RAILWAY EXTENSION IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 2, Issue 66, 4 January 1879, Page 2

RAILWAY EXTENSION IN NEW SOUTH WALES.

The following speech was delivered hy His Excellency Sir Hercules Robinson uu the opening of the railway at Tamworth, New South Wales : I am very sonsible of the cordiality with which you havo responded to tho toast which has just been presented to you. I run <;lad also to have this opportunity of expressing my grateful acknowledgments for the loyal and warmhearted reception which yon have accorded to me on tlio occasion of my first visit to Tiimwortli. 1 can assure you that it has given mo great pleasure to accept your invitation to be present hero to-day, and to unite with you in celebrating such an important event as tho extension of the Northern Railway to the capital of the rich and extensive pastoral district of the Liverpool Plains. I may sav too, that 1 have been greatly pleased" with what I havo seen, so far, of your town and neighbourhood. Tamwortli with tho river flowing through its centre, and tho mountains surrounding it, is, I think, as prettily situated as any town that L have seen in New South Wales ; and it is impossible to glance around as I did this morning, without seeing on all sides evidence of industrial progress and social improvement L noted the richness of the soil, the extent of agricultural settlement in the neighbourhood, tho large proportion of the population who farm their own land, the broad mid wnll-laid out streets, the tine commercial buildings and the raanufaeturiog Industries which ore springing up in various directions. The conclusion to which I was led was that the population of this place are Indiutrioua ami enterprising and prosperous, whilsl the substantial churehOl and well-

tilled school* convinced me that the residents appreciate at the Minn, time the importance of that moral ami ■octal advancement without which no community can flourish. Ami now that lam here 1 may say that my chief regret is that my visit to you has ben >.. long delayed. \R i' mif.v. us :cihs f iev ■'•;■■• arrival in N w S Mith Wales, 1 came up by the ' i t irun li and drove on the ■ !. [i ol plains. 1 was appearance of the . i and there determined ~ in the railway advanced to Taniwortb 1 would lvtiiin and extend my travels in this direction. It was then thought that two or three years at the outside would accomplish this work ; but more than six years have since passed away, and we are only to-day celebrating the long-looked-for event. I must say that 1 think this Great Northern Railway has progressed so far in a some.what leisurely fashion. It is twenty-four years since the first sod was turned at Newcastle, on the Btb November, 1854, and we ai°e to-day opening the 182 nd mile, which is only an averngo of seven and a half miles a year. Of late perhaps the progress lias been a trifle faster, but the sixty-two miles from Murrurundi to Turnworth hits taken six and a half years, which is only an average of about OJ miles a year; and at that rate the opening of the 203 miles to Tonterlicld, near the

border, would be delayed for over twenty years. lam glad, however, tn be able to say that the progress of the New South VVitles railways generally has of late 1 u miU'h more satisfitetory. When I ventured to call public attcuton to this subject at liathurst, in the beginning of I«7G, it really seemed to me as if the colony hail gone to sleep over the matter. We had then been twenty-live years engaged in railway construction, and the total length open on ail the lines was only 437 miles, being an average of 17} miles a vear. The dilllciilty of sealing the fastnesses of the ISluc Mountains was sometimes urged a< an excuse for our dilatoriness, but the pica was scarcely valid, seeing that the mountains had I n crossed, and Bowenfells and (!oull.iirn reached in lSb'i), and thai in the six following years the pace had not materially improved. Iml I it seemed to me to be gradually getting slower, mid n few mouths after my assumption of the Government, railway construction may be said to have been almost sus]K!iidcd fur the returns which 1 asked for showed that on the 31st December

1872, there were, in addition to 3JI(J miles of railway open, only S miles in course of construction throughout the whole colony. In 1.,7:t. live additional miles were opened ; in 1874, we remained stationary; and in I,S7">, thirty-four miles were opened, being a total of thirtynine miles in the years Jsy,;. |,-574 and 1575, or an average of only thirteen miles a-year. \\ heii, tit lefure, I was asked, early in I.S7U, to viril I'.nthursl and open an extension to that place of two milns from Kelso, it really seemed to me time to speak out — and I am glad thai I did so with no uncertain sound ; for I cannot help thinking that the endorsement which my words received throughout the length and breadth of the country contributed in no small degree

to the increased rate of progress which 1 have this day to record. But 1 confess I am not yet quite satisfied, I should like to sec a minimum progress of 150 miles a year on all tho railways, or say not less than fifty miles a year on pach line—North and South and West. This. J believe, would be quite feasible if the country insisted on it and we should then lie able to reach the border of Victoria in less than two years; liourko in about live years ; and the border of South Australia in from eight In ten years. It really seems to me scarcely possible to overrate the importance of this question of railway extension. If I were asked what in my opinion whs how the matter of the most vital importance to tho future progress and prosperity of New South Wales. I should say" the vapid completion of the through lines of railway communication. All other measures, however desirable, sink, in my tnind, into comparative insignificance: and bow favourable are the circumstances at present for a vigorous policy in this respect. Our main trunk lines are even now, in their unfinished state, returning an interest on the capital invested in them about equal to the rate at which we can borrow in London, and it lias been shown by the experience of a series of years that every additional mile opened on them serves to make the portion already completed more productive and profitable. The advantage to the country, too, of railway extension can scarcely be over-stated. Mr. Sutherland, in his excellent speech at Wagga the other day, estimated the saving to tho community by railways at three times the gross receipts upon the linos, at which rate the saving last year must have amounted to over two and a half millions sterling, and these gains can, with our vast area, be almost indefinitely increased. Far away to the north and south and west there are splendid tracts of country suitable either for agricultural or pastoral purposes, and needing only railway communication to ensure their settlement and the consequent opening tip of fresh flchls for the profitable iiivostment of capital and labour; and when our main lines reach the borders of our own colony and are thusonnnectcd with the railway systems oi our neighbours, an impetus will be given to Unsocial commerce and exchanges of these adjoining communities which cannot fail to prove advantageous to all concerned. It must a'so Be borne in mind that with the pfotfrtei of settlement, throughout tho interior, and with itiil-

* •■> trains running daily serosa the borders, the losm and iuc nivonience will I* I: i■•-: i ■ ■>■ ■' . I 1:- | ■-.j i m, t . which in ethuologieally and physical one, mi.i BtparaUi autonomous .- ctions by means of in i" arbitary geographical lines "i demarcati >n ; a * desire will then spring tip fur m re intimate, political an well as cnmnicivial, associntiou with our neighbours, from which wo may anticipate the very best results. With mt-h a brilliant prosit before us of what may he achieved by railway extension, it is surely to tlif interest of the colony to

strain every nerve to carry out so desirable an object Behove mo thore is no insuperable difficulty 'n the matter. Let tin; country only express an opinion that our main trunk lines north, south, and west should progress at the rate of not less than 150 miles a-year, and I feel assured there will be no difficulty in carrying out such a very moderate demand." 1 may add that there is no one, to my mind, more capable of giving effect to whatever may bo the wishes of the community in this respect than the present Secretary for Public Works, who is well known to . I! l ;i I ::• I] £ sill H j: . ! :,v and 111 In- ■ tabic resolution. 1 only 'hope that in making these observations it will not be thought thai 1 am trespassing beyond my legitimate province. One of tlio most, difficult and delicate of the questions which a constitutional (iovemor has to decide for himself is when ho may. with propriety, express his own individual

opinions on matters ot public concern, for my own part, I do not think it is at all necessary thai a Governor under a Parliamentary system should in his public utterances lie merely a sort of mechanical nightingale singing over the one tune ; ' iwl'.' n i i-i■•■ j • ■■, Ima ita■■■: thai il he holds strong opinions upon nnv greal uuis'.ion alleiting the real anil lasting interests of the country, it is nut. ■ inly pennissibl ■ {,„■ him, but it is his duty lo state those opinions frankly for whatever they may lie worth, provided that in tin's judgment he can do so with iva.t.ir/i pn;..; . e t t t' '■•t:--j good a,; 1 without violating the neutrality which he is bound lo observe between the various political parties in the colony. Some time ago I had occasion, in referring to some criticisms on my own outspokenness, to explain the considerations which binl always influenced my action here in this respect. My views are cmliodied iti a confidential letter, which was written with complete unreserve, and without. any intention tit the ti that it, should see the light, lint as the observations then made express folly and clearly the opinion on (his subject w'hiah subsequent experience has continued. I may, perhaps, be permitted to quote them now tor your information. 1 then wrote as follows:—"! may take opportunity of observing thai niv experience does not

li'tul ill.- to rnc conclusion unuuui I am well aware 1:1 siimc quarters that a Governor in these colonies best fulfils his functions by disassociating himself from all important questions, even to tho extent of concealing his sentiments upon them. Such a course of systematic abstention cannot hut tend to lower his legitimate influence, ti curtail his usefulness, and to convert him into a mere pagcaut. The very fact of a Governor maintaining silence on what he knows to he mischievous delusions makes him, as it wore, a consenting party to them, and encourages those who uphold and promulgate them. On the other hand, the fact of his expressing an opinion on behalf of an enlightened policy rallies Inwards it many persons who were previously indifferent or undetermined. There is always in these colonies a largo amount of floating unsettled views which nr. Ii r.v: i -.1 t. r ,!:t :1 J its 1 \ iv-.i whose position commands attention, and who is above the imputation of being swayed by personal or parly motives. 1 even go a step further, and assert that the masses of the | pie, instead of suspecting or resenting the outspoken sentiments of a Governor on great questions, welcome them and turn them over in their minds, even though they may not

at one,, accept them. I use advisedly the expression 'on -rent questions,' because it is only the conviction that, he mav be the means of doing substantial good, which should induce a Governor to enter the arena of public discussion. The suitableness of the ocenssion, and the suitableness of the topics which he thinks fit to speak on, are matters for his judgment; and lie must be prepared to accept the responsibility, and tho credit or the blame. I believe thai n I lovcrnor, if he be lit for tho discharge of the trust. confided to him may on many occasions a pt that responsibility, and be rewarded for doing so by the confidence and esteem of the eo: inity. By reducing himself to the position of a nonentity he will certainly acquire neither the one nor tho other." These wen: tho views which 1 formed soon after my arrival in this colony ; and they have been acted on by me throughout the course of an administration which has already extended beyond the usual term. Whether t beyare sound in principle, and whether they have been judiciously applied in practice, nro points which 1 must leave to to bo decided by tho impartial verdict of pvblic opinion. For myself I may say that, when 1 look back over the last six years. I feel sensible of many personal shortcomings, and of opportunities which, under more skilful treatment might have been productive of better results. But I hope that all honest errors of judgment will be gonorously forgiven anil forgotten and that hereafter when my administration shall be amongst the things of the pist, you will think of me as a man who conscientiously tried to do what he believed

la be bn doty, :i::.l whose whole heart «w wrapped up in the welfare no.I odvnncomeut ol this utagmficeut culouy - -Sydney Mail