THE MAIN TRUNK LINE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 401, 9 January 1909, Page 6

THE MAIN TRUNK LINE.

ALLECEO MISMANAGEMENT. EXPERIENCES GATHERED ON THE SPOT. - ••[Contributed.].; ', ... No. H. ■■■; I continue the account of. the returnjourney from Rotorua, partly told in yesterday's issue; ■ The .Jrain was an hour • late in reaching Taumarunui, and did not ge,t-thereuntil after dark.; - There must' have been 1 .400' passengers on . board, and naturally there was not sufficient accommodation in the township. '• That is-'not complained of, ? for it;., is- only' to be' expeoted at holiday time wjien the 'traffic is abnormal. 'It .is a discomfort which 'all Christmas trippers must put. up with. ' But what is complained, of-most bitterly «is that, although it was raining: .'heavily, the railway authorises' there endeavoured to prevent passengers who- could get no'l)edf;in 'the-' township from sleeping in.the;-.train. ,I. : was informed by a railway official- at. Taumaruniii that- they. had had-, strict instructions to'turn everyone out of the train and Jock, the carriages,;' because,. forsooth: / the / keeper of a boarding-house there : had complained that some people had slept in the train when he could'have supplied a shakeidown and break-S fast (for which he, charged,: fiye • shillings), ani;he ;K'ad been ;, thus robbed of his lawful earn- : ings:; ■ • So; many - people '-were;"'unable';, to ■ pro-' cure beds, however,' that public, opinion came'too' strorig'for; ; the'railway ; ofncials,/and in ; . spite of their '.strict instructions, after , a few ineffectual" attempts .' to turn them, out, the, people were allowed 1 to; remain in the train. ' ' -' '■ ■' " > - ' r -.

Harassing Taotlcs of Ofliclals. : But' a new .method' of.'harassiig. these. unfortunateswas- invented' by .'..'tho.. officious authorities: l After the people/had made' themselves as comfortable as; they oould in their own seats, and were : congratulating 'themselves that a,t' ; ]ea3t ; thejrhad;no't been turned out- to ; spend'a l ' night in the rain, a 'porter banged through the cars and Ordered everyone sleeping on the train- to:go;into, the- first' four .carriages. It was a very/ hot, close' night, and, as I said, raining. There were some. hundred ..people in; the cars." Had such an order, been dbeyed and the sleepers—nien', women, and children—been huddled together in four .cars like trucked sheepj ■ the result wpuld;ihave,.bMn a : ,night,Jof;.unbearable discomfort and", .'suffocation; . little;- 1 , better than the. black hole of Calcutta. Fortunately, there were'some, strong-minded people on board who refused. to obey this absurd; arid harassing order, and in consequence,, officialdom was.for once defeated, and" the people were left with.out;fuHherymolestati'on.that night.. ; But,':at . four,; o'clock the next' morning—two hours before: the" train;was timed', to.start, and' be-', fore it was-, properly porter. strode through;-the train, banging every door behind him, and peremptorily; ordered everyone out of the train, as he said tho cars had to .be cleaned. .. Everyone, was turned.out, but 'no cars'were as a matter of .'fact attempted to be cleaned, and the unfortunate) passengers oould. > well "have > been given another hour's rest and shelter. " ■ -'• -*; '■-• • . ~; A Frenzied Fight for Food. • For some reason or other,, although this was the.regular.express, there was' no dining car. oh the . train. Whether; this manoeuvre was for the beiiefit of the, refreshment. rooms along -fche. way| or - was ; another-.manifestation ■ of incompetence, ,1 cannot ; tell, 'but;.the 1 result •was' that; at every ;refreslim'ent-room' .stationthere.was a sortie and an.unseemly free fight: ;tb get.te the,.counter .tocbe; served with -a■ half-cold; cup.;bf 'tea,' thickened . ' with; condensed niilk,'-'. arid. one.;attenuated: sandwich'.; Cups wfere. broken in the-melees, and.tea-was plentifully spilt over clothes. The women ■fared badly in, the scrambles,; and at- every refreshment/station the scene was disgraceful. The only exception w_as:at 'Mangaweka, where' s6md>'oFder and;decency' prevail'edi; arid ; the'. publio : wer6 served smartly, ; and for once eot value for their. m6ney.?"-^;"™^ 8B :-,Y ;

A Slight Consolation. • It-.was Mmo/jioor consplation to see, that, in the'.tiixmoil'jpf/,the'refreshment. .rooms' at .least, ■ the {avonreS:.gratleman,;.TThO 'had .secured. concessions .from, the Department which others could not . get; was ;on, a . level with 'the. remainder' of . the travelling .public; and; had ,to . join 'like, tjie commoner; people 1 .in'. the ;it was; nbthing less—: to get'food for his party.- •" ''• ... . . . Confusion at Martnn. . ; /.At. Marton.we had .again: to 'tiim ; dut of : our carriages and; change into the train 1 from' New , Plymouth, which was. absolutely full; We wandered - through the-whole train, and I could- find not one .empty. seat. -SThe favoured gentleriiani,.had;, a',. reserved..: carriage. shunted on for. his party, and again was liberal enough to ibestow-Beats-,iupoh'',two ;or Hhree'"of his' twenty-fiyo or thirty ■ first-class passengers' friends. -To , accommodate' something- ' like who ..could;-not.:find seats'' another' car was' also .supplied, _• containing-: thirteen seats, I had .to stand all the way from Marton to Levin before a- seat became .vacant, and't was more fortunate, than others. i Cross Mismanagement. .... ' - .' ; To v sum up, . frombeginning ■ ltd : end,'' the whole service, was! grossly ■mismanaged— so. grossly that there seemed to be ■a' general conspiracy, amongst, all the officials concerned *<>. render;, -the; journey as uncomfortable, .and; as -harassing as possible- to; the'ordinary' passengers. ' If ' the '■ railways - we're- owned by "a private company they would not hare dared in very self-projection to treat" the triivelling ! public ;so shamelessly. ,'The- New ■' Zealand-' Railways were Jcoristru'cteds- for ' the, people' and. are owned • by,'the. people.';''Th'at -they-are,, not, so "far as the Main -Trunk " line.lVcon- . ccrned, r-run for: the pcoplo is evident fi and it. rests .'with'. the- people-themselves 'to-insist. on j those, responsible for their. : efficiency treating all who travel >_by them alike,' .and making no invidious distinctions between' the influential and the more humble .. private citizens' of' the'"community.- : It is .plain from the, facts ? which I have narrated .'that - there exists, in', addition to reckless, mismanagement, an' exasperating system, of; political patronage and privilege which',is - subversive of popular rights, 'and which should not for, •a moment'Hb .tolerated. I liavo ventured to. write this account because I:belieVe- : an.honest, exposure of these 1 abuses, may do something to effect their extinguishment. . ,