THE EAST COAST MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1091, 1 April 1911, Page 10

THE EAST COAST MAIN TRUNK RAILWAY.

AN INTERVIEW. THE PROPOSED ROUTES. In connection with the battle for the railway routes on the projected line between Napier and Gisborne, the Hon. H. M'Kcnzie, Minister for Public Works, has administered the coup de grace to the Mangapoiki line, favoured by the Hon. James Carroll, at present Acting-Prime Minister. Further points of interest regarding- the maimer in : which the line might bo laid from Napier were touched upon yesterday by ' Mr. David AVhyte, of Hastings, in the of an interview with a Dominion representative. Mr. Whyto is a mem!k'r of tho Railway League, and an authority on the subject of which he is speaking. In an interview published in The Dominion in September last, ho condemned tho proposed Mangapoiki route as a huge mistake.

A Definite Announcement. , "it is very gratifying to find," said 1 Mr. Whyto, "that tho Hon. It. M'Ken- i zie, who is credited with being one of 1 the most practical men in tho Cabinet, < has made a definite announcement con- 1 corning two matters connected with tho East Coast.Main Trunk railway. One ' is that the proposed route from Gis- '. borne to Wairoa, via the Mangapoiki Valley, is an impossible ono for railway construction ; the other is tho Minister's statement that a section of the railway will bo started from tho Hawke's Bay end immediately on tho necessary Authorisation Bill being passed by Parliament during the coming session. The Minister's condemnation of tho Mangapoiki route bears out all that we havo contended in tho recent vigorous agitation which has taken place. This route, indeed, was long ago condemned by Government officials, and after a most careful exploration of tho country between Wairoa and Gisborne, the lino finally adopted and surveyed by Mr. Hay, Government Surveyor, was that via Hangarpa and Patutahi Valleys, which road is really tho only practicable one. I say this with an intimate knowledge of tho whole country concorncd. "The Ministerial announcement that the railway is likely to be commenced very soon from tho Napier end, opens up tho question as to which line is to bo decided upon. Acting on the same principle which prompted ns in our agitation over tho Gisborne-Wairoa route, I feel very strongly tho importance of a thorough investigation of all possible routes in tho district being made by tho Government engineer, with the assistance of practical prominent Hawke's Bay set-tlors,-who have an intimate knowlcdgo of the country to bo traversed. Especially would I mention the nanio of Mr. Mason Chambers, chairman of tho Hnwljc's Bay .County Council, who devotes most of his time to county work and who knows every inch of tho country. ..■■■■. . Tho Three Routss. ''.'Mr'/; Chambers', has tho whole thing at hfs. finger' ends, and ho.points out that thc.ro aro' ahvady three router, explored leading from Hawke's Bay to Wairoa. Ono of these is via Pat-eno, and is ?. coastal journey. Another is via ' Taradalc, Rissingt-on, possibly Patoka and Pohui. This route would as far as Pat-oka favour part of what will eventually he a midlaml main trunk lino connecting Napier with tho present Wellington-Auckland lino in the viciii-" ity of Taihnpe. The railroad "would lio on the greater part along a valley which cuts through the -ranges, and presents no great engineering difficulties. A branch from this lino could also connect with: tho Taup.o Timber Company's fifty or sixty miles of steel tramway, which joins the Rotorua railway .it Putaruru.' Tho distance from Patoka to the point of junction with tho Timber Company's lino would bo approximately sixty miles. Tho advantage of such a route to the Hawke's Bay district is so apparent as to need no further comment. The timber traffic would be, very great, and tho Inner Harbour at Napier would provide such excellent-ship-j ping facilities that an enormous export timber trade would also scivo to overcome t\\o difficulties which at present exist' ; -in the. •traction engine traffic conife'ctcd with tho. Ptiketitiri timber trade. Another advantage would be the tapping of the largo .timber areas in tho.region, of the Upper Mohaka River, where there is fully 100,000 acres of virgin forest. Just now tho timber is being rafted down tho Mohaka River to tho mills at its mouth— a distance of. forty miles. The third route leads from Hastings out to join the second -route somewhere in tho region of Patoka. These three routes 1 will naturally be tho cause of consid- ■ erablo controversy in this district, but ■ the progress of Hawke's Bay depends 1 upon the immediate construction of tho ' railway along that routo ■ which will i best servo tho district as a whole. I

know of no hotter suggestion which, if acted upon, would so speedily put an I end to internal dissent ion, as'that already made, namely, leaving the selection of the route to a committee of tried, and trusted men in conjunction witli Government engineers. Failing such mi. arrangement there is a great danger ahead of a split in the district which can. only result in the whole place being seriously retarded in the important work of further settlement of the country." Strategical Value. Mr. AYhyte next touched on the projected railway as an important item bearing on the point of national defence. He refers to the movement now under way in the development of the inner harbour at Napier; a harbour which he contends promises to become one of the finest harbours in Now Zealand; also the geographical position of Napier, and ho claims that the question of the route of tho railways leading- to this harbour is of the utmost importance from the standpoint of national defence. Granted that tho inner harbour would become a naval baso for a section oi tho squadron in time of war, this base, ho says would be easily accessible from any part of the North Island-owing to the tact that there is at present a railway connecting Napier with Wellington', Palnierston and the West Coast, also tho projected railway northwards towards Wairoa and Gisborhe, and a third possible connection through the middle of the island leading to Taupo on the oho hand .and Taihnpe, on the other. By these means of-communication, concluded. Mr.. Whytc, forces could be quickly concentrated or distributed as required, and with all tlio points in view it was of the utmost importance not only to the district, but to tho Dominion, as a whole that tho routo should he speedily determined on by a body of competent and practical meii.