A CURIOUS ANOMALY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 529, 9 June 1909, Page 8

A CURIOUS ANOMALY.

QUEER FACTS ABOUT RAILWAY ..> fares. ' . THE- WHY AND WHEREFORE. On the Wellirigtori-Napior express, the other, day, a man tapped a Dominion reporter on thb. shoulder, and said: "I'll give you an interesting' little-paragraph;" Tho pressman made stockish sounds, intended' to signify that ho was much-obliged, -and settt'odjhjmself to absorb the paragraph. 1 This morning," 'said the man, "I got in at Kaiwarra, booked to Grcytowu'. and •was •diarged j _l&;- 10d. ; '.All;right. These TOO/ h° indicated tiro passeugors further down.the car—'"boarded tho train at-.Wel-lmgtoii, also booked to Greytown, and paid Us. 9d, each. y There's your paragraph." ' A mistake was it? : • v , - "No mistake' about it.., I've paid Is. Id. more for travelling three miles less.-' I could have travelled into town for 9d. return, lirst class, booked from- there to Groytoivn, and saved 4d. There chaps get the benefit ot the concessions for WellingtonUpper Hutt-I don't. If a foreigner landed' trom the steamer at Wellington,' and booked to Greytown, ho would travel for less than

The reporter- admitted that it certainly naav,the appearance of being strange. bn't places beyond .Upper. Hutt, conversely,' fmm ntZ S , ei r d , Pp f r H,itt Wellington, Tr o charged at suburban rates between Wcllinc.ton and Upper Hutt, and at the' ordinary beyond: Upper Hutt. A firstclass return ticket from Wellington to Grbv'by this - concession, reduced from' ih i- tv ° ?' - M ->, a difference of Is. 7d. llut this concession does; not apply to B'ookl" gS Vf,- from 'ntermediate stations between Wellington and Upper, Hutt. So it happens that while the Wellington-Greytown first-class passongers pay lis. 9d., the Kai-warra-fcrreytown passengers pay 12s. ■ 10d • Ngahauranga-Greytown, 12s. 2d. Greytown is selected merely because it is the particular case in point. In the course of a conversans,"f» Mr ' !r ls>i of f ho District Traffic Office, that gentleman explained that passcngers to and from stations north of. Upper Hutt; to Wellington had boon granted the suburban concessions oil the WellingtonUpper Hutt section of their journey, on tho principle that the traffic to and from Wei,fri Y? 3 heavy enough to justify it.". mtp that ,is not equitable- treatment for long-distance travellers. Tho man who tonrds £n >on!?if I f gto , n ' bookcd for Masterton, and ho who' hoards 'it at Ngahauranga, Stance'Zl£r?,>™. b ° th W-

w'n- 6 !* 0 'ho Departmental viow that the Wellington man was still eniS "' Preferential troatmont. ' ; , lTion tho concessions on the suburban sections wore mtended only for'the benefit of the suburban residents, to encourage settlement m the suburbs?" ''Yes," replied Mr. Bowles, "but that was extended to benefit travellers in tho direcstatctV'llo *****

Overwhelmed by tho (potation, tho rerad left m S VagU ° Way ' that ho saw l