Across the Blue Mountains to Bathurst.

In 1860 he submitted proposals for the extension of the western line, at £25,211 per mile, across the Blue Mountains to Bathurst, and of the southern line, at £18,760 per mile, from Picton to Goulburn. These were to be first class railways, with the best permanent way and the easiest curves and gradients.

The Government, however, rejected these proposals as being too costly, maintaining that the resources of the colony would not justify such heavy expenditure, and decided that means for cheaper transport facilities be devised. In consequence the construction of horse-tramways and cheap narrow-gauge railways received very strong support.

In 1861, the Governor-General, Sir John Young, directed Captain Ward, R.E., to mark out a line from Picton to Goulburn, a distance of 81 miles, that should cost no more than £300,000 and be adapted to carry locomotive engines of 13 tons weight, including water. Moreover, the gradients were not to be steeper than 1 in 20, and the curves not sharper than 200 yards in radius, excepting in positions where it may appear to be more economical to surmount slopes by horse traction, stationary engines, or zig-zags.

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Mr. Whitton strongly opposed this latter proposal, and conclusively proved that the suggested amount was totally inadequate to construct any description of railway which would be serviceable to the colony. Nevertheless, in order to satisfy the demand for cheap railways, he revised his previous estimates for first-class lines and submitted, although very reluctantly, greatly reduced plans and estimates for cheaper construction.