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Value of the Coal enormous.

109. The value of the coalfields that would come within the belt of land, 10 miles wide, proposed to be given to a company constructing the line, would be enormous and beyond calculation, the present Brunner mines on the Grey being, as it were, a mere spot in proportion to the area forming the coalfields of the Grey and Buller.

Much of the country is auriferous.

110. I have already stated that a large portion of the country through which the proposed line of railway would be auriferous, and that gold digging is now being followed in various places on the numerous rivers intersecting the proposed route; so that the land may be said to abound in riches and is now being furthered, the development of which would not only enrich a company, but have a most material beneficial effect on the prosperity of the Province of Nelson.

Land abounds with mines and minerals.

Railway would create a mining district.

111. The opening of a line of railway would at once convert a great extent of the Province into a mining district—population would increase, and all the concurrent advantages would of necessity follow.

Country quite practicable for a railway.

112. The country being quite practicable to carry a line of railway through, the question now arises as to what character the railway should be, and of what gauge. The first part of the question is readily answered, for Colonial works of all kinds, constructed in the early stages of the country's progress, should be of a description free from all ornament and high finish, but otherwise solidly constructed.

How the gauge of railway to be determined.

113. The question of the gauge, this must, in some measure, be determined partly by the nature of the traffic which may be expected to arise, and partly from the formation of the country to be passed through, the curves in the line that are necessary to save a great outlay, and the financial position of the Province; the latter, perhaps, being the chief consideration.

If a mineral line, very narrow gauge is sufficient.

114. If the great bulk of the traffic is certain to consist of minerals, high speeds are not only unnecessary, but absolutely injurious, and a very narrow gauge of, say, 3ft. 6in. would suffice; but if in the course of time the passenger and goods traffic became of equal importance with that of minerals, then a gauge of not less than 4ft. 8½in., or not more than 5ft. 3in., according to the nature of the traffic, may be desirable.

High speed injurious.

Caution to be observed adopting a very narrow gauge.

115. The advantages of forming a railway on so narrow a gauge as 3ft. 6in. are not real ones—they only appear to be so. Cheapness in the first cost of construction,—being best suited to sharp curves,—and the completion of which is more likely to come within the means which the Province has at its disposal, are certainly matters of much moment; but these apparent advantages must be received with some caution, as it is well known to practical engineers that there are extra charges and cost per cubic yard, in the excavations of a very narrow gauge, that are greatly reduced, and may be said to disappear, when the gauge is of a moderate width.

Time an element of consequence in all large works.

116. Time is an element of consequence in the construction of all large public works, regulating, as it does, the period for which the capital engaged in the formation of the undertaking lies unproductive. I would quicker, therefore, that a large public work can be completed, the better for those having capital in the concern, and vice versa.

Illustration of the importance of time in constructing large works.

117. I may illustrate my meaning better, perhaps, by assuming a case, thus:—If a line whose gauge was 3ft. 6in. had 4,000,000 cubic yards of earthworks to be removed in full cuttings, and another line whose gauge was half as much more, that is, 5ft. 3in., had 6,000,000 cubic yards of earthwork to remove, then what I mean to convey to your Honour is, that though the gauges and quantity of earthworks are strictly proportional, not only would the 6,000,000 yards on

the broader gauge be removed as soon as the 4,000,000 yards on the narrower gauge, but it would be done at a less cost per cubic yard. Experience has clearly shewn, that within certain limits of gauge, this is a fact; and enquiry as to the result of constructing railways of 3ft. 6in. gauge in other colonies would, I have no doubt, sustain what I have advanced.

118. We must, however, guard against falling into error by applying this knowledge under all circumstances, for its correctness is only applicable when the cuttings only are full cuttings, that is, not side cuttings; for the width of a cutting regulated by the size of the earth wagon that can be used, and the number of men that can be daily employed; and from this cause, cost of excavations, time of execution, and cost of management, are much enlarged.

Width of cuttings and time of execution.

119. But in "side cuttings," where there is no lead, or where the lead is very short, and where the material excavated may be cast away by the shovel, the distinction as regards relative cost of earthworks does not apply. Now, as the excavations on the line of route I propose would generally be in side cutting, and but few full cuttings be found necessary, it follows that the generally admitted fact that the excavations on a railway whose gauge is 3ft. 6in., are more costly in proportion to that of one whose gauge is 4ft. 8½in., or 5ft. 3in., only applies in the case of the proposed Nelson and West Coast railway, to a limited extent; but it is necessary, I think, that I should draw your attention to these facts, so that objections which capitalists may make, to the construction of so great a length on such a narrow gauge, may be removed.

Where there is side cutting, only width of cutting does not affect cost of execution.

120. A railway having a large traffic and a gauge of 3ft. 6in. has, compared with one whose gauge is of 4ft. 8½in. or 5ft. 3in., some disadvantages.

A.—Its safe working is less certain;
B.—Its speed is more limited;
C.—Its servants are more numerous;
D.—Its rolling stock is of greater extent; and
E.—Its cost of working larger.

Disadvantages of a narrow gauge as compared with 4ft. 8½ inches.

121. It must be recollected that the chief cost of a railway, having a gauge larger than 3ft. 6in., is generally to be attributed in this colony, not so much to the increased cost of the excavations, as to that of the permanent way, by reason of the ballasting being greater in quantity, the sleepers larger, and the rails heavier. In the sketch (fig 1) given on the next sheet, which may be taken as a cross section representing the average of the sidelong ground to be passed over by the railway where it does not occupy the valley of the Buller, it will be observed, by an inspection of figures, that the excavation and embankment necessary in the case of a railway having a gauge of 3ft. 6in. and one whose gauge is 4ft. 8½in. is only increased 15in. in width, and 2in. in width when the gauge is 5ft. 3in., half of which represents the extra width of the cutting on the hillside.

Permanent way chief cause of extra cost and increased width of gauge.

121a. This then would form a very moderate item in the increased cost of the broader gauges, and should not weigh in the choice of gauge; for we see from the cross section before us, that for every mile a railway of the gauge of 3ft. 6in. would require about 3450 cubic yards of excavation; that of 4ft. 8½in. about 3924 cubic yards; and that of 5ft. 3in. about 4540 cubic yards; the calculation being based on the assumption that the width of the carriage shall exceed the width of the rails by 2ft. 6in., and that a space of 3 feet is maintained throughout the line between the sides of the carriage and the edge of the formation level; so that the least width of roadway for the several gauges would be 12ft., 13ft. 3in., and 13ft. 9in. respectively.

Earthworks in side cuttings for a railway of various sizes is a serious item in the extra cost of the broader gauges when they are "full cuttings."