Steamship Company leaving

Time brings its inexorable changes, and however these changes may be regretted by those who survey a past of which they have every reason to be proud, it is inevitable that owing to a system of gradual centralisation companies as well as individuals will be caught in the current. By reason of its position in the southern part of the South Island of the dominion , the City of Dunedin stands to lose more of its pristine commercial glory than other of the chief centres of population;

indeed, in view of the continual claims of its younger and more aggressive competitors, it is a tribute to the character and calibre of those who guide their business destinies that Dunedin and Otago have, in the progression of years, surrendered so little. Nevertheless, it is not without a pang of severe regret that the people of this city can contemplate the apparently intended removal to Wellington of the headquarters of the Union Steamship Company. It is 45 years since the company was formed, starting its operations with a fleet of five small steamers, aggregating only 2126 tons, and during a period of close upon half a century the expansion of the company has synchronised with the growth and development of Otago.