Untitled

Oamaru Mail, Volume III, Issue 769, 28 September 1878, Page 2

! The question or pri.-i'viins.- muaus of telegrspop.g from mtuiewiis p->ittis ;il<;iiu r our raiiwav-; h >« oft mi bc- n issoiited, and t e accident- of \\Vii!v>-isiy J:u: has i'enewe., tiie eonvic'ion t a ; something should he innn diaiely done in t.jint direction. The ordinary telegraph oiiice-s arc too far from railway stations to be as useful as a means of communication in cases of emergency as coiiiO. be deseed, iiier.j Hit rr.o iea of them. Bat. if even some of our fele-i/r-iph offices were next door to railway stations they would be. abso'u'ely useless, if Wednesday's experience alibrcU any idi-a of v:eir vttlin*. Thts otierafors ni-y be !••.> !m avHy v.-urk-.-d i.» a ntiif »t' c >ttiliiee i ie e.iiv ad -itpressure of busin s.i ; out t .e • Se grapl.i.; iiasco ! f Vv. ii(is ,:iy , .e. • V -st at, f am >vi.;i'i-v reals . i;. . i ■' ee C >ll oo piaCi'd UO'.i] Some at ie., r i of t i- oidiiiary tul - : C "fliCero ri-iiiier serrici l in such an wiitwaov !i--t : iac whic'.i lias jnsc occuna/i!.. here are some; facts that prove what we assert : Before leaving Oamarti at ten minutes to ten on Wednesday morning in the "special," Mr. Loring, the RailwayManager, forwarded an " urgent " telegrim to Hampden, asking for certain information as to whether or not the line was clear., and requesting that a reply thereto should be sent to Otepopo The "special" arrived at Otepopo ; but the reply to Mr. Lop.ing's message did not arrive until an hour afterwards ; so that the <c special" sent to the relief of anv [iei'Bor,s that might have been injured by the accident. WgS detained for tho period of nearly an hour at Otepopo. m ord-r to avoid all c ance of another serious casualty. Fortunately only one poor sufferer was left to groan and writhe where he fell much longer than was necessary, so far as we are at present aware :

and; had it not been, for the timely attention bestowed upon 'aim By Dr. Bp.own, of Palnierston, the delay might have affected hitn seriously. There 3h'ould be an enquiry to elicit the reasons that caused this delay in the transmission of a reply to Mr. Lorino's message, in order that all chance of a similar occurrence might be avoided. For a season a si'cdun cf the telegraph department seems to have been paralysed. News t.f th« accident was wired to Dun-. elm. and at half-past ten o'clock ihe papers iif that city issued extras containing .■in outline of the event. But our " special" handed an " urgent," message into the office at Hampden when on his return fi-i.in t:■ e -cene of the ae.-iden', but it did nor arriv ! in ('arnfirn until after the r t'-rn of the train. In or a vnde item of .auti-.ennc imelhg >uee of t:u? r»cci k*t)f e.Hiicl »e pr- 'C'li'ril it -: t i tiv* simvai of t .<l>i-ciisl tniui at ...t i-jMB 2 o'clock. i-'imours were vaiions and e >m:'adicte y, '■ and those who were expecting relation* ! froji Dunedin know noi but thav i.;;ev I were seriously injured or had tei'islied in. j the accident. Be it said to the credic of ! the Railway Department, arraugemont'3 : were in prostress at the time 0 f the accident to institute telegraphic communication with all the railway etarions between here and Dunedin, and with those, at the at.'a Junytieao. . But these «-;li • only partially crevoome the difficulty. Of' what utHlry woui;i k-ift • graphic cuiumunicaticu with railway stations havo been in the ease of the late accident '( Almost none ; for the stations were some distance from the scene of ihe accident. Throughout the whole of ovc railway system there should be ins-teased !

iituuevouscliusun spots railway isoleirraph Kt.-x- ions. A sentry-ibor. vruald anav,"v-? Uus ptirpos-, and c-hs iisiegrapliist o;>uKl bo the iif-sl uian who gained nooc&j to the instrnuient, f«.r a simple code couM ho. placed upon i U>- wall ahuve th« instrument. These ('.loilis.ios for telegraphing will be nt .-edt'-i •• the pivsi'-nt rate of milway iravi*li:;»i{ is o ee maiij t.iined. 'I li. ise <n i\->i'-w«y iiiatf'-rs state posiiivoly that trains should 11>>t travel -Mi <.nr lines ;it a higa.T •"fWt.Ht s'HUi toil or t w-.t|vo lu'laa an hour, aeeon.Uil;; CO tisttif weight, and their ! iiciry is liorm.! out by our experience. iV'.'pit' are anxious to know tho cause of carriages getting oft' t!i<» li.wi so 'ivituvutly ol late—The nvji'enst ■' jpt'i.'C! is said xn l'.v the uauM-- it "v'oiild ho just at f.iiiy to expect a hack to do ;ae work of a dnrouht horse as to expect heavy trains to run noon ; ,i,f nrurow-guage lines, espeoiid y upon the crazy p.irri.ouo between 0«m trn and Dun.etLn «.•<•. U.>ut inc.urr'uu great risk,