No. 6

I have had the honor to receive your Grace's despatches
No 68 of the 16th, and Separate of the 28th February
announcing the appointment of Mr Joseph William Trutch to
be Surveyor General of this colony. It appears from the
second of these communications that your Grace had been
informed that Mr Trutch was engaged in some contracts for
Public Works, and I am directed to report, in case there
was any such contracts which remained unfulfilled, how far
they were liable to conflict with his public duties, and
whether any plan can be suggested for enabling Mr Trutch to
divest himself, without undue sacrifice, of such of them
as would both continue for a considerable time in execution,
and would appear also to be incompatible with his official duties.

2. The gazette notice of Mr Trutch's appointment,
copied into the colonial papers, reached him before
I received your Grace's first despatch. He called on me
in Victoria, and, in reply to my inquiries, stated that
he proposed such interest in the Tolls on bridges in British
Columbia that he scarcely thought he could accept the
appointment intended to be conferred on him.

3. There are two great routes from New Westminster
to the gold mines of Cariboo. They run together up the
Fraser to the mouth of Harrison's River. The "Douglas
Lillooet" line here diverges and follows the last named
river into Harrison's Lake. By "portages," Lillooet, Anderson's
and Seton's Lakes are successively reached; then the line
rejoins the Fraser which it crosses and runs over land to
Clinton where it forms a junction with the conflicting
"Yale-Lytton" route. From this point there is but one
established road to Cariboo. The alternative mode of proceeding
from the mouth of Harrison's River to Clinton, is by
navigating the Fraser as far as Yale, and then travelling
by the great trunk road which crosses the main river at
Spuzzum, and Thompson's River a little above Lytton.
Both of the rival routes are kept up by tolls. Vested and
conflicting interests have sprung up in each line. Newspaper
puffs endeavour to attract the traffic, and the boilers
of the several steamers are strained to their utmost to
insure speed and obtain custom. The number of passengers
and amount of freight annually going to the diggings being
now ascertained with an approach to correctness everything
that benefits the Douglas-Lillooet road injures that
by Hope-Yale & Lytton. Conversely if the traffic on
the first named line be impaired, the profits on the Second increase.

4. Mr Trutch is the sole proprietor of the magnificent
suspension bridge which spans the Fraser at Spuzzum. He
levies certain tolls upon it for six years and a half under
Ordinance No 10 of 1863—after which it becomes the
property of the Government. The tolls upon this, the
Alexandra bridge, are now worth about four thousand pounds (£4000)
a year to Mr Trutch, but the colony is tolerably prosperous,
the traffic is increasing and beginning to shew a decided
preference for the Yale-Lytton line. In all probability
therefore Mr Trutch's receipts from the Alexandra bridge
will rise year by year. He likewise owns one half of the
bridge about to be opened to traffic over Thomson's River
above Lytton. The tolls on this bridge are likely to amount to
four thousand (£4000) a year also. Thus Mr Trutch has at present
an interest to the extent of six-thousand (£6000) a year in one of the
competing roads of the Colony.

5. It is difficult to imagine a case in which a man's
interests were more clearly against the Strict performance
of his public duties. Both lines of travel would be in his
charge as Surveyor General. As such he would receive a
salary of eight hundred (£800) a year. But let him neglect the
Douglas-Lillooet route. Let him allow one of the many
portages between the lakes to become impassible, the whole
traffic rushes over his own bridges and Mr Trutch's private
income rises to ten or twelve thousand a year. But interests
to the extent of two million of dollars exist between Douglas
and Lillooet. They are owned by men of Singular energy. I
enclose a hand-bill showing the competition which exists
between the rival routes, and I suggest for your Grace's
consideration that the framers of it would not tamely
see their fortunes placed at the mercy of the proprietor
of the Yale-Lytton bridges. That Mr Trutch cannot accept the
office of Surveyor General and retain property in the Alexandra
and Thompson's Bridges was his own conviction in Victoria. In
New Westminster he has applied to be installed in the office
conferred on him by your Grace stating that in his conscience he
feels he will do justice to both routes and knows how to
disregard common clamour and newspaper abuse.

6. I considered the matter in Council. It was without
hesitation agreed that Mr Trutch could not hold the office
and his bridges. I was pressed to appoint some one else. The
spring had come back. There were about one hundred thousand
pounds to be expended on Public Works and my predecessor had
virtually shut up the Lands and Works Office. It was indispensable
that an appointment should be made at once. There were but two
men fit for the office in the colony, Mr Trutch and Captain
Holmes of the Royal Artillery. It was unanimously urged upon
me to nominate the latter gentleman without delay. To this
course I said I would only resort as a last necessity. The two
names had been before your Grace together and Mr Trutch had
been preferred. I was bound therefore, if possible, to carry
out your selection. Again Mr Trutch has much greater knowledge
of the country than Captain
Holmes, who accompanied me from
England in the capacity of Private Secretary, can as yet possibly
have. Besides Mr Trutch has shown in his roads and bridges great
engineering skill. Without therefore asserting any superiority
in Scientific or practical knowledge to be possessed by Mr Trutch I considered that he was the most fit man for the office
as the matter stood before us. I therefore requested the Council to
suggest some other means, if possible of meeting the difficulty. I
was advised, since I would not employ Captain
Holmes, to purchase
Mr Trutch's interest in the bridges over Fraser and Thompson's River.

7. It would be taking up too much of your Grace's time if I were
to detail the most tedious, unsatisfactory and unpopular negotiations
which passed between Mr Trutch and myself on this subject, and how
I repeatedly sought the assistance of both Executive and
Legislative Councils, and had the matter thrown back upon me
for decision. I made most liberal offers. I would take this
favorable Season as an average and receive on behalf of the
Government the tolls of the Alexandra bridge this year, and pay
him the same amount now and annually during the continuance
of his rights. That is to say, supposing the receipts this year
to be four thousand pounds (£4000) Mr Trutch would receive payment
at that rate for six years and a half. That is, omitting last
years profits twenty six thousand pounds (£26,000) for a bridge which
cost eight thousand. I offered him further a bonus of from ten
to fifteen thousand pounds (£10,000/£15,000) at the end of his term of
incumbency should the amount of goods leaving New Westminster for the
interior increase in the ratio upon which Mr Trutch based his
claims. He refused these extremely liberal terms, and the
negotiations to the great satisfaction I believe of the public,
and certainly to my own relief, came to an end.

8. In the emergency I was about following the advice of
the Council and requesting Captain
Holmes to act as Surveyor
General, and proceed at once to make the great road into
Cariboo a work on which other Surveyors had failed, when Mr Trutch proposed an entirely new arrangement. This has, subject
to certain modifications of my own, been accepted.

9. Mr Trutch has been appointed Surveyor General. He
retains his property in the bridges for the present. I will
therefore only employ him in works above the Clinton Junction
or below the mouth of Harrison's River. He will, with such
assistance as I can afford, at once lay out the line of road
into Cariboo. Time presses and Captain
Holmes has consented
to take charge of a portion of the work, being paid as an Ordinary
Surveyor. As soon as the Survey shall be completed Mr Trutch
will go to England. He will report himself to your Grace and he
will further endeavour to sell the rights he holds in the
Columbian bridges. It seems irregular my granting him leave of
absence so early, but the case is peculiar. He cannot touch
either the Douglas-Lillooet or Yale-Lytton road as he is now
circumstanced, yet both require attention. Mr Trutch will draw
no salary when absent from the Colony. He will have to satisfy
me by the 1st March 1865 that he has parted with his interests
in the bridges, or else resign.

10. I will make the only arrangement possible during Mr Trutch's absence and place Captain
Holmes in charge of the
Survey department.

11. I enclose a copy of the letter written by my orders to
accompany Mr Trutch's commission when handed to him.