THE RAILWAY QUESTION.

Southland Times, Issue 684, 17 June 1867, Page 2

THE RAILWAY QUESTION.

[ TO THB EDITOB OB THE SOTJTHIiAirD TIMES. ~ Sib, — I perceive that a letter in the " Southland News," signed " Vetus," endeavors to prpvet,;fchat,. the, ..prosecution ofr Eailways would be destructive to South-;.,, I land, by abstracting so much land from the Crown jjancl winds "up by using rather abusive language, and designates all who advocate Eailways adventurers, who would ruin the Tfovince; further- r . [more he states that Dr. "Menzies advocates Eailways, but in a different way — "that of borrowing money at 6 per cent. As the writer of the letter iswell known as a political partizan, who seeks to drown the universal condeinnatioii of those who were .the cause of the k Eailway scheme being lost, I will, at r onee r dismiss < him' I and his rather abusive letter, from my ■present-discourse. Qne_of the arguments — by those in favor of. the shelving of the question of Eailways was advanced by Dr. Menzies, viz.,— that on the consolidation,,, of, the loans of the., colony^ -we,. ~ borrow money at 6 per cent, in order to construct new~lines. But Dr. Menzies as a -squatter had his own ends to serve. He appears to forget that at the present moment there is a debt of ;.~ eight millions hanging over the head of the colony, and in the face of this enormous amount, it is not likely that Southland .will be permitted to borrow more money for. any purpose-rr., the iclea of borrowing at 6 per cent is simply a fallacy. The Otago and Canterbury loans "bear "8 per cent interest—' indeed with few exceptions, every loan that has been floated, has not only bore a higher rate of interest than 6 per cent, but m nearly every case the discount was excessive^ The Otago people lost over one hundred thousand pounds -in floating their loan. Other Provinces have lost an equivalent value to the amount raised. Besides ... these -drawbacks, we would have to pay the interest on the loan, assuming it to be floated,, which would absorb all our available revenue, and $he land would still remain idle — or comparatively so, in the hands j)f the squatters" Tit will beTclearly seen then that the idea of borrowing £200,000, as soon as the loans are consolidated, is chimerical in the extreme. ,*■. I contend rather on the contrary, that as soon as the . ■loans are consolidated, the whole of our lands would be taken as security for the general debt. -The colony would natur- " ally.-,-. say, .^Southland, you have had enough, you have ..borrowed nearly „, half, a million ; and, for your limit- . . . ed Province, we "consider this is -quite sufficient.- Xou-mu?tbe content, therefore, to remain in seclusion until we construct i our public works." The consequ"e£fc*e"would be, "the—squatters would" • have have it all their own way, and the commerce and trade of the Province would dwindle down to the mere supplying -of them with food, and exporting their wool once.a-y.eaT. Every argument is in favor of railways. - I wish particularly to divest this subject of party politics. The, moment you connect this question, as Mr Lumsden and otners eendeavorr r to do, with who should be in office or who should not, then the cause becomes weakened, and the counsels of those who should be as one are divided. Ifc is quite obvious,

dence on the subject between the Colonial G-overnment and His Honor therSuperiritendent, that the former purposes exercising a keen supervision that the works will be properly conducted—indeed their holding the power of granting progress payment certificates expressly point to this. It. was only a cry got up by the squatters to talk about Mr BlacfcLock being in offi.ce: He is out, now, therefore that complaint is- -reme-j died. It is not only the benefit that the outlay would confer npon "the Province — the expenditure of the large sum of £200,000, which would infallibly be supplemented by at least £400,000 more, to make the land profitable, but it is the encouragement that would be offered to settlement, and the almost certainty of the settler, who is at present resident in the province, finding a ready market for his produce — thus his previous years of toil would be rewarded. Take for instance the present condition of the settler. He is scarcely able to pay the high rate of interest on the money .he borrows to improve his farm, because he cannot find a profitable outlet for his produce. Look at the advantage a railway would be to him. Every bushel of oa ts — every acre of potatoes — every bushel of corn, would be quickly used by those who would be attracted to the province by the prosecution of large works. He would get good prices for his produce at once. Then, again, after, they, had been finished, the cheapness of the transit from the far interior to the nearest port would amply pay him for the growth of his produce. The Otago people themselves would become our buyers. . Invercargill would be the great emporium for all sorts of agricultural produce. The settlers would find there a ready market, not only for the use of that locality alone, but because merchants and traders would establish themselves there, ■ from the facilities of purchasing iproduce for export ; the saving in receiving stock and produce by rail, in comparison to horse or bullock teams over roads^— even supposing the latter to exist — would be so great°that a handsome "profit would this means alone be made. Can any im- "I partial observer, not blinded by narrow- 1 minded prejudice, look around the town and country districts and say, we would not bebenefited by the expenditure of the large amount of money spoken of; not only would there be activity in all branches of industry, but I firmly believe that the j construction of the proposed lines would place this Province in the first rank, as a fit and suitable place to settle down in. I trust that I will be the means of eliciting the sentiments of others who purpose making this place their future j home, on the desirability of advocating by every ligitimate means, the construction of Railways. — Yours, &c, Citizen. Invercargill, June, 13, 1867.

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