EAST COAST RAILWAY LEAGUE.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10173, 24 February 1911, Page 5

EAST COAST RAILWAY LEAGUE.

preliminary meeting in ■ ■;_,;•; masterton. ,■;■■■■,";. ..".'. ; A preliminary meeting of those, interested on the formation of an , East, .Cfeast Railway League between Mastertonand-Gisborne, was in [the office of.-■ Mr >Ri. Brown. in Masterton last evening. There was, a ; representative attendance,' and apologies were received from -a num.- {- ber. of"gentlemen whose - syinpiathies )ars with. the : |>i;ojectj, including .•His,' Worship 'the Mayor, who" was uri-; avoidably absent. :'•; ■* ; . - r

The. importance of joint aiction on the part of townships;;. between Wellington and Gisbornein urging iupon the powers that he the early establishment of railway communication along .the East Coast, combined .with the deviation of the Rimutaka railway, was strongly urged by several present. • It was pointed out that-there is an area of .1,160,000 acres of country between Masterton and Hawke's Bay alone requiring to be opened up. It was ■also stated thai while the line was being pushed on Gisborne and Auckland, very little was being done to establish communication with Napier and Wellington from the Poverty Bay-district.' [ "- ; ;•'■ - : t•' Several speakers emphasised the importance of the East Coast project from the point of view of Wellington, Napier, and the intervening townships, and it was freely stated that the sympathy of the members for Wellington' City i'as- well as } of country members would be enlisted in the project. The question of the transportation of the defence forces was raised, and'this, together with the claims of the undeveloped back-, blocks, was considered to be a strong case for the Rimutaka deviation, the construction of a line from Masterton to Hawke's Bay, and the pushing forward of the Napier-Gisborne construction. ■ .j

A strong committee was appointed (with the Mayor at its head 1 ), with power to add to its number,' to take the necessary steps to form a comprehensive League. \

Mr W. Gillespie consented to act as interim secretary to the commit-' and ho will be glad to receive the names of those, who are willing to act upon the preliminary ). committee.