§ MR. WEIRI beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether, with a view to encourage the construction of light railways in the Highland crofting counties, the Treasury will consider the expediency of arranging for a free grant of half the estimated cost of the line.
§ MR. HANBURYWhere the poverty of a district is extreme, and the scheme proposed promises exceptional advantages to local interests, the Treasury is prepared to make a grant of public money equal to one half the estimated expenditure. This has already been done in one instance (the Dornoch line). But each case must be judged by its merits, and before a grant is made the Treasury must be satisfied that the district has contributed to the utmost of its means to a railway made only in the interest of the district.