ONGARUE-STRATFORD LINE.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 872, 19 July 1910, Page 8

ONGARUE-STRATFORD LINE.

SHOULD IT BE BUILT FROM BOTH ENDS ? A strong plea for tho construction of tho Stratiord-Ongaruc. railway at tho Onguruo end as well as from the Stratford end wa.s made by a large and representative deputation from the King Country, which waited on tho Prime Minister and the Minister for l'ubiic Works yesterday. flic Prime Minister said the Cabinet was not yet in a position to discuss the l'ubiic Works expenditure for the year. When tho expenditure was under consideration, the claims of this particular section would be considered. He had already indicated thai this was uiiu ol the railways, it was intended to commence. He could not say rxuctly when it would bo commenced. 1 The Hon. K. M'iveuzic, Minister for Public Works, said that his opinion was that tho lino should not be started .at both ends. Parliament \u;ed j:ijU,OUU for the work, and if wero spent at both ends instead of ,£80,0(111 at onu end, the work would take longer, and would cost a great deal more, as plant aud staff would have to be used at two points. Ho undertook that the railway would reach Mangaroa quicker if worked lrom the one end only. The line would have to be taken seventeen or eighteen miles from Ongaruc before it would be much uso to anybody. He would say that if the line wero started from the Ongarue end (and he saw no reason why it should; thb vole :>huuUl Ik- 1 doubled, and i'Bo,ooo spent at each end. In that case, the line would take fully five years to reach Mangaroa. Mr. Jennings said the Ongaruo settlers had not grudged the Stratford settlers the money spent at that end, and now it was not asked that the construction should bo stopped at that end. Mr. M'Kenxie: Tho proposal means dividing tho vote into two. Mr. Jennings: No. AVe will be satisfied if you put five thousand on tho Estimates to give us a start. Mr. M'Kenzie: What you want me to do now .is to plant several thousands at the Ongarue end and have tho taxpayers paying interest on it. Mr. Jennings said that, the completion of certain lines in the uear future ought to allow this line to be pushed on more vigorously. "I know that in your big heart you are going to do it," he added as a parting shot.