D.—2.

V

The suggestion met with ready acquiescence in several directions, and proposals are going forward now for exchanges of a number of officers. The advantages of such a system are obvious. Workshops Working-conditions. A good deal of attention is paid to the operations of railway workshops, particularly in the United States and Canada, and many methods of working have been tried out. To my mind, one of the most interesting and attractive ideas is the co-operative working scheme which has been put into force by the Canadian National Railways and other railways throughout Canada and the United States. Indeed, its success has been so marked that the Canadian National Railways, after a very full investigation—in which the employees took part —decided that " the operation of the co-operative plan has now reached such a stage that the bonus system has ceased to be either advantageous or attractive." I was able to secure particulars of the scheme whilst visiting the workshops of the Canadian National Railways at Montreal, and, consequently, the Superintendent of our workshops here has been able to adapt therefrom a plan very suitable to the conditions existing in the New Zealand Railway workshops. The plan essentially consists of meetings of a committee, composed of representatives of the men and the management. Full recognition to the men's organizations is given on this committee, and the matters discussed are those pertaining to the mutual interest of the men and the Department at each particular workshop. As demonstrated in other places, there are a similar number of particular functions on the New Zealand railways wherein a committee can materially co-operate with the management, and at this particular time, when the new workshops are in process of erection, there is the matter of transferring employees to the shop where their work is being concentrated to be considered. This is one of the first matters wherein the co-operation of the men is desired- -in fact, no satisfactory solution of the problem of housing, &c., can be attained without their active co-operation. Matters also for committee co-operation are — the welfare of employees generally, social halls, library, ambulance, fire brigades, management, " safety first " recommendations, standardization of work, better tools and equipment, care and distribution of tools, storage of materials and their economical use, conditions of shops (such as heating, lighting, ventilation, <fec.), improvement in quality of work, introduction of output-records, securing business for railway by co-ordination with other employees' organizations, and numerous other local phases of everyday working. The scope does not include such subjects as wage agreements or the settling of questions which have a general application. Meetings of the co-operative committees will be held at least once a fortnight, and the committees will be given every encouragement to make the movement as successful as it has been in Canada. Equipment of Stations. In this direction also New Zealand has much to look forward to, if some of the modern facilities of the British, European, and American stations can be included in the new stations being constructed here. The new Union station at Toronto is equipped with almost every conceivable convenience for the comfort of the travelling public. These include heated waiting-rooms, a high-class dining-room, counter refreshments, baths, showers, barbers' shop, and many other public-utility services. Wellington's new station, for instance, will be equipped with every modern convenience, as passengers must, of necessity, spend a good deal of time at this station in making connections to and from the Wellington-Lyttelton, WellingtonPicton, and Wellington-Nelson ferry-steamers, and with train services to and from various parts of the North Island. Services of this kind must be provided in future, so that increased inducement may be offered to passengers to patronize the national transport system in preference to other transport services. I believe it will soon be necessary, also, to reopen the question of providing passengers with meals on trains. This can be done by the reinstatement of diningsaloons and by the supply of hampers. I secured specimens of the latter as used