A WORK OF URGENCY

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2196, 8 July 1914, Page 11

A WORK OF URGENCY

IMMCXSE S.iVIXG IX BUXXIXS " cosrs. , Some arsumcits for better rauVav comimiiiication between tho AVairarapa. district a.nl Volhnjricn were, put forward lv the two members of Parliament, Sr Walter Buchanan and Mr. C. 1{ S\kcs, iu imemows i\it!i a Dominion repoitor. Sir V,'altor liA'i.tn'.n spo!« clacflj of tho iiewl *"or some deviation ot the piain Ala'rarsp: , lino *q aioia the mountain "'lbe Waitnrcna line has been liai>'Ji;nppc<l for all th.o jeart. since- it «.•><; fiiit put thiaugli to Feathcrston in IS7B b> which ii> Knovii as tho incline. 'Ihis ;>i"ee of spwialh constructed line Iμi bct'ii vorkou by .1 &epa r .itc staff o* 'iKii Hid .1 jppjntc set of ongii'cs of Si fj)"c <il tjpc at a \or\ hoa\j ostra cobl rt-i puuir.i An J ~\<S\i that onorj n'oiis 'Iranl.pck the railnav - rw'ordj prn'n iliut >t was ih" best pa\i<ig counI ti\ (liitri't line n tho Do a nimon untJ ' j i f lhiKci up with the Napier senian . o'i th? Oiio hr.nd ct! >wtr tho WelI. lgton-Xon l'b inouth section on the oilier since tli»n the Imc has its Fcpiri.tc liiciiMchiahttv, and it is impos'ible to cleiirmin? "hat. pro6ts :t has ciined beca'jio separate accounts ara I not kept frr the 'me. A deviation +0 Moid tlit climb is li.'psratiiclv necess;i •,. 1 lio official o'-t ir.atob of results that voii'd bo obUimable b% a deviation to IMI'-sp a comparatively flat rcute show ilut tho co«t of thi dowption would 'con be rcp.vJ bv enormous sav- < iii!» in tho woriinp; ot the hue, and the* afl'lit'onal trilfic t'nt nould fce secured on account of the s*\;ii£ of at least two I houis o'i o-,cr> round £ta:istics cf Traffic. ' St.-tiitici of trjfhc Kir tho hst ten jo.ll s> siiow a loiiti'iiiOLs iiicic.!te 111 tho nuriib-T 01 the (l.iant'ty of jjood-, tR" nun ber of !nc stock, and a coircipoi.diiv lncreibe of the gioss rctU'lli Ml Ojl'." Sir A\ altei supplied tho fol'owhiß copof iho iiicrcibe that ib to ho obsoi\ed r. the tr.ifSo ov\- tlio lino sijca inO-J. Tbc. fmuro". f0110i..".K lol'te -to j inward and ou'nard trafUc r.'iate to slati)iin mi the lire iroui l'oatJierLtoii to M&pgatainoka:— 1001 1914 , Oklinan tickcis Ul.S.jl 150,359 f-'caMin ticket' -117 549 Pan -Is . it,'26l 51,4**S Ciiltlo l.ti»> 11,-ILO c u - - o<1,; 1 ,ee." hhfi-p T*->.',-|& Sc-,3,533 I l':gs 4,!):0 12,4 W i \\oo" (bflcs) - 2G.131 - 40,191 'Timber ft.) 12,122,100 T.mo^^OP Oiain (tons) . . IS.oTi 1>7.0^1 Mcicluiidis-' _(kms) 16,163 31.5:3, Minerals (chi"flj coil) . . -,214 21 150 Sir Walter Buclnaan pointed oui,.also

that to theso .figures ought, to bo added tlio nunlber' , o[\>to<:k J slMiKlitercd at the free;iing>"wflrks>at Wnsjorton. T-hui out-' ])iit of vthcso-- works list year '.was as follow*:—Sheep. '2G2,o()tt; catilo, C 000; calves , , 5J3. All' thn fiffncps; lu> suggested, w^-ar^imicnrsiii'favour' of- the 4io was still emphatic*.that tlio deviation ought not to bo majlo without tlio most careful exploration "and calculation of the cost of construction, end subsequent running expenses. ;■ Money Wasted Elsewhere. "While this work has been delayed for years," said Sir Waller Buchanan, "money has boon thrown away en lines in other parts of New Zealand which can nover pay interest on tlio cost of construction. A million and threi> quartors of money has been spent on tlio Otim Tunnel and the. approaches to it c.n;either sule. Of this £i5"-,000-iins bocn spent on-the-tunnel)-and the-esti-mated '■•■ cost of ; completing •'tlio ' tuiincl is 32750,000. "It" wiir b'lV five, 'years" at tho' preioilt rate of progress before the tunnel is completed. Another illustration of wasted money is-ithc , - flicton-Ward-line. .This Una has cost £57.1,000 oiKlpthp.Jnßs upon...working.,, .the,,,line,, interest; ,ot J pur. cent., and including compound interest on the annual- loss, amounts to over half- a million of .money. ■ Tlio clamour ,jioiv .is, that"thc (iovprninont should linisli what is mistakenly culled a main trunk line, liighty-fivo miles remain uncompleted, nnd the eetimatcd-cost of ■■ Is.ying this track exceed* a million sterling. I said just now this was mistakenly galled a main trunk line, liiay so for theso rca-. nous: the ..distance .from . Christchureh to Pictou is about 200 miles; tho timo for running- this; distance at tho same rato of speed aa is presently run-on the North' Island Main Trunk lino will bo 11 hours; tho' uncomfortable crossing of tho rough-water in Cook' Strait: in ft comparatively email, steamer,will occupy four hours; on tho'other hand, thq crossing from Lytteltort to Wellington in tho very fino steamers now on tho run 'occupies', only ton hours. In tho faco of theso facts it is to ray mind mere nonsense to claim that a through lino froni Christchureh to I'icton would even , be'a main trunk line, properly sorallcd. Anotlior unprofitable investment for tho country is tho'.Xelson lino. It lias'lost £337,000 by" tho fame method or computation as 1 .used in tho previous illustration. Various other railway lines in tho Dominion havo similarly lost largo sums of money,; tho amount of which cannot'bo ascertained correctly because they dro part of main trunk system nnd the accounts in connection with them aro i not separately kept. „ -,■;■_ ;; ' ■