MR. MCDONALD CAMERON (Wick, &c.)asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies, Whether he is aware that the Ceylon Government have constructed 42 miles of railway between Nawalapitya and Nanuoya at a cost of £900,000; that it was the original intention of the Government to extend the line to Haputale, 25 miles further, in order to tap the traffic of the Uva District, which now goes by a long route of 150 miles to the sea; that two successive Governors have recommended the construction of the 25 miles alluded to; that it has been estimated that this extra expenditure would lead to a return of 6 per cent on the total capital of £1,400,000, whereas the traffic revenue from the 42 mile section already constructed is only sufficient to pay 3 per cent on the £900,000 expended upon it; and, whether the Imperial Government is prepared to recommend the construction of the 25 miles alluded to, and so obtain a greater revenue, besides conferring a highly desirable benefit on the planters and other inhabitants of the Uva District?
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE (Sir HENRY HOLLAND) (Hampstead)The line to Nanuoya has been constructed; but it was sanctioned by the Government irrespective of any further extension. In the event, however, of the section to Nanuoya justifying expectations, Badulla, some 30 miles beyond Haputale, was looked to as the ultimate terminus. Two successive Governors recommended the extension; and estimates have been furnished, from time to time, purporting to show that the extension would be profitable, but the data given did not satisfy my Predecessors. In the face of the fact that the revenue for 1886 did not reach the estimate, and that the last few years have shown a constantly growing burden of debt, there would be considerable difficulty in varying the decision of my immediate Predecessor—namely, that the extension could not be undertaken by Government in the present financial 1673 condition of the Colony, but that a private Company would be at liberty to take it up. There is little to add to the answers given to the hon. Member in April last year, and to my hon. Friend the Member for North Kensington (Sir Roper Lethbridge) in March last; but I am to receive a deputation on the subject in the course of next week, and shall, of course, give careful consideration to any statements they bring before me.
MR. MCDONALD CAMERONasked, whether the Government would sanction the construction of the railway by a private Company?
§ SIR HENRY HOLLANDimagined that a private Company could start without the sanction of the Government.