RAILWAY MATTERS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 9626, 19 October 1909, Page 3

RAILWAY MATTERS.

By Telergaph—Press, Association. WELLINGTON, October 18. £ Replying to a deputation which ureed the Government not to stop the construction of the Roxburgh Railwny in Otago the Premier stated thaat he wished to say clearly that it was not the intention of the Government to carry out railway which were not going to pay. He wanted to sav this quite definitely. There was one railway in the country at the present time which was not paying The Government did not want to extract anything to which they were not entitled from the people. The Government was prepared to recommend to Parliament that this

line should be carried to Beaumont, but Wto Roxburgh. This would, give another opportunity to see whether the railway would puy. The people interested woul3 be asked to pay the , difference between 3 per cent, and what the railway actually earned. The people ought to make up this differenc'.'. Looking at the railway system of the country as a whole he did not think the Govern • ment should be pressed into the position of providing railways that were going to pay less than 3 per cenf That amount was not equal to t,,e interest paid. The Government «as anxious to help the people. If the people interested in this railway bad tair.li and were prepared to support that faith, the Government Wis anxious to help them. The Government expected this particular railway to pay 3 per cent., and they proposed to ask Parliament to make such provision as would enable any shortage to be made up and the same principle would apply to any other line asked to be constructed.

After a good deal of tjut-stioning, Sir J. G. Ward said he was quice prepared to make th? principle which he had expounded apply generally. The Government would accept responsibility for what it did. As to the suggestion that a light line of railway should be constructed he maintained that the cost of construesive. If 701b raih had originally tion in New Zealand was not exces been laid down a great deal of expense would have been saved. Further questioning did not elicit any new facts, and the deputation retired on the understanding that it would consider what the Prime Minister bad said, and later on announce what determination it had come to, or advance further arguments if necessary.