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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume IX, Issue 998, 12 November 1881, Page 2

Mb. H. E. Jopling’s letter, addressed to Mr. W. H. Tucker, with regard to the present and future of the South Pacific Petroleum Company—to be found in another column—is one of the most remarkable, and non-under-standable that ever came from the pen of an official. We have always had a difficulty in deciphering Mr. Jopling’s correspondence, but for involved sentences, the present one eclipses all his former efforts. We will take the former portion of the second paragraph : —“ First, as regards boring, as “ the present tools and tubing avail- “ able are quite inadequate to the work, “and it will be necessary to get a “ quantity of strong drive pipe from “ America, together with a suitable “ set of tools, and until these arrive, “ it will be mere waste of money to “continue the work.” Now. if any word constructor can make sense out of that we give him credit for knowing something. The only explanation we can give is that, to make the first part intelligible, the rest of the sentence must be read with it, and not separately. Mr. Jopling’s modesty is conspicuous. He says “ the result of the “ trials leads us to think that the bulk “ of the stuff is not of much value.” By using the plural pronoun “ us ” — which is the objective case of “ we ” — ive can only infer that Mr. Jopling identifies himself so intimately with the Board of Directors, as to put a more imposing importance on his words, while they convey a regular “ clincher ” against any argument outsiders may offer. And the same may be said of “we think.” We protest —putting the Secretary’s vagaries of language on one side —-that it is most unsatisfactory to shareholders to find the Directors coming to a conclusion of so important a nature, by the mere abstract process of unassisted and unscientific thought. Before we act judiciously, the mental assistance of thinking must be largely employed. But in the case before us the Directors appear to rest upon their thoughts, half way, and as they cannot think the

matter out, they accept the untutored alternative of “giving it up,” and, by so doing, temporarily abandon a most valuable work ; throw metaphoric cold water on an industry of unlimited extent, and inflict a great injury on the Company’s prospects. We do not say it is unwise to defer the incurrence of any more expense than is absolutely necessary until some more reliable data are at hand. But it seems to be rather late to use such an expression. Why has this not been done before ? It would have been wise to have thrown the united labors of the South Pacific and Southern Cross Companies into the scale of progress, and for the former to have co-operated with the latter, in bringing the most enlightened professional knowledge the Colonies possess, to bear upon the subject. We cannot avoid comparisons when they are thrust upon us, or where their various degrees are a mere matter of scientific selection. In the furtherance of a common industry, compassing the wealth of millions of pounds, and the permananent employment of thousands of persons, the conjunctive working of the two Companies, on the basis recently laid down by the Southern Cross Company, would have gone a great way to weld their interests together. The South Pacific is sure to be benefitted by the efforts and trials of the Southern Cross, and it would have been, at least, an act of grace to make an offer of co-operation. Possibly the Directors of the South Pacific are exercising a kind of economic sagacity in suspending operations, until the experiment about to be entered on by the Southern Cross, in Melbourne, shall have been made known, and then step in and divide honors and the spoil at a cheap rate. But in such case, it is impolitic to hazard the opinion that they “think” the stuff is valueless, which has been proved to be the very reverse of fact. And here, again, we stumble on another difficulty. In the face of a most injudicious opinion that “ the stuff is not of much value,” the Directors have decided on drawing more public attention to their depreciation of the “ stuff,” by calling for tenders from those willing to work it on their own account. It appears that the good the Directors desire to effect with one hand is paralysed by most inconsiderate conduct on the other. It is probable that there are some who may desire to tender will have seen Mr. Jopling’s letter, and will very naturally draw unfavorable conclusions, especially if they have not had the advantage of tesling the oil-pro-ducing capabilities of the ground. They will think it strange that the same men —who, after publicly depreciating a property, call for tenders for its working—simultaneously state that “the stuff is not of much value,” but that the shareholders “have every confidence in the enterprise, at least, as far as the oil is concerned.”

It is satisfactory to find that the profitless expense and waste of time, at the works, have been ended for a season ; and that, notwithstanding the want of tact, and errors in judgment displayed by the Directors; an infusion of new blood may produce better results.