THE MOUNT SOMERS RAILWAY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue 60, 29 March 1881, Page 2

THE MOUNT SOMERS RAILWAY.

[Ashburton Guardian.] Since the returns of the various railways in this colony wero placed before thepublio, the matter of their respective positions as to re-productiveness has been_ seriously looked into by many journals, with a view of putting the public mind aright. When the Commissioners sent in their report, which was a very exhaustive one} the Tin- ** wald to Mount Soraera line was one fof those branches which was particularly referred to as to the necessity of its_ completion in order to make it pay. This report stated "that the cost would be small, and it will serve a large agricultural district, and at the same time open up a coal-mine itul some stone-quarries at Moant Somers, .vhich it may be fairly calculated will bring considerable traffic to the line." In saying this the Commissioners did not do otherwise than make a plain and simple statement as an inducement for the further excension of the line. It certainly is a fact that as far as the line has been made it is practically useless and unproductive. But why ? Because it rnns for 10 miles and 60 chains alongside property owned by,two or three persons. When the first question, as to the construction of the line was mooted, it was decided to take it np to Mount Somers on the north side of the Ashburton river, and so pass through a large and comparatively old settled part of the country to that which it now traverses. We are 'old that some time ago the Canterbury Provincial Council granted rails for its construction, to the value of £11,000, and 'hat the line was to be made from the 'ownahip of Ashburton straight to Mount Somers and Alford Foreßt. The County Council in 1877 decided to have the line made from Tinwald, for obvious reasons. It is not difficult to understand the reason the decision was made, but is is not fair that so many of our contemporaries should characterise the line as Mr E. G. Wright's . special line and made to lead to his own - property. Mr Right has some portion of his property on the north side of the River Ashburton, as well as near Mount Somers, and tho construction of the line whether from Tinwald or ABhburton, would be of pqual benefit to him. We are told that there is something " particularly crooked " about this line, and that it has not been struck out of the list of working railways but merged into the Christchurch Section, It would certainly be folly to expect a line of a little more th*n ten miles to be* reproductive, when only two or three loadejf* trucks are perhaps daily taken ug>*nu down it. It has never been worked at aU yet, in the proper senee of the word, and therefore no payable return can possibly be expected from the line. W ; e would like to point out that the extension of this line was' recommended by the Commission, not to serve the population of 801 souls, alone, but te augment the traffic on the main line. As soon as ;he extension is carried out, about say 15 >r 16 milea furthur, it will show quite as jood a return as other branch lines; but as t is at present, it will always be TJ™*?^i it a loss. It now remains with the Mutu^s er of Public Works to carry out th^.

recommendations of the Railway Commission. When this 13 done we shall see quits a different return from thi3 particular branch, and it certainly was a mistake ffco have this line included in tho list of woi king railways. We di not, however, agree ' with some that tho line has been put in the right place, but as 10 iniV.s hivebeen made, or nearly half of its whole length, its full extension to Mount S liners should not be abandoned. It certainly is refreshing to consider the fact that 120,000 acres of agricultural, and 530. OOt) of good pastoral land, wil 1 "be afforded improved moans of ' communication, and that eight hundred and one souls will be placed within easy reach of a railway ; bub to be told that the Mount Somera line was made and its extension recommended by the ir ember for Coleridge because it loads to his property, any more than it leads to the property of the other promoters who were interested in the line at the time the route was fixed upon by the County Council of Ashburton, ia absurd.