colony should go to the cost of the work itself. Sot one of these statements were fairly met, the strongest advocates of the job contenting themselves with a few generalities that contained little reference to the line specially and that might be applied with even greater fores to less costly lines possessing stronger recommendations in every respect. Mr. Wright has drawn attention to a new phase of the question, and that is that the Strath-Taieri line lias been entered upon without a proper survey having beon made ; that Mr. Blair, while condemning the Maerewbenua route without making a survey, lias recommended the Strath-Taieri line with equally as little warrant for his conclusions. Then again, on the score of cost- Jvlr. Writ'ht has demonstrated without doubt, the wisdom for abandoning the line. " The first estimate or' the cost of the line," he said, " was L 600,000 to carry it as far as Cromwell. iSText year they got an estimate for the same work carrying it on to Alberton, 18 miles further, of L 1.100,000..100,000. His estimate, however, wa3 that it won Id not be short of L 1,500,000. He contended that they would not be justified in incurring such an expense simply to open up 212,000 acres" of land, for that in reality was the main contention in its favor." IsTow, Mr. Wright is no mean authority upon' such a matter; he is a practical engineer of large experience, and his opinion, coming as it does from a thoroughly independs-nt source, i-s worthy of more than a passing thought. If the Ministry are in earnest in their professed desire to expend rhe balance of the loan upon works of utility giving promise of returning something to the Treasury, they will pause before expending an}' further sum upon a line of railway against which strong reasons are urged, while nothing can be said in its favor.