ANOTHER RAILWAY DUPLICATION.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10426, 18 September 1911, Page 4

ANOTHER RAILWAY DUPLICATION.

The olengfenoiis Mr T. ' M. Wilford succeeded in convincing the Legis- J lature of .this Dominion that the dlu- i plication of the railway 'between tone poa'tion of Ms district and (the .Empire .City was a oomanendable propos- ] kion. And the whole box and dUce '■ of has Parliamentary colleagues are now/ shrieking themselves hoar*©, with disgust at tihe stupendous blun-* dier which has ibeen perpetrated. Yet, with the din of these shrieks falling upon hi© ears, this irrepressible parish polditdciaii seeks to involve the country in a resjpon«ibility for the duplication of ithe Manawatu line via ;thie, Afaatarawa Valley. It need hardly (be said that Parliament, having had a ftaste of Mr Wirford',s duplication! schemes, is not likely to seriously entertain tJbJis latest project. The /treacherous Woodville Gorige wall' pirove an insuperable barrier ,to the. 'Napier trade passing permlamently over the Manawatu line. Wlhem Ithe present Minister of Railways is given that peiuod of retirement wMah (he appears'to be .seeking, the deviation of-'- the Riimutaka wftM he .made a work of, urgency, and the Wairanapa will not continue to be a-orarded' ras a branch line. I

THE PONCAROA LINE.

| The Opposition candidates for the Masterton .seat are concLuctdng a vigorous campaign in favour of the eonistructdon of tihe railway Sine between Masiberton and Waipukurau, to open up .t'h© vast area of land at present without reasonable access to markets. The PaMalt.ua paper expresses .serious (concern lest this, campaign should divert attention from the projected Ihjhit line between Pahiatua and Ponigaroa. It is/houMbe stated! right here t3ia/t at no time have the Pongaroa -and Rakauroui settlers seriously idisouissed amy otihr er project .than that between Po-n----garoa and Masterton. Tbis as the one Jine which would bring them into cloise touch writh the larger 'centres, of population, and! at is upon, thasi 'line that every Mt of energy shouHd be centred in the meantime. If, on the completion of the loopline to .Wa.ipukur.au, it should be considered advisable to establish a connection with.FaMatua, this could be done by a BgJitiline, or electriic line, or (something of the sort. j