Hutchinson gazette., 1899-03-30

Of railway we construct. II the bal
ance of our foreign trade is to remain
in our favor, II order is to be maintain
cd and femme mlgated, we are bound
to build railways on grand scale. We
have to build lines which, from the
point OF view Of profits, are good, IN
different, and bad, and the govern
inent, rs the trustees OF the public in
terests, cannot afford to give the pro.
fitable lines to private enterprise and
to construct the Improbable lines
with the peoples money. The govern.
ment Of this country cannot afford to
lose sight OF tho principle that what
ever assistance II takes from foreign
capitalists shall be in due time equita-
bly, repaid, and that all the great pub
lie works OF the country shall in time
become the property Of the people of
India, 80 that the profits derived from
their use shall lessen the burden Of
taxation In the country at large And,
gentlemen, these views are not with
out the support Of high authority.
They have the authority OF the Broth"
ers Strachey, two Of the ablest men
who ever served this country, and, as
they point out In their book, the "Fi-
nances and Public Works of India"-a
book to which l am glad to owe many
hours of pleasure and instruction
they have the authority OF one of the
ablest advocates of national freedom,
as he was one of the firmest oppo-
nents Of the undue extension Of gov
ernment action, Mr. John Stuart Mill.
In the last chapter of his i'Political
Economy" Mr., Mill says
80 N"In many cases in which 1t is
best to resign to voluntary agency the
community needs some other security
for the fit performance Of the service
than the interests OF the managers,
and it is the part Of the government
either 10 subject the business to rea-
sonable conditions for the general ad-
vantage, or to retain such power over
IL that the profits Of the monopoly
may at least be obtained for the public.
This applies to the case of road,
canal or q railway. These are always
in a great degree practical monopolies,
and a government which comedies
such a monopoly unreservedly to
private company does much the same
thing as il it allowed an individual or
an association to levy any tax they
choose for their own benefit on all
malt produced in country or on all
the cotton imported into it, To make
the concession for limited time is
justiAable on the principle which JUS
tifes patents for inventions; but the
state should either reserve to itself n
reversionary property In such public
WORKS, UT buOulu ECbulh 0hu AAOSiy S@h
ercise the right of fixing minimum Of
fares and charges, and from time to
time varying that minimum. tits per-
haps necessary to remark that the
state can become an owner of canals
or railways without itself working
them, and that they will almost al
ways be better worked by means OF
company running railway or canal
for a limited period from the state"
Gentlemen, the principles enun-
ciatcd In that extract seems to me to
be as applicable today to private en-
terprise in railway matters In relation
to the state as when 1t was written.
They were the principles which under
laid the arguments upon which the
present policy of railway construction
and of management by companies was
founded. 1t is policy which, US the
Stracheys said, secures the legitimate
interests OF the state and OF the capi-
talists when funds are required; while
1t admits of the necessary develop