NEW ZEALAND'S NEEDS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 74, 18 September 1911, Page 6

NEW ZEALAND'S NEEDS

FASTER STEAM SERVICE. BETTER COMMUNICATION WITH SYDNEY URGED. Auckland, September 14. Mr. Leo Myers (president of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce), in terviewed this morning, said that the Auckland chamber would welcome the revival of interest in the question of an accelerated steamer connection between Australia and New Zealand. The mercantile community of Auckland for a long time past have labored under the handicap of a. service between here and Sydney averaging over four days. Some months ago he (Mr. Myers) had expressed the opinion that the connection between Auckland and Sydney should not take longer than three days. He was then told that his suggestion could only be realised as a dream. It was now quite evident that Wellington was prepared to realise on that dream and even go one better, as the latest suggestion from the southern city reduced the proposed time to two and a half days. He schould like to believe such a scheme probable, and he saw no objection to Wellington being connected with Sydney by a subsidised line that would make a trip 'in the short period of 60 hours, more particularly as we in Auckland recognise that Wellington is the most suitable port for the distribution of the weekly Suez mail, and it would therefore be a Dominion advantage to have a close connection between Wellington and Sydney. It was at the same time obvious, however, thai the service between Sydney and Auckland would also require attention. Auckland would be quite satisfied with a three days' service to Sydney, or if the time was extended to three days four hours there would be little room lor complaint. What he did feel strongly about was that after twenty years the distance between Auckland and Sydney, so far as time was concerned, had not been shortened, and this reflected little credit on the enterprise of those having our shipping interests in hand. He had no doubt, however, that when Sir James Mills returned to New Zealand they would hear of a thoroughly progressive scheme in this connection.

With an up-to-date three days' service the passenger and tourist traffic between Auckland and Sydney could be improved beyond knowledge, and this was a trade which they could not afford to despise.