RAILWAY POLICY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 737, 9 February 1910, Page 6

RAILWAY POLICY.

Sir,—A great deal of attention .has been drawn lately .to the - faults .of the present railway system—its diil'erenjjal-routes and rates wheroby some districts of the Dominion are allowed pickings, in the shape of unfair advantages over other districts. It is to be' hoped the people ■ unfairly will rouse up to thu of' the - cause, and cure of such a state of things as the unfair, partiality' shown by the Minister for Hallways,' who seems-to think hinißelf not only the Minister for Railways, but the master thereof also. As Minister for ltailways, he is the servant of the public, to serve their needs and spend their money- with wisdom and judgment, and not a dictator with- absolute control,', as ho seems to.suppose himself. The cause of the neglect in the past towards tho North Island lies to , a great extent in f|ie apathy of the peoplo themselves, nad the South Island people shown tho same,apathy towards their own interests they'.would not have obtained the advantages, over the North they, now possess. They would have had no pickings. ■The cure to be adopted by the peoplo of the North Island is agitate,' agitate, agitate; or, in other words, worry till you obtain redress, and let the principle insisted on bo "Everybody treated alike," and lot the Government understand that if.this principle is not'adopted, the North Island will unite to depose a Government that does not treat fairly every part .of the Dominion.

That opens up another phase of tho subjiftt; In public matters all people of t)|2 Dominion should bo treated alike. Why, then, should the men of the Government railway workshops be , granted privilege tickets? Why aro they to bo allowed-to travel more cheaply by train than anyone elso? Why should : they have pickings in tho shape < of advantages others don't share? Does': V man in the railway workshops do any more for tha benefit of the Dominion at lar«» than tho man in a baker's shop ? Yet I know there are men in the workshops newcomers to the Dominion,, who get for thenisulves' and families these pickings in the shape of cheap travelling tickets, that are denied to men like myself, who have boon in the colony thirty years, because we don't happen to, be Government employees. Yot our money helps to provide it for others. If the railways were run by a private .company, they could please themselves in granting favours, but in spending the people's money ifs not the Government's to grant favo«re'.vritjL

The same rule holds good with regard to members of Parliament. Why should they get pickings in the' shape' of free 'posses on tho railway? They are paid, and well paid, out of the people's money for the public work they do. Let them travel.at their own expense. .If they did thoir Parliamentary work, merely for the honour , of the position, without, pay, as they used toiin England, then they would de&erye, Bomo concession. As it is,-they havono right to .luxuriate at the pecplo's exponse. It's a case of 'pickings again. The only concession the Railway Department should 'give-should be a yearly, holiday time for the. whole ".'Dominion, whon, from December 15 to February 15, all trains should bb rim: at half-fare, whether for five miles or fifty. Now, these who can'.take advantage of the summer, excursions are tied down to starting on orbeforo January .1. That is. not fair towards 1 a largo section of the'public, who can't get away at that date. The 'Minister for Railways-, lays, great stress on his desiroto. mate the railways pay. "If s not what you 'make,.but what, yon save that makes you rich,", holds good in public affairs, as weir as private. Let tho Minister:-do/away., with all privileges'and pickings, make the fares as low as - possible, but let one' hard and fast rule govern- them-^-so ; much, per mile all over 1 the Dominion alike'. If any

line doesn't'-pay fair working: expenses, run fewer trains on.that line, till the people' support it sufficiently to make it' pay. : -No excursions' for one set ■of people: more ■ than -another. Why should the people who want to attend l ■: horse races, shows, travel cheap K, If they have- money to attend.-those places, - they ;have monoy-to' pay the lowest:fare.-How' .we should ,honour,, respect, and.,uphold the.man in power who would prove himself true to the interests of. the people as : a whole—true to his own.pledges, and just to'everybpdy alike!—l am, .etc.; ■■ : : .>.- :v .:, ■ J.; ; .') pj'' ; -' : A'"BHEZTi','