The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING WEDNESDAY, FEB. 6, 1907.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 1998, 6 February 1907, Page 2

The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING WEDNESDAY, FEB. 6, 1907.

The East Coast Railway League has waxed righteously indignant at the treatment the Te Karaka-Motu section of prospective railway is receiving at the hands of the Government, and has protested to the Minister for Public Works in milder terms than the circumstances warrant. Some people profess to be surprised at the fact that there are only ton or a dozen men employed on the work at present; but there is no occasion fur surprise, because on more than one .occasion it was pointed out in :hese columns that the amount voted for that necessary work would never be spent before the vote lapsed through effluxion of time, and the fact that there are nearly a dozen men engaged on the work is a subject rather for congratulation than surprise to those who know the methods of the Government. The surprise to us is that there are more chan two men besides an engineer and a couple- of inspectors engaged on the job. Why there Hi e four men who'arc supposed to be platelaying, but who in reality are (so we are told) pondering what they shall do until the next consignment of a dozen sleepers arrives from Australia —four men actually. Isn’t tbit sufficient evidence, of progress to satisfy every representative legislator which the district possesses. At any rate we have no evidence of the face that the position lias caused the Hon. Janies Carroll any iuoidinate amount of sleeplessness, or that the Hons. Captain Tucker or Wi Pore are threatened with nervous debility as a icsult of the startling news, for why should Mr. Can oil especially be troubled to put a stop to this ruinous mto of expenditure seeing that he is only the member for the distiict wit a other multifarious duties to attend to, and that it is the business of the Minister for Public Works to see that the public chest is not depleted before Parliament meets. Then the office of the Public Woiks Minister is some distance away from Mr, Carroll s office couch—right away at the other end of the biggest wooden building in the world, and no motor cars can he used to convey Ministers’from one room to another, so that to communicate the news to the Minister for Public Works he would have to walk the whole distance, and the effort would be too great after his recent illness. It would not bo fair to ex-

pect such ii sacrifice of energy for a paltry salary of a thousand pounds a year ill tho face of the fact that the section ol railway is non within n. district represented by no one, and which may soon bo represented by an out-and-out Oppositionist. Does anybody imagine that it would lie sound policy of tho Government to ondangoi next big surplus by employing another hnlf-doi.cn men upon that lino until it is known how many oi tho settlors up there are likely to vote for tho Government candidate, or that it would ho wise no put a few moie sleepers upon tho truck uiiuil they can bo exchanged for pioiuises of votes. Any man who pays for *i commodity or a lavor before ho gets it or Is pretty sure of getting it has not ns deep a knowledge ot human nature as the Government has, and when the settlors’ votes are wanted the Parliamentary voles will 1)3 spent. It is a psychological fact well knoivii to the Cabinet that electors have very short memories, and very rc-adily forgot little mutters of this kind in the excitement of election times if 011I3' their hopes are buoyed up at the critical moment with increased votes on the Estimates and promises of expenditure wrapped up in profuse words such as “vigorous Public AA'orks policy,” “record surplus,” and such like allurements. And are tiles.) words not fulfilled r If you doubt it, look at tie doze 1 men employed in t-lie noble work of railway construction at 70111* own dooi and answer. A on, verily, lor if there were iwi dozen men employed the work might proceed more rapidly, uni the Government would got, more kudos , but that is just wl at the Government doesn’t want, because it gets plenty without t,he extra- expenditure. Again if tho work was proceeded with too lup idly there would ho so much less for future generations to do, and it is unfair to expect that the present generation should do nil the work and leave nothing for future generations to do. Settlers may say that the completed lino would he a convenience to them, and embryo politicians may argue that the lino would he of some benefit to tho country as well; but why should tho seasoned politician who attains Cabinet rank and a salary bigger than his political conscience troublo himself about such matters when thoro is no election near at hand, knowing as he does that if all the available money wore spent on such works boforo one election there would be none to spend wlion another was coming on. The problem is too simple for further explanations, and the dozen men must suffice for this year. Honestly and seriously speaking, wo liavo very little hope that the Railway League’s laudable efforts will have much effect, and nothing short of determined and concerted action expicssed in the plainest language by every interested settlor will rouse tlie Government to a propr sense of its obligations towards this district, and tho sooner that is done the better. The Government should he told by the settlers themselves that they \> ,11 have no more of this foolery, for such it is, and (bat the whole of the vote must be spent before it expires or they will know tho reason why. But us there is now only six or seven weeks to tho date of expiry the matter is practically hopeless for this vear, and the back blocks settler must continue for another while to pndlle along his muddy tracks without Government aid.