Opunake Railway

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 9, 29 May 1914, Page 4

Opunake Railway

Tim.Vr.VG OK THE FIROT SOD. A "GOLD-LETTER DAi tor toe PROVINCE. -MI-XISTERTAL PROMISE. LINK MAY (W*T f 160,000. TO BE PUSHED O.V RAPIDLY. MEMORABLE I'IWTITON AT OPUXAIiK YESTERDAY.

Never m the history of Opunake has tow„ wtnewed ouch a gathering as it did yesterday. The citizens had menJo .#* occasion and made good actional etaann was l, n t to the by the vaiiicd colom of the ladW draw* but above aM t] la <„,„ majestic sjAendor, wiMl m , er °~e , 5? \ d r te ,>rigi,t and »VB. From every leading into the town came a constant sucTeS on bo* B ,d« by motor cars, which: 2* only presented a „ in.pontant appear •we but testified to t ,3 prosperHT of too prownre, throughout wMcI t\j! Hon W. Fraser, turned the fir*Ul'f there to 0 " 3 W from

A REPRESENTATIVE GATHERING,

Every town in Tananaki was rewcatJh? historiwl the memJwr. of Parliament for each conatitucnoy bwng in evidence, as w dl as *ta Mayors «f tfhe borouglw and cliairIn rlrl of f*. e Imblic bodfe9 ' All (till •Tenccs wf „p,„ wn relative ■ onto were merged in the one object of WiuHthat Opunßko, after waiting for tfcnl.y yraT *, had at ta3( . been "« warded wihli the conunencejttent of a wilwa-y, the taportanco of wihidi cannot be overestimated.

A BREAK IV THE JOURNEY

Die MnmstcT who s , t nyed ~l t El(fclm overnight, mad* an catty start. He called on the way to inspect tlie new concrete dairy factory erected at Auroa where he was met bv a Jam gathering, and was welcomed bv Mr lowdre.,'l, chairman of directors. 'After some congratulatory remarks bv the Minister, light refreshments were handed round', and the visitors proceeded on then- w:vy, arriving at Opuaa&c about

"A GOLD-LETTER DAY." The site selected for the function oJf the day was but a short distant* from the mam street, and here was a large concourse. A mian-d' plat.orm had been erected, and this was' well filled bv tilio invited guests, the 'Minister being in the for,oi'rorit. °

Mr YV. C. Dudley, chairman of the Opunake Railway League, opened the proceeufcngs by saying that it was a red-letter day for Opunako. He might well cull it a goM-letter day. Certainly, rt was the greatest day Opunake had eve r seen. The Hon. tlie Minister had Mhown a great amount of grit in fixing the noute and/ adhering to his decision" Never, tiaiid the speaker, had there been! to bin mind, a railway of greater importance tlm.li that of the OpunaJce line. Tihey all knew Slow thev had been halt-thug f or years an( j ycsa : s f(K railway, but it had been ' left to the Miassey Goronrment to make a. start with it. (Cheers.) More power to them, he addled'. The first sod was boin" burned, that day, and to hoped that they would soon see the last sod turned fw that! would 1 be a far more important event, for not till then would they receive the great benefit which wbuld accrue from the lino. He saw netting to prevent the railway being finished in 18 months. (Cheers.)" He hoped the Minister 'would again be present to turn the first steaan on. Ha warmly itliankcd all wfco had cojne from different parts of the province to be present, and he particularly tliainked those Who had assided towards objtiioiung the line, espa.iiaiHy Mr Wilkinson, the member for the district, to whose untiring efforts the railway was due. (Cheers.) Mr Willikinaon, M.P., said it gave him the greatest pleasure to be present. They had waited 30 years for the. line, and a:t ln«t a commencement was to he intola, and they were ail extreuiwly anxiiuiiis that the construction work .■ihould foe pushed' to completion' as rapidly as possible. Hitherto Opunake had .been isrfiiird from th,? main centres, and to »et t-i Weliinj/.ton the people had to travel by coach o vcr badl road-), ris;ii>r very euiv in the morning lu raJA the friin; but very soon tha* , wbu/jil 1:,- past histarv. lis believed, moreover, that the riii.wnv would wive the r.oidinw dirTi-nttr. as' >',t would relieve the road* from tlie heavy traffic which. made, their upkeep snrh "a hitivv burden. Hi. was *urc thlat the niemliers for New Plymomlh, Stratford, and Patea were nil gl m ] to know Unit Opunake had «, .t its railway. His one regret was that Mr Mtrssey coulM' not 'be present, but he know thait the Premier would have gladly come iiud it been possible. (Ghcjors)

'THE CKREMOXY. 'Mr Ouidiley til: en r«|iicisted the TNjii W. leaser to turn (tilie first »ird of tinram way. Tim first horn, he sa.id, was always .thought a lot of, uncH as this wns Mr Fmera-'s first iwrformaiue <.'f turiim" the sod of a new railway he WfliiLil drnibtlcs! associate the occ.isior v:th pleasant memories.

A COAT-OKF MIXISTER. Divesting himself of his eoat the iJlimator descenchd f.:>n„ the pla'itionn and trundled a. immature barrow down a plank at the cud of which he stomied «n<, lakiiir, a small spade. Jifto( , 'jj „ a dozen -snuill pieces or -t.urf. which he deposited m the barrmv and then wii«»li.U.i:o 1r,.., to ,jie w ,d at wii'eh lie sbane.l he cartumed it amid the cheer,-, M f the people.

MINISTER REVIEWS THE POSITION. On re-ascending the platform, the M ~-,, r, TOa rk.,l tl..t it had been Well I',' , ? A * * r <*M<M* day for Opiin■'M »ddmg thai it might also be called i it'.hnr day. f! t . kne.iv of liheir lo„„ |,K:,.„re 1,1 turning its first sod. in. lotted on siivh au oeciusion as 0,, c -t vvh.eh politic* should .be e*hewcd, •> t -e g,afcher.ng .-hould be characterised . l»'iice, gV-od-h-Uowship, and nothing -...d ,) dr-lvny )ts harmony. It was »' t I'd he ,:m1 no desire to tall; po!i- - wa.s neither the time nor '"" l" ; ': t ' '■' 'lo so. It was over :)()■ "■'■' «.i:;c t'li,. question of a railwav 1 n i»'iM:.e was li,-t mooted, a„d a re■ne had been set aji.irt for that i.ur- ';■'.''. "'""' ,lie '»ain line to Opunakc ,"V ;-:I "V <>."'" hi a state of naiii^. : .;a nothing further-had been heard of ' ""V, n r l^ ntl - ,r - li wa * nct "util tlie year IUOS that, the attention »f the authorities was ,j T a W „ to «,., „,,,) ffl <,,..

were m |,uj MV1!1 „ , m{ t *d aiK «le by U,e Uwte*r"sS *«wMty oi nMunu.iii.ng Lh„ «a Js w become Mt a s ttHd Uw « wtlllj considers, diluted far a ra, way 7 * *

•rim wrst stehs. la 191 H a Commission was appointed iIKE* "" """»■""« "^ ««e mtv oiivc, ai M the r«n,it wjfh* bIZTZ 1 lk '^ 11 uiiav<*uUl>;e a.b-

TilE ROUTE. *>Wtl f« lr a Atee y l«t yew, they the vfriou7ro U ta "1% t0 * " 18de * was made on tv „, '. "* decl »'on "w>M stick to. decision he

THE iROUTE. The routo would be Iran Te llcti tt» then to the Oeo river where after »»***» *»n it w*uld make a straight hM to Opunafe. He was told that the fieult, tlKTo wauto be aeV«.i| small euttii™ o.nd « w |tf wuld not be aiore than %* ift The only trwuWe was tlhat ttere vmuld have to ~e 17 bridges, bat nature had ■been kind to the district and provided the neewjarv p».v«) for the concrete. The length of «w line waa 21 mim» 17 ohams. As to tflia cost, all ho o&uld aav ■was that that would be known when the line was finished, m tad a rough idea, but it was rareJy that buildiniSL any sort was completed within thTXT timates. Alentiion had been made tha* the tutrnng of the first sod was an important event, .but Oia.t fcke completion of tlie li7w would be more ho. He saw no reason why tke line should not be finwhed in 18 months-if Parliament would grant the money bult he pointed »>ut that there wore 32 lines now in course of construction and people interested in each of these would take care to fighlt for a fair share of the available money. He was quite sure Mr Wilkinson would blip him to fight for as much moiwy a-t possible *or the Opunake line. He wouJd make every effort to have the line completed in a reasonable time. It would

PROBABLY COST £160,000,

and lie wondered What those initcrested in the other lines would say if Opunake was r-pcoially favored. It would' not do Oo go on the London money market to try and ».* larger bins than the lenders felt disponed to advance, Mr Allen said that llmuiciia] matters were very satis- . factory, so the did noit anticipate any difficulty in getting money., but lie would not aalc too much, as he felt be should be careful as to the ttital amount to> ba borrowed. But he saw a prospect of getting larger sums than in the past, especially as in December next th» ' alumMing 'MooJv-Jrtie ifhort-datcd de-» benturcs—would be paid) off, and all borrowed money would then, bo Avail- « able fo r puMie works. He thanked those present for the hearty wedewme given, to him, and joined with them in their wvshes for the compleition of tl» line. Tlie country through., which the line parsed was very beautiful and fertileand if *bere was one line in the country that ought .to he made it wag tht Opunake line.

OPUNAKE TO MOTUROA. Eeferring .to the proposed; ivtoturoaOpunake line, the Minister said thai in Ms opinion it was better !bo finish t Ui» ' Opnnnke-Te Roti line firat. He wfrMßdeavoring to formulate a scheme wjJKby the Motiuroa line could be proceeded with if bo wished, and he had asked the representatives of tho tocal authorities to go to Wellington- and 1 assist in framing a Bill giving them tho necessary power to construct the line. la conclu r (i ! on, he once mora thanked the people for bhejj- attendance, and bespoke ft whole h&liday for the children, being sure that tlie request would be granted. PRESENTATION TO TUB MINISTER. '

Mr. Dudley thanked all the visitor* for their attendance. Addressing Mr. Fra«er, he asked his acceptance of A memento of the interesting occasion, in the form of a silver inkstand, and expressed the hope that every time the Minister dipped his pen into it he would put another £1 on tho Estimate* for, the Opunake railway! The Minister suitably acknowledged the presentation, and said he would cherish it and whenever he used it would recall one of tho most pleasant day* in his life.

Three hearty cheers were given for the Minister and for the member for .the district (Mr. Wilkinson). Mr. Dudley said he had much pleasure in accepting the barrow used that day and presented by Mr. Frnter to the town.

This concluded the ceremony, and this visitors adjourned ior lunch; » TUB LUNCHEOX. •Tlie luncheon was held in the Towft, Hall, which was prettily decorated for the occasion, Mr. Dudley presiding, and having on his right the guest of the day, supported, by the members for. laranaki, Egmont, Stratford aud Patea, as well as the representatives of tho various public bodies throughout the province. r After the luncheon had been disposed flf, the chairman proposed the health of "The King," which was duly honored. He then read a number of apologies for absence from the function. Mr. Quin proposed the toast of "Pa* liament," with commendable brevity. The Hon. XV. Carncross, M.L.C., asked those present to look at him, as before long he anticipated that Legislative Councillors would be as extinct as the dodo % He considered that if the Parliament of New Zealand were compared with others, it would conic out very well as regards the class of men of winch it consisted. If a Parliament were not good it was the fault of the people, for they had the choice of the members. Although he had been opposed in politics to Mr. Eraser, he had always recognised him as one of the few men who understood ilnancc, and was always perfectly fair.

Mr. 11. Oke,v. M.p. for Taranaki, rcmned than> for the way in which the < a*t had been revived. He promised s to (he Minister in asking ." tlu ."f;' s;: 'o' f"«'ls to complete the ' ".which he urged should be constru* f'd on up-to-date lines by the use of labor-savuuj machinery, whereby a sa>

'ul; of thousands of p;rimls woulil be i liVctwl. He intended lo get t)io Opu-nake-Moiuroa line put through, and if •ths Minister did not him; hig way to 'build it ho would get the farmers to show him how it could be done, and would i.-eep hira up to his promise relative to (lie Bill authorising the necessary power* to local bodies to build t hp line and hand it over to the Oovcrnment when the proper time arrived.

TUB STRATTOKD ROUTE. Mr. J. 11. Pine, M.l\ for Strafford, said I.e. represented a dairying constituency, whose aims and ambitions had been and wou'd be to assist the Opimake settlers to obtain a connection with the main line. ITc hoped that those who were ambitious of contesting the various seats in Taranaki would curb their ambitions and leave the present holders undisturbed. lie pointed out that the Royal Commission had recommended that ■the line should connect with Stratford, and he hoped that there would ultimately be a connection with the line at thai; to\vh after the completion of the present line. He could say that (he people of Stratford were actuated in their motives by the desire that the Opunake railway should be built, and were content to sink their differences to accomplish it.

A BRANCH TO MANAIA. Mr. G. V. I'earee, M.P. for Patea, in the course of a humorous speech, said hj« had worked strenuously for a line to Opunake, and he congratulated the district on getting it. The delay that had arisen was due entirely to the fight of routes, and he considered that the Commission had decided rightly. TheMinister had stated that there would be a branch line to Manaia. Mr. Eraser: That is so. Mr. Pearce said ho was glad to make it known, and he was also pleased to hear the Minister's statement relative to framing a Bill giving power to construct a line from Moturoa to Opunake. THE MINISTER'S HEALTH. The chairman then proposed "Our Guest." He was sure the Minister had done 'his work well that day. He was always spoken of as a very fair man, his "yea" and "nay" being decisive. That was a very good quality in a Minister. Mr. Eraser considered that the line would be finished in three years, and he was entitled to the hearty thanks of the settlers. Mr. Masse.y had decided wliat the route should be, and bad adhered to that decision. Xo line could be put at everyone's back door. To his mind the route that had been fixed was the best, taking a central course through the district.

The toast was drunk with musical honors.

HON. W. I'IUSEt! REPLIES. The Minister, on rising, was received with loud and prolonged applause. It was difficult to find word* in which to adequately express his thanks for the splendid reception accorded to him at that large gathering. He did not take it that the gathering was in his honor, but was intended as an honor to the Ministry of which he was a member, but he appreciated the honor in the spirit in which it was intended. He did not regard it as a compliment to bo called a fair man, for it was every man's duty to be fair. He was quite prepared to recognise the good qualities of those who were opposed to him in politics, nnd. when right, to give them credit. If there was any one word which lie .disliked saving it was the word "n0,," but anyone holding his position, if be could not say that word occasionally, was not fit for ofiice. No one had any right, to bold office to gather popularity, hut he should do his best in tlie interests of the whole, and he felt that iie bad tried to do so, quite apart from all political feeling. Referring to the railway, be said he was glad to have the opportunity for stating that a branch line would go to Manaia. The completion of the line was purely a question of money, and he hoped it would he pushed on as fast as funds wouid permit, and 'ho would do his best to expedite it. The lot of a Minister; especially of Public Works, was not a h:«ppv one. ' When the Estimates were brought down, it was always found that applications for grants wens two or three times greater than the funds available. If the fiovernment were to: go in for a live. six or seven millions loan they would probably not get it. They nnwt inspire confidence on the money-market, and that could not be done if borrowing were oveessive. The country would have lo borrow for many years, not only for railways, but for roads and bridges. |(,. hrped to see social b'.ns. raised, for Kjckblocks roads, for It'! '"omul that tlie number of people on the lend who had bare access to theiholdings was far greater than he thought. .Settlement had been so rapid that it had got five years ahead of raiding. If there was one tiling moi> than another which amiiwd liiia, it was getting applications for grants for objects which had been refused. He bad to say "Xo," and of course this gave disappointment, but there was no alternative. When asked sometimes for five or six thousand pounds for public works, he had told the public bodies that he could not give the whole amount in-one year, but it could be spread over two vet.rs. At the end of the first year, however, he received urgent appeals for further money, so that (he works should not be stopped, and, of eouroe, lie bad to refuse.

The remedy lay in raising special loans for th(. baekblocks. If,, <lid ,„>t wonder nt the sorry tales from these l,;lckbiock settlers. If p0.5.,i1,1 ( . | u , int.-aiilt-* 1 to give, them all access and stiii |mrsue a general loading policy. .|[ ( , as | ; ,, t i those present to remember, when the Government was abused for not liaviii"' •hmc. this and that, to ask themselves how miieli their predecessors had done ; 'i twenty years. The inform party '■vere not all angels, lii.t he could M \- they Were hard-headed, sensible men. who would m-t fairly and "ipiarclv. They couM not do miracles. He went

.'around the country to meet the people I and hear what they Had to say, as lie could learn better in tlm. ! , way what i their requirements were Mian by correspondence. Anyone occiip.uir; the same position should do the same. He believed lu's predecessors 'evl rlone it. He did not say they did, but believed they did. He hoped to lie present at the opening of the iine as the Minister for Public Works, and the chairman, in ; inviting him to that ceremony, had shown great discrimination, as.it intimated his convictk u that thu present . Government would be .s-:,i!l in oilico. I (Loud cheers). Mr. W. A. Parkinson proposed the 'toast of "The Local Bodies," which was responded to by Tilr. Crump (.Mayor of Eltham), Mr. Kirkwoyd (Mayor of Stratford), Mr. McPhiilip-i (Manaia Town Board), Mr. McYeagh' (Elthi»m Cliambcr of Commerce i, Mr. Hathaway (chairman of Hie Stratford Count >: ! Council) t:;;cl Mr. Cliiy (secretary of ,thc Opunake Haihvny League).

| Mr. M. .T. -Bronnau proposed ''Our Member," and warmly eulogised the ser]vices of Mr. Wilkinson, especially in connection with the Opunake railway. He dwelt «t some length on the West Coast leases, contending that it was Hot right that the Maoris should come in after 21 years, and put the settlers out. He hoped Mr. Wilkinson would retain his scat for a long time. The • toast was enthusiastically received. Mr. Wilkinson was accorded a great ovation. He said thai he had never had his health drunk with such enthusiasm, and lie greatly appreciated the .honor. He attributed hU success in ' connection with the railway to the fact 'that he had such a splendid case. He , considered that the Opunake railway i line stood alone, and wonld be one of ,thc best branch lines in New Zealand. iTaranaki was the lmst progressive pro Jvinee in the Dominion, judged by its [exports, and these vouid be largely inj creased in the fulura. The railway .should have been commenced long ago, and would have beer, but for the battle of the routes. The Liberal party had [neglected the district ia not building the line, but he now anticipated that it wonld be finished in fo:u- years, and that Mr. Fraser would be a passenger in the first train. Ho was greatly pleased with the day's proceedings, and especially with the hospitality of the Opunake people. He, was convinced that the vailjway would be a great factor in the j continued prosperity of the people and i the district.

Mr. Barton (Hawera) proposed "The Dairy Industry," to wliieh Messrs* K. LamMe, J. Burgess, J). M. Scott and It. Dunn Vesponded. Hon. Eraser proposed the health of the chairman. He congratulated the district on the possession of such a publicspirited man to look after its affairs. lie eulogised Mr. Dudley's persistency in advocating the line, .i.nd thereby promoting' the welfare .of his fellow-settlers. The chairman briefly responded, and Hie visitors left for Eltha.m, where a banquet was held in the evening.