NEW TRAIN SERVICE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 247, 24 November 1909, Page 2

NEW TRAIN SERVICE.

i'KUYJLNUALi OITUSi'iIUN AD\ ISJOI. i As we anticipated yesterday, says the IMLliaui Argus eiltiorially, lite coiitemk. plated ulterauon m Hie miming ol the . mail tram from Wellington to »\ew PlyI inuiiUi is raising a howl ol protest. It will be remembered lliat sume Lime ago . tlie Taranaki Chamber ol Loiiinicr;e , backed up efforts which v,eie made m .. Paliiicrston .North to secure a eonne: ,- lion with Napier. We out the foolishness ol this proeiuiing at the ■. Lime and the Taranaki CKn-.iiicr ipecd- . ily perceived its error it had matte in . giving countenance to Ihe p'oposal. ll . uieii "hedgetl" by making a proviso that I it would support the connection only it it could be made witboit 'telaying the , arrival of the mail train at -New Plymouth. If the proposed a. nations are •tarried into effect the New Plymouth . people will have the mortification of scci mg the train steaming into the station an hour and twenty minutes later than , it does now. Such an unsatisfactory arrangement might not have been made jiad strong opposition been offered at the outset. Probably the New Plymouth people who tinkered with the Napier I connection will now, when they see themselves left out in the cold, the r steamer service interfered with and gen- , eral inconvenience caused to this pro- , vinec, incline to the opinions we exprcss- • ed yesterday that quick and early communication with the capital city is tie- . sired, and that a one-day connection l with Napier is of little or no conseI queuce in these parts. It is also con.ended in some quarters that the New i t'lyinoulh line is being made to suffer m the interests of the Main Trunk. The ; more the matter is looked into toe i plainer does' it become that the proposeU . new service is opposed to tho interests , of Taranaki. Not only will the mail . train start from Wellington later and arrive at its destination later, but it , will take 25 minutes longer than it does now to cover the journey. An accclera- ■ tion of the trains would have been infinitely more preferable from the traveller's point of view quite apart from other considerations. The question now to be considered is whether it is too late to make vigorous protests' again-'t the alteration, which it is stated is to come into force on the sixth of ne\. month. The Taranaki Herald is afraid that it is too late for any protests to have immediate effect, but thinks it would be well for the Mayor and the Chamber of Commerce to move in the matter of obtaining a vigorous expression of opinion. The Daily News states: "From every point of view a grievous wrong is boing inflicted on Taranaki, which is being asked to make a maximum of sacrifice for a railway service from which it can derive absolutely no benefit; but on the contrary, can oniy be prejudicially affected. That the injustice will not be accepted without vigorous oppositionis already apparent, for it is doubtful if any question of public interest of late has aroused so unanimously a storm of protest. We trust immediate action will be taken to consolidate the opposition of the province, in order that such pressure may be broug'il to bear on the Government as will lead , to the Railway Department revising the j retrogressive time-table." It certainly seems advisable that sleps should be |, iinemdiately taken to obtain a di'liiiilc . expression of public opinion on the mat- | tcr, and it should not he left to New Plymouth alone to do so. Other towns , all'ectcd, such as Kltliam, llaweni and f Stratford, should join in the protest f against a state of affairs to which they \ must be opposed. ' j

AIASTERTON PROTESTS. By Telegraph.—Press Association. Masterton, Last Xight. A meeting was held at Masterton today to consider the proposed new railway time-table as affecting the Wairavapa and Forty-mile Bush. Objection was taken to a number of the proposals, and a deputation will wait on the Minister in connection therewith.