The Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI-WEEKLY. FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1883.

Inangahua Times, Volume VIII, Issue 1267, 4 May 1883, Page 2

The Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI- WEEKLY. FRIDAY, MAY 4, 1883.

The Wellington Post of a day or two back has an article strongly censuring the Government for consenting to the appointment of the West Coast Eailway Commission. Hero is what our distant contemporary has to say on the subject : — " Ministers have committed a grave blunder, and displayed culpable weakness in consenting to the appointment of a Royal Commission to report specially on the proposed railway from Cliristchurch to the West Coast of the South Island, Not a single valid ex-

cuse can be offered for this step, it is simply a very weak and transparent attempt to secure a few doubtful Canterbury votes, and it will fail in the long run, because ■whatever the report of the Commission, the Canterbury I agitators will not be contented unless the Government are prepared to go a great deal further than Parliament will back them up in doing, even supposing the Commission should report in favor of this precious railway over the Alps. It is in the last degree improbable that Parliament would support the Government in making' such ■ a report the basis of a new special loan of a million and a-half for the construction of the work." In the eyes of the Wellington press it is sheer madness to talk of such an undertaking as a railway from Canterbury to the West Coast. The thing is preposterous, and the Government ought to be ashamed of itself for even 'shamming an interest in the scheme. This is Wellington public opinion in regard to the East and West Coast railway, and the Post being the organ of the party in power, may be supposed to know something of the Ministerial mind on the subject. If then, we are to accept this authority, the Railway Commission now on the West Coast, is only a bogus affair, got up to "Catch a few Canterbury votes," and it does not matter a straw what its recommendations may be, Parliament — which means, of course, the Wellington conI tingent in the House — will never coni sent to the undertaking. This no doubt faithfully represents public feeling in the Empire City, in regard to our railway, and the conclusion to be drawn from it is patent enough. From Wellington, or from a Ministry in which Wellington interest and feeling too strongly predominates, it is utterly hopeless for the inhabitants here to look for any encouragement towards the West Coast railway. Wellington does a considerable shipping trade with this part of the colony, and is naturally not anxious to see the business diverted to Christchurch, but there are still large considerations lying behind its opposition, and foremost in this respect may be mentioned the vast landed interest which centres .in Wellington, and is ever clamoring and intriguing for railway construction in the North Island. At the present juncture we see nearly the whole of Canterbury, and a large part of Otago banded firmly together in a determined effort to force on the construction of the East and West Coast line, and so far the agitation has been successful. It has succeeded, according to the Post, in frightening the Government into the " culpable weakness " of appointing a Royal Commission, to enquire into the feasibility of (the undertaking. But Wellington will put a stop to any further nonsense concerning this " precious railway over the Alps." The Commissioners iuay report as they like, Parliament, says our distant contemporary, shall not listen to them or their report. It seems then that one way in which Parliament is to be fortified against the machinations of the Commissioners and these " Canterbury agitators," is by strengthening Wellington interest in the House. Mr Wakefield is far and away too dangerous an addition to the ranks of the " Canterbury agitators " to be thought of for a moment. He must be kept out at any sacrifice. The right man for the right place is Mr. Edward Shaw, of Wellington, who does not care a snap of the fingers for the reports of Royal Commissions, and who believes implicitly in the present Government. In this view of the case we may find some explanation of the Extraordinary interest which Wellington is taking in the present contest — an interest which has certainly never been equalled on any former occasion, and which would be wholly inexplicable but for some such reasons as those suggested. We ask the electors then to view the situation seriously, and to allow no amount of private earwigging and solicitation to bilnd them to the many important considerations involved in the present contest.