GOVERNMENT ROAD MAKING.

Southland Times, Volume 2, Issue 33, 18 May 1863, Page 5 (Supplement)

GOVERNMENT ROAD MAKING.

(From the Imercargill Times, 15th May.) A great deal has been written in the Southland Press about roads and roadmakers, but the subject is by no means exhausted, nor do we think we run much risk of tiring the community by again alluding to it in a prominent manner. It is rather late in the day to remind people that freedom of intercommunication is a point of the highest importance to the members of every social union ; or to tell them that roadmaking is one of the first duties which falls to the lot of the Government of every new country, and that the prosperity of the people depends in no small degree on the manner in which that doty is performed. That is the case always, but in Southland there are circumstances of a peculiar nature which demand that more than ordinary care shall be taken in bringing our highways to a state of perfection. The commerce of Southland is not altogether dependent for its prosperity on the exertions of the agriculturalist and squatter, though we would by no means be supposed to underrate the importance of those interests. There is a third industry which has, during the last few months, done more for the Province — has introduced more capital and a larger population — than the other two would have effected in as many years. The splendid finds of gold m the Lake district have done all this. The capital and the men have been rapidly coming into the place, attracted by the idea that, from its geographical position, this province ought to become the caterer for the wants of the miners. All these new comers were aware that Nature had done much for the Province ; they knew the country was, generally speaking, level* they knew that the distance from Invercargill to the Lake was shorter than the distance from Dunediu to the Lake ; they knew that the Otago route passed through a country of a hilly and impracticable nature, and that the line through Southland presented but few difficulties, and they came here supposing that Nature having done so much, man would take the trouble to do the remainder. Well, they have been grievously deceived. Let us look at the North Road, and see what improvements have been effected in that direction. Knowing that on the northern outskirts of the Province thousands of men were congregated, who must draw the necessary supplies for their existence either from Otago or Southland, and seeing with half an eye how much shorter than the Otago route the one through Southland naturally was, and how far preferable it might be made by the exercise of engineering skill, the Southland Government ought at once to have exerted all their energies in that direction. They should have made use of all the available talent at their command to effect that object ; in short, they should have made the route passable, and when we use those words, we mean fit for heavy traffic. Have they exerted their energies in that direction as far as possible ? Have they made use of all the available talent at their command to effect that object ? Heaven forbid ! The miserable state of the road at present compels us to say that they have not done so. We would not offer so gross an insult to professional ability — even in so small a place as Southland — as to suppose that to be the case. The whole affair has been delayed, humbugged, botched, neglected, anything but done and done well, and the result is that, with winter settling fast down on us, we have the satisfaction of knowing that through the supineness of the present Provincial Government, communication with the Lake is almost at a standstill, and a heavy blow has been struck at the commercial prosperity of Southland. We speak advispdly, though strongly. We have dealt in generalities, let us give an example. We assure our readers that we will speak strictly in accordance with truth, but we recommend every one who can spare the time, and feels an interest in the matter, to go and look for himself. Not many miles from town an attempt has been made to improve a portion of the North Road by means of a species of tramway, consisting of two rows of baulks of timber about a foot wide placed longitudinally, a driver being supposed to keep the wheels of his dray on them ; should he once have the misfortune to get off, it is nearly an impossibility to get on again. Granting, for a moment, that he can contrive not to get off when he has the road to himself, we should like to know- how he is to manage matters when he meets a vehicle coming in the opposite direction. The rival teamsters must arrange with each other who is to go off and get bogged, for on either side of the so-called tramway is a hopeless sea of mud. We would suggest that, to avoid disputes, the Government issue a notice that on all such occasions the drivers have recourse to the time-honored custom of " tossing " for places. That is the only solution of the difficulty which occurs to us. But the subject is of too much importance to jest about, let us at Once state plainly that the plan of this North Road tramway displays an utter want of engineering skill and judgment, and that any old market

woman of moderate mental capacity, or even the donkey she has the pleasure of driving, would see at a glance that the money spent in its construction has been thrown away. The "road-makers" must try again, but it is " hard lines" for the people to have to pay for their egregious bungling and incapacity. "We cannot enlarge on this subject further, but earnestly entreat our readers to ponder well on our concluding sentence. — Goods are rapidly coming into Invercargill, and, unless a useful and permanent road be very quickly made to the Lake, it will not be long before a crisis occurs amongst the mercantile community, for apart from the Wakatip trade, the requirements of the Province do not warrant such large importations as have recently been made. The road to the Lake is of paramount importance — the railway to the Bluff is a secondary consideration, for there is little use in crowding with goods a town from which there is no egress. We have finished, and it cannot be denied that our criticism has been severe, but, on the other hand, it will be conceded to us that the objects of our attack have made themselves ridiculous beyond compare.