WELLINGTON TOPICS

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3335, 13 November 1919, Page 5

WELLINGTON TOPICS

" A RAILWAY EXPERIMENT. . Q; TRIAL RUN. - (Special Correspondent.) ,_ -’ WELLINGTON, Nov. 12.; The‘Prime {Minister has arranged to make his big policy speech at ‘Waiauku, in his own electtirate, tomorrow night. He intends to speak later in Wellington and in the other chief centres-. Mr Massey has been a. very busy man ‘during recent weeks. He has carried more than his share of -the Work of the Ministry, in Parlianient and out‘ of it, and at the same time he appears to have been performing most. of the work of organising his party for the general election. It was natural, therefore, that when he was able to leave Wellington on his way to. the Franklin electorate, after being detained longer than he expected, he should be in a hurry. Bold Ministers in other days ‘have taken special trains on these occasions. But Mr Massey has often expressed his disapproval of such ivasteful expenditure of public money. .Some -Wellington people, necertheless, were inclined to smile when they read in the newspapers on Saturday, ‘under the heading “Trial Train Run”: To-night an express will leave Wellington for Auckland for the purpose of ascertaining the best time in which the run between the two cities can be done.’ Palmerston North, Marten, Ohakune, Taumarunui, and Frankton will be the stops. _The Minister of Railways (¥=Mr Massey), the General .Ma.n:ager of Railways Mr R. W. l\lc..Vill,_v), and several railway officers will be on board. It is to be hoped that the trial run was entirely successful.

WHALE FISHING. Mr Ernest J oyce. who is to be second in command of the new Antarctic Expedition, has had something to say about the prospects of whale fishing in the southern waters. The late Captain Scott, ‘Sir Ernest Shackleton, and other explorers have reported the existence of whales in very large numbers in the Ross Sea, the Weddell Sea, and other semi-enclosed waters Within the vast ice-fields of the Antarctic. Norwegian whalerg who have been working among the‘ islands southward of Cape Horn have shown that the fisheries are ‘capable -of profitable development. They brought out oil to the value of over £500,000 "in one year of the war, and there is no reason why the Norwegians should be left without competition, particularly as most of the known portions of the Antarctic coast are uncler the British flag. But it will be 2. great pity if the stimulus given to British enterprise by the new expedition results merely in a few years of ruthless slaughter, with the con‘sequent extermi.uat.ir.\n bf the whales in the accessible waters. Whale fishing always has been ‘conductedin this way in the past. Control has been lacking, and the whales have been harriea in season and out, until thé'y disappeared from their Vaccustomecl haunts. If whale fisheries are to be -developed in the Ross sea, which is properly within New Zealand’s scheme, the Dominion Government should arrange to exercise supervision land ‘collect license fees. The Imperial authorities would not be likely to- withhold their consent if representations were made to them in the right way.