THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 1884.

Waikato Times, Volume XXIII, Issue 1886, 7 August 1884, Page 2

THURSDA Y, A UG UST 7, 1884.

Parliament will be openod to-day. The Ministry have decided to meet the House and resign forthwith, leaving it to the Opposition to form a Government. If their advice if, sounht by the Governor, ifc is believed they will recommend that Sir Julius Vogel be sent for, but further than this it is not easy to say what may take place. (Jn all sides Sir Julius is accepted as the coming man, but the personnel of the new Cabinet is purely a matter of conjecture. Perhaps there never was in the history of the colony a situation so full of interest as that upon which, all eyes are just now fixed There must be a combination of parties, but how and in what way this combination is to be effected it is difficult to say. Our special correspondent hints at a union between Sir Julius Vogel and Sir George Grey, but that, we think, is hardly possible. In a few days at the furthest this curious political conundrum will be solved, and meantime we must possess our souls in patience.

It has been pretty generally understood for some time that on the opening of the Cambridge and Morrinsville branches of railway an alteration will be made in the timetable. The exact nature of this alteration has not been made public, but, notwithstanding this, the subject has been pretty freely canvassed, and, so far, all that has been said is condemnatory of the change. But it by no means follows that the general public hold this opinion ; indeed, considering that the issues have not yet been put before the public, it is reasonable to suppose they havo not yet arrived at any opinion at all. Those who have spoken and written on the matter argue, in support of their opposition to the assumed alteration, that if the train is made to leave Auckland two hours later than at present, passengers would not be able to reach their homes before dark. This of course is ridiculous, because whereas half the population in the district travel to their homos from the markets and from church after dark, only a small proportion will be required to struggle through the gloom from the railway station. Thero is, however, one reasonable objection to the alteration, and it is this, that the daily mails from Auckland would-be delayed, to the prejudice of business men. This, we repeat, is a reasonable objection, and deserves respect. But what we have to do is to weigh this against the advantages which it is claimed the change will effect. If the latter be found to counterbalance the former, then wo need not discuss the question further. Now the advantage claimed is this : that Waikato settlers will, und<»r the new time-table, be able to do in two days business which now requires three. This is the chiefbenefit, though there are other minor advantages which ought not to be ignored. So much has been said and so little is known concerning the intentions of the Railway Department that a simple statement of facts will be acceptable. In the first place, no material alteration will be made in the running of the present train from Waikato to Auckland, which will leave Morrinsville and Cambridge somewhere about 9.40, the hour at which it now takes its departure from Te Awamutu. But the South train, which now leaves Auckland at 9 a.m., will not start until about two hours and a half after that hour — the exact time has not yet been fixed — and will reach the various termini at about 5.30 or 5.40 p.m. By this arrangement it is hoped that sufficient time will be allowed for the transaction of urgent business in Auckland before the departure of the Waikato train, and thus business men and others, to whom time means money, will effect a clear saving of a day. This is a great deal, but it is not all. Under the new time-table the run from Auckland to Mercer — under almost any conditions' a tedious one — will be materially shortened, inasmuch as the through train will, after leaving Penrose, only stop at Drury and Pukekohe, at the former place to water and coal, and at the latter to cross the mid-day train from Mercer. Passengers at road-side stations desirous of getting to Waikato will proceed by a slow train which is to leave Auckland at 10.10 a.m., and will get on board the through train at Mercer, where the usual stoppage of twenty minutes for lunch will be made, and where the two through trains, north and south will cross, at about two o'clock. The south train will cross the 2 p.m. train from Hamilton at Taupiri. It will thus be seen that a saving of about an hour will be made in the whole trip, and that the trains in all instances will cross at a telegraph station — a consideration of no mean importance in itself. This is a plain statement of the case. We are not prepared to affirm that the new time-table is perfect, nor, for the matter of that, are we jready to declare that it is calculated to meet the requirements of the, majority of Waikafco people; 1 tjidugh^ frankly, ,wfl think, it; is. r A| *$&' £M e • ***< .possesses suffigienj:

before it is condemned, and that, we presume, is till that the department lesires for it. The railways must bo run in the interests of those who use them, and if the proposed irrangemptit ia proved to be at variance with this principle it will not last long.

The Cambridge- Rotorua road, particularly that section between Cambridge and Oxford, is at present in i deplorable condition for traffic. Waggons are daily coming to gri< j f, and even lightly laden buggies find it very unpleasant and exceedingly difficult to get through. Considering the time this road has been in the hands of the constabulary, and the amount of money which has been spent on it, it is very surprising that a good road has not been found 6re now. We believe, had half the amount of money that has been spent on constabulary labour been devoted to contract woi'k, the road to Oxford would have been a much better highway than it is. In several places, where gravel might easily have been used, light clay or some soft, useless material has been applied, and defects thus repaired have only become worse as the weather got bad. The traffic going over this road at the present time is considerable ; indeed, there are few roads in Waikato over which an equal amount of traffic passes, and this seems to be daily increasing. A considerable time will necessarily elapse before either Patet^re or Oxford enjoys railway communication, though the formation of the linn is almost complete, and until the railway is opened, the Government should, at least, see that fair road communication is afforded. The Piako County Council is at present making representations to the Government on che subject, and it is to be hoped for the sake of the up country districts, now being gradually settled, that the efforts of the council will meet with some measure of success.