RAILWAY. POLICY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 767, 16 March 1910, Page 4

RAILWAY. POLICY.

'Sir, —I have just seen your valued, issue of .Wednesday, March' 9, and if correctly repprted, beg;to enter.a most emphatic protest against one portion of the Hon. J. A. Millar's (Minister for Railways) Feildinz speech .on railway matters. As reported' in your issue, the Hon. Minister says "lie referred to the fact that previously the Railways Department had decided to carry timber for fruit cases free, in order to encourage the. fruit industry. This concession, however, had been abused, people carrying timber 375 miles free, because, they could get cases one penny cheaper. That was not going ,to last any longer." . • Is T pw, sir, I protest against this language most strongly, even though icoming from < our Minister for. Railways.' My association has most: certainly this year availed itself of the concessions in force for jinany years past as regards the car- ■ riage of' oUr "case timber; but to apply to; us the term used by the Hon k> Minister' is most certainlv unfair, to put it mildly. • > v,. These regulations were formed in the in the.interests of: (1) Closer settlement in the form of ! the fruit industry; (2) the miljing industry as regards the supply of timber of a low grade; (3) the general public who want cheap fruit; 1 hanks'to' this far-seeing policy of former ' Ministers for Railways, the . fruitgrowers of Hastings and surrounding dis'tncts have this year sent away over the Government lines over 125,000 fruit cases jready, on. which the 3d. flight has been paid. Js this abuse of the Government regulations? Wages- running into, many hundreds of pounds- per month have, during the past few months, been paid in aid around this town for fruit picking, made necessary to gather .in our crop.. Is this abuse of tho railway regulations? • . No, sir.! . As president of the Haivke's • y<. ™ 1 tg™wers' Association, I protest most strongly against such remarks coming from a Minister of the Crown, and am only too grateful to pa6t Ministers for Railways, who,- by'- their far-sighted policy as regards our calling, have enabled an industry to develop in this district, which is of the greatest value. to the community at .large.—l am-, etc.,' / N. HENRY SMITH, - „ \ r President. Hastings, March:. 10, 1910.