THE ORETI RAILWAY.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 74, 18 November 1864, Page 2

THE ORETI RAILWAY.

S|^X||IOIAL OPENJNa. . " K : i ; f■' 4}i¥? (Fj^S^Sow^iAib^niE^ pet, 200 /■ Tueaday'la'st day'' appointed by the Committee Lo£ ; ' Management for the opening,, of., the first insialnient of the Great Northern or Oreti Railway. A day € *i|vbrpv £ivsorable ; for the s important event could" not tare Been desired, the weather being really.magnificent; and the hopes of many were buoyant with the anticipations of a day's thorough enjoyment in the exhilarating air on the Makarewa Pbms,<free from the cares aad bustle , of • every-day to wn.liie,'aiid intent on making the most: oft the time allotted them in, the w.aiy of ; pieihic-ing arid other -modes- of pleasantly enjoying themselves: • : It was a serious .drawback, however,. that the day 'fixed' happened riije^rroutward- - ■- monthly; • ■ mail --• for Europe closed," :;2a"&d\.., merchants and -many - others - would have much preferred a -^day 7 or- \ two -previous for the trip. Howeverpthe day was come, 'the arrangements >y ere, cpnipleted, and the only thing leift.waS to make the most "of the dayandth ] c "occasion/ Prior to the hour of We 'opening train 'starting, however, the. public: had> been, -madefully acquainted with; ; tbe;fact that no other train but : "the one carrying the guest 3 of the cbnipiittee, of management would be run that r "day s—thus5 — thus deb'a^rjiig the great ma; jority of the inhabitants, fromrparticif pating. in the/celebration of an event which was : considered by every one to b 0 - pre-emififently a public orie^ 'and' one in '; ■vvhich^; every ib^v^u^^ in'^e Province was more or less .interested. At the hour of nooni accordingly,' it was announced by the hell-ringer 'in the .streets of the town ' thatthe .public yfeie requested to assemble at the. railway station; .}' This . summons - .was obeyed by .great multitudes, and so strong was the feeling --they manifested, " that, as the- train moved slowly from the station, loud, and prolonged groans — in place of cheering— were .heard on every side, which continued till the increasing distance put "the unfortunate exclamations of our disappointed citizens out of hearing.',": ./ As : regards the Railway; Station, great praise i 3 due to those who had charge of the decorative department. In front of the building were placed at intervals a , number of fern trees and oth<?r specimens of our beautiful evergreen shrubs, while the -interior was bedecked with a pro- ' fusion of the same, but at the same time evincing the finest taste, and producing a tout ensemlle at once pleasing and elegant in the extreme, A number of flags of .7 various devices lent an additional charm to the scene, which has been seldom, if ever, equalled in Invercargill. On the way up to the Makarewa River, groups of spectators were stationed at intervals to watch the progress of the train; and the various bridges were ornamented with evergreens in honor of the event. The most conspicuous of these "Was the bridge over the Makare-wa, in the decoration of which very great labor had been bestowed, but the effect pro- = duced was sufficient to amply repay the • trouble it had cost. The "fresh greenery of the decorations contrasted finely with the dark woodwork of the massive bridge, and a more pleasing display could scarcely have been desired. Arriving at this place — the farthest point yet rendered completely available for traffic— the excursionists alighted, and betook themselves, each and everyone, in the ways which fancy led them. After strolling about for a little while, and viewing the scenery around, the party assembled on a spot adjacent to the bridge and on the banks of the river, where one and all joined in discussing the " good things " which had been provided for the occasion. An hour had scarcely passed, however, when the shrill whistle of the locomotive warned them .that, it was time to retrace their steps to town once more. In a short time thereafter all were seated, and the train at once proceeded to town, accomplishing the distance, at. a moderate speedj in . about twenty-five minutes. ; After the party had alighted, Mr. Davies, who had previously; been granted the use of the carriages, kindly conveyed a second party of excursionists up ; the line, which trip, like the . former, ended without mishap of- any kind, or any accident whatever. , r THE XTJN-OHEOZsT. ■ - f j __';".. Shortly after iliree o'clock tW guests of the Committee of Management! sat down to a splendid luncheon, in ] the eastern platform of the station, which had been partitioned off and appropriately decorated for the occasion. r . . His Honor the Superintendent occupied •'the -chair, and was supported on the right by I His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman, whnej the vice-chair, was filled by I. N. Watt, Esq., E.H., Campbelltown. '■ When we mention that to Mr. Jones, of the Southland Club Hotel, was entrusted the entire arrangements ofj this part of the day's proceedings, we are certain that it is scarcely necessary, to make any remarks on the magnificent be provided on the occasion. Suffice it to say that the viands were served up in the most liberaland handsome style^ and the liqueurs were such as to please the taste of the nicest connoiseurs. \ . . The usual loyal toasts haying :been|duly proposed and drank with all the honors, His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman, rose and said the Superintendent had 'done him the honor to put into bis hands the . ■* toast^.of /the. day, and-it was a toast -wrhich he felt proud! to Ye permitted to give— ■viz., " Success to the Oreti BailwayT" He said— -We have met to celebrate an event, which, although small in its own dimensions, As fraught with the cleft meni» of/ fiitttre impdrfahek t "We Jmust not look merely to the seven or |eight miles wMch have been, this day opened, but to, the igradjoal .development of the railway system in the Province, and;to all the benefits which inevitably follow in the footstep* of such an enterprise, ] We had now>MU Hpnoir said, in thi* countrf * yailw^ tsjttem yfyefo, as eontfasm

with. Very moderate means ; and lie was in hopes- that it would speedily be pushed into, the inferior as far as iWmtpn, and, in "the other, direction, to Bluff .Harbor. 'NoSy/takiag'ihtb- account the: expense entailed upon the Province in the prosecution of this railway system, he found that for the "twenty miles to Winton, and the twenty miles to the Bluff, the sum/of £300,000 had been considered necessary or required, whereas in the colony of Victoria the same outlay had been incurred on ten miles of railway. He would not say that our .■ railway works here /were carried out in the same style of magnificence as they had; been in that cblpnyi nor did it become us to doso ; for with our moderate means, it was necessary that we;should "cut our coat according to bur ; cloth." 1 (Hear, hear;) Being .only moderately wealthy, it was prudent that we^ should be, moderate in our expenditure/ v On the present occasion, he would like to say a few words on the advisability of young Provinces undertaking the.consferuction. of railways. Some people dissent, he said, maintaining that at an early age of a colony it was far from a wise step, but he might say that in his opinion it was both a wise and a prudent one. The great objection to railways was that they did not pay. This had been said in Victoria, and it had been reiterated by the Press; buirhe would do the Press, generally, the justice to say that it was said, only to be refuted and cdmbatted. The cost of the Victorian railways was eight millions ; and the annual interest charge on- this debt of the colony was £480,000, at six per cent, per annum, for the privilege of cheap transit by railway. His Honor then instanced the case of the Sandhurst Eailway, the actual revenue of which was [half a million, or about half the interest debt of the whole Colony. . The expense of management of this line was estimated at one-half, or £250,000, and the actual receipts at £250,000. Eroni this we deduce the apparent loss of £200,000 ; but he would ask if this really was a loss. (No !) He had made a computation and had discovered that the public, in the mere cost of the transportation of goods, were benefitted to the extent of not less than £900,000, merely paying by way of taxation, as it were, the sum of £200,000 for the advantages which the cheapening of transit by railway confers. He was not in possession of any statistics on the subject ; but he begged them always to keep in mind that, whatever apparent loss there might be in the maintenance of a railway i system, such loss would be far more than i met by the benefits arising from its introduction. Every one is in some degree, one way or another, receiving the advantages of cheap transit ; and although such benefits were of themselves infinitesimally small,' yet they combine to form that whole, which in all countries where the introduction of the railway system had been judiciously conducted, was never yet found wanting. He would venture to say that the introduction of the railway system into the province was a .wise and prudent step, and referred again to the history of railway enterprise in the colonies in illustration of his argument. When the system was rightly and economically carried out, it was impossible that it should be a failure. In the colony of Victoria, where he had had much expcperience on this subject, the legislature had sanctioned the principle of borrowing money in the English market, as a judicious and economical arrangement. But they had proceeded on sound principles. He could enter into minute details, illustrating the history of railways there, but it would occupy too much of their time, and might not prove very interesting to them. He would therefore content himself with mentioning one of the chief principles winch the Legislative Assembly of Victoria, or rather the old Legislative Council, had laid down to be applied in all cases to loans. It was that no loan should be made except for reproductive works — that is, works the proceeds of which should repay the cost of their construction. The principle was fully adopted, that it was wise and prudent in a new colony, to raise money for works the prosecution of which might indeed entail an immediate losw, but would result in an ultimate gain. (Cheers.) Loans should never be raised except for works that promised to be surely reproductive. He repeated that in this province a judicious and wise course had been pursued. He said although the province was at present passmg^tnrough a season o£ depression and embarrassment — an embarrassment which he was satisfied the energy of the people and their faith in their resources would soon enable them to free themselves from. (Cheers.) His Honor said he would conclude as he had commenced, by asking them to join him heartily in toasting the sentiment, " Success to the Oreti Eailway." (Loud applause.) His Honor the Superintendent then rose and said— Ladies and G-entlemen, I was taken quite by surprise when I was told-that. it was necessary to respond to the toast which His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman has just now so ably proposed, and in. terms, too, which displayed not only so. thorough an appreciation of the present position of the affairs of the Province,; but of the subject of railways as well - I fancied that the toast would have come home to all ; at any rate I hoped that it was not necessary for any particular person to respond, to it. However, I am told that as I occupy one of the chief positions in the Province it is proper - that I should say a few words in reply, and "I must therefore, -for the toast which has been so ably proposed, and to which you have so heartily responded, ex press thanks on behalf of the Province. His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman deserves our thanks for the thoroughly practical manner in which he has treated the subject, and also for his thorough appreciation of our position. "We must regard his opinion, too, as one -formed from ex-perience-in railway - matters, He has been in the Cabinet o£ a colony, not only the equsik oi New Zealand, but one in w&cfe woi&9 %\m\m to tto eaa we (my*

been this clay opening have been extensively carried on. .He has therefore been engaged in the carrying out of these works, and it is- no small cause for gratification to us that the judgement of His Honor (if I might be allowed a pun) should be such a highly favorable one. - - Contrasting .. our - efforts with those of other , countries he considered gave a good- augury of future success. Although we have only ; par.- --; tially opened our Northern line of rail,way,.l hope the entire line may be made ■ available for traffic at no distant date. We may be said _to__have as yet only entered on the initiatory- stage of our ;■ railway system ■ but we have ; done as< much we could do ; in fact, we have goae to the length of our tether, if I may be allowed a homely expression. However, -.we. have everything to hope-for, and, r the fiivpraibie opinion of an authority like Mr. Justice Chapman ought tp.be very encouraging. In initiating bur railways, we looked forward to the advantages to be derived not only to the population of our own province, but to those which would accrue to us from closer intercourse with the. goldproducing districts- around Lake Wakatipu. . .In return for this we have the gratification of finding that all the sympathies of the population of those districts are turning towards Southland. (Applause). I will not longer trespass on your patience. In what I have said I merely give voice, as it were, to the popular opinion that the railway system, connecting Bluff Harbor with the interior of the province, will undoubtedly be the first means of bringing that great agricultural country into successful occupation. I may now be allowed toreturn thanks to His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman for the thorough appreciation and favorable opinion of the judgment of the Province of Southland in the conduct and carrying out of its railways. (Applause.) "The Ladies," was next proposed by Mr. J. H. Baker, who accompanied the toast with afew humorous and appropriate remarks. The toast -was drank with great enthusiasm. Mr. A. W. Grilles, on behalf of the ladies, responded. The Chairman, (Dr. Menzies) next proposed " The Strangers." He said that in the opening ceremony there had been present strangers of distinction from various Provinces, including Auckland, Canterbury, and Otago. Amongst these was His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman, and he was sure no one present could have failed to be pleased at the re narks which had fallen from that gentleman. His speech had not only been very amusing, and very instructive, but also very encouraging. (Applause.) He begged to propose " The Strangers," coupled witn the name of His Honor Mr. Justice Chapman. Drank with all the honors. Mr. Justice Chapman responded to this toast in a clever and humorous speech. He said — I might in one sense be called a stranger, yet if we take a broader view of our position, and look upon Southland as merely forming one of the great New Zealand family, I might be considered a fellow - colonist with yourselves. (Cheers.) I may mention, gentlemen of the j (great and prolonged cheering, in which His Honor joined heartily) — I see I have made a little slip of the tongue. (Loud laughter.) Ladies and gentlemen, I may mention that I am bound by peculiar ties to New Zealand. [Five out of my seven children are settlers in New Zealand. I left this colony twelve years ago, and may be considered the New Zealand Kip Van Winkle ; and I confess that old Rip Van Winkle, when hedescendedfrom his twenty years' sleep in the hollow of the mountain, could not have been more surprised at the revolutions which had talc en place than I was when I revisited this colony after my long absence ; and am certain Hip Van Winkle could not have been more sur-pi-ised at finding the portrait of George 111. replaced by that of G-eneral Washington than I was at the vast changes which have been occurring in New Zealand. (Cheers.) The changes here, however, I am glad to say, were not at all o f a revolutionary character, but rather those effected by rapid strides in social and commercial prosperity and progress. I have much pleasure in returning thanks in my own behalf, and on that of the other strangers, present for the toast which has been so cordially drunk. The Chairsiajst now rose and said : — Ladies and gentlemen, as our programme, the programme of the committe, is now concluded — Mr. Chalmers. — No !no ! (Cries of order ! chair ! &c.) Mr. Chalmers again rose and said he should be sorry to interrupt any arrangements which the Committee of Management had made, but he thought, with all deference to the Chair, that they could not . abstain from drinking the health of the gentleman who had been' instrumental in undertaking the execution of the railway enterprise in this province. He thought they could not disperse without paying this tribute to one who had enabled them to carry put the proceedings of the day so successfully. (Cheers.) The least we can do, he said, is to drink the health of Mr. Davies, the patentee of this railway. (Loud cheering.) The toast was drunk amid much enthusiasm. , Mr. Davies rose to respond. He said: Your Honor, and ladies and gentlemen, it is fortunate for me, and still more so for you, that so many excellent addresses have been delivered on this occasion, and there is therefore less need for my replying at any length to the toast which you have just now done me the - honor so heartily to drink. I have merely to say that I thank you most sincerely for the honor you have done me on this occasion. (Cheers.) Mr. w. F. Tabltow was now called upon to propose a toast, and rose to comply, when The OIUIBMAtf again intimated that

mittee of Management was now cxl hausted. It had been departed from, in i, one instance, but lie considered that the arrangements of the -Committee should i not be interfered with— in fact, that those gentlemen who had put their "hands in i their pockets in providing the entertainl meuts should be allowed to hare the control of the proceedings. His Honor ! then said at nine o'clock a ball would take place in the Station Buildings, at . which there would be a band of ■ music s provided for the occasion, and to which he invited all present to come. (Cheers.^ Mr. Chalmers then proposed three . cheers for the Superintendent, which were L heartily .given, after which the company ; dispersed. , [ THE BALL. ■ ,At nine o'clock, as announced, the guests began to arriYe.'V.TKiß^iancing'was i held on the, long platform, which, after luncheon, had been cleared.; of the tables . and prepared for the occasion. : The \ scene was a very attractive one, and the „ number of the guests enabled the dance H to, kept up with much spirit till nearly .. four o,'ciock next morning. The greatest harmony prevailed throughout.