Mr Dixon would like to see the low rate of charges on the railways maintained for at least one year, so that they might gain ex perience as to their operation. The Hon G. Buckley pointed out that there was not one sixth of the labor em ployed at Port Chalmers as there was at Lyttelton. There was not a single shed there, and no storage facilities were pro vided, The charges of Otago were very much higher than in Canterbury, During last session pressure was brought to bear upon the late Government, under which they made the great mistake of reducing the rates of carriage, which did not benefit the con sumer but put money into the pockets of the importers, which ought to have gone to the railways. He might state that the charges made for wharfage did not pay working ex penses. As far as the Government had timfe to look into the matter they considered the rates for imports should be increased. Mr Montgomery said he thought the dis cussion had not been unprofitable, and he would put it to the Provincial Secretary whether it would not have been better to have replied to the figures brought forward by the hon member for Lincoln rather than have replied to them by a sneer. He (Mr Montgomery) did think that the hon member for Lincoln had shown that the Provincial Secretary was wrong in his figures. With respect to the late Secretary of Public Works statement, it might be remarked that that gentleman referred solely to the branch lines. As to the raising of wharfage, he (Mr Montgomery) was of opinion that an increase might be advan+ageously made at a wharf which had cost a very large sum of money. He rose principally to say that the object of the hon member for Lincoln had been gained, as it had elicited from the Govern ment what they intended to do in the matter. The motion was agreed to, and the House went into committee. Sir Cracroft Wilson said that before proceeding with the business, he wished to make a personal explanation. The other night the late President of the Executive had intimated that it was his (Sir Oracroft’s) fault that the report of the Bakaia commis sion had not been before the House. 