1.—9.

"All other merchandise of every class and description, ss. per ton; anything under \ ton to be charged at parcel rates. All fares te be from ticket-station to ticket-station, or the same charge for any intermediate distance." (From Mr. Vaile's Lecture of the 12th November, 1883.) Goods Freight. "In dealing with goods freight, if revenue is to be a first consideration, much greater caution is necessary than in dealing with passenger fares. Give a man inducement enough, and he will run along the line any number of times, but goods as a rule require to be moved but once. For the present I suggest the following scale of charges, but in the hope and belief that in a very short time a much greater reduction would be practicable. Trucks for horses, cattle, sheep, calves, pigs, goats, hay, straw, agricultural produce of all kinds, and firewood, 4s. per truck. Minerals, bricks, clay, sand, and coal, Is. per ton ; anything under 3 tons to be charged as merchandise. Timber, per 100 feet or fraction of 100 feet, 3d. Every other class of merchandise, 2s. 6d. per ton; anything under \ ton to be charged at parcels rates. All fares to be from ticket-station to ticketstation, or for any intermediate distances the same charges." (From Mr. Vaile's Pamphlet of February, 1886, page 35.) Goods Freight. " Live animals, agricultural produce of all kinds, and firewood, 4s. per truck. " Minerals, bricks, clay, sand, and coal, Is. per ton ; anything under 3 tons to be charged as merchandise. "Timber, per 100 feet, 3d. " Merchandise of every other class, 2s. 6d. per ton. " Directions similar to the above for each section of railway would be all that is required to take the place of the present cumbrous and incomprehensible tariff, which I maintain is not only unnecessary but intensely mischievous." Mr. Vaile has fixed four classes from the first only, and has adhered to them. He makes merchandise one class, regardless of the expense of dealing with-the different sorts of merchandise. In reference to the remarks made about my allusion to Mr. Vaile's Is. average, I wish to put in the following evidence : — (Extract from Mr. Vaile's Lecture of 12th November, 1883.) '' A very slight study of the annexed diagram will show that the average fare under the proposed system could not sink so low as Is. o|d. per head, as, after passing the first station, the fare could not be less than Is. first and Bd. second class; and there would be all the rest of the lines to pull up the average, which would doubtless reach at least Is. 3d." (Extract from Mr. Vaile's Pamphlet of February, 1886, pages 46 and 47.) " I have repeatedly shown that the average fare paid by all travellers on our railways for the year ending March, 1884, was under Is. 9fd. Therefore it is absolutely certain that if any system —no matter what it may be —can be devised by which sufficient inducement can be given to cause two fares to be taken where one is taken now, and that those fares do not sink below an average of Is. each, that then we must make a profit, inasmuch as 2s. must be greatly better than Is. 9fd., where millions of them are concerned. This I claim to have done. I understand from these statements that Mr. Vaile felt certain 'that his fares could not fall below Is., especially as, at page 11 of his pamphlet, he quotes independent evidence to show that " the average fare could not sink below Is." It seems to have been suggested that it does not matter whether we get two fares at Is., or four at 6d., and that also regardless of distance carried; but this is a matter of vital importance, as if we lose with two fares for Is., we shall lose much more with four fares for 6d. The practice of looking at the fares only, without regard to the distances passengers are carried, is very misleading, as the element of cost and work performed is omitted.

* Comparison of the Traffic per Inhabitant, and Number of Miles of Eailway per 100,000 of the Population, for the following Countries and Colonies.

4—l. 9.

25

Name. Passengers. Goods. Miles per 100,000 Inhabitants. United Kingdom No. 22 5 5 i 2 li li li 10 8 5 3 4 6f Tons. 7 2i 3 52 46 49 16 33 20 27 40 60 210 178 190 281 France Germany ... Eussia Austria ItalySpain Belgium Switzerland United States Canada Australia ... New Zealand i 1* i 3 1 * 7 2 6 2| 1A 3i All the figures are from Mulhall's Statistics for 1882, exce; it those for New ij. laland, which are for the year 1885-86.