THE KAIPARA AND WAITEMATA ECHO WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE KAIPARA ADVERTISER & WAITEMATA CHRONICLE." HELENSVILLE, FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1914 LIGHT RAIIWAYS

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 19 June 1914, Page 4

THE KAIPARA AND WAITEMATA ECHO WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE KAIPARA ADVERTISER & WAITEMATA CHRONICLE." HELENSVILLE, FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1914 LIGHT RAIIWAYS

Light railway to run in isolated districts, and as feeders for main lines, are of most vital importance to the back-block settlers, and a standing disgrace to every Government which has neglected and shunted the idea. In another place the writer was agitating for years the feasibility of making light railways to places isolated and sparsely populated, and at one time the late Hon. E. J. Seddon, and Hon. Hall-Jones, who was then Minister for Public Works, went so far as to recognise the idea by the gathering of some paltry data, and then dropped the matter like a hot potato, and yet the" difference in the making of light railways as compared with the present wide gauge, runs into thousands of pounds per mile—from £1000 to £20u0 for light railways, compared with £10,000 to £20,000 and even £30,000 per mile for the present heavy lines. It is almost unpardonable that this question should have been shirked until very recently by the various Governments of the day. We are now pleased to note, however, through the medium of a special telegram from Wellington, that the Public Works engineer (Mr Furkert), who was sent to Belgium to inquire into the system of' light railways in use there, has returned to New Zealand with a valuable report in his possession. This will in due course be submitted to Parliament, so that we shall soon be in the happy possession of something definite.