"The necessity for the railroads and their administration being removed from such an atmosphere, and treated as a most valuable means of benefiting the Colony as a whole, while not neglecting the interests of a district (but not subordinating the welfare of the whole Colony thereto), is pressing. That there should be an authority to refer to in case of real necessity, where the decision or action of the general manager is not regarded as being in the public interests, is also clear. But it is equally manifest that the Commissioner or the Government of the day, with political or party consideration always in view, is not the proper court of reference. "There can be little doubt that in the Cape Colony political considerations have influenced the adoption of new lines and their construction--many, if not most of them of an unprofitable character--without sufficient inquiry or information, often with scanty particulars, and possibly contrary to the advice of the officer afterwards entrusted with the construction and working of the line. "A material change is imperatively necessary in this respect, if only to insure the solvency of the Colony." VICTORIAN (AUSTRALIA) RAILROADS. It is sometimes conceded that improper exercise of political influence may be a real danger where railroads are managed under a parliamentary _régime_ by a Minister directly responsible to Parliament; but that difficulty, it is said, can be got over by the appointment of an independent Commission entirely outside the political arena. History does not altogether justify the contention. The last report of the Victorian State Railways gives a list of seven branches, with an aggregate length of 46 miles, constructed under the Commissioner _régime_ at a cost of £387,000, which are now closed for traffic and abandoned because the gross receipts failed even to cover the out-of-pocket working expenses. It is not alleged, nor is it a fact, that those lines were constructed in consequence of any error of judgment on the part of the Commissioners. But in truth it is inherently impossible to use a Commission to protect a community against itself. In theory a Commission might be a despot perfectly benevolent and perfectly intelligent; in that case, however, it can hardly be said that the nation manages its own railroads. But of course any such idea is practically impossible, because despots, however benevolent and intelligent, cannot be made to fit into the framework of an Anglo-Saxon constitution. In practical life the Railway Commission must be responsible to someone, and that someone can only be a member of the political government of the day. COMPETITION HAS CEASED TO REGULATE.