HIKURANGI COAL.

Auckland Star, Volume XII, Issue 31, 6 February 1891, Page 2

HIKURANGI COAL.

The question of the Whangarei County Council granting permission to Mr James White-law to construct a horse tramway for the conveyance of coal and timber along tho County Road between Hikurangi and Kamo was under consideration ab tha meeting on the 4th inst. After discussion ib was decided to postpone bhe question to tho nexb meeting of the Council. Mr Whitelaw appeared himself, and was also assisted by Mr J. M. Killen, solicitor, in placing the question before the Council. There seemed to be a dread in the minds of some of the Councillors that Mr Whitelaw tvas obtaining a dangerous monopoly, though where it came in is difficult to see. as the right of using the train was to end in jive years. The expense of laying the tram was to be considerable—between five and six thousand pounds, at least. Mr Whitelaw stated he would keep the drays on the road as long as possible, and v<-as afraid the road would bo very much the worse before he would give up for the winter.

The new Minister of Public Works, Mr Seddon, may put them on the way-of getting oub the coal and timber, not to mention silver ore, which abounds on the line. The difficulties are only of the pigmy type, compared wibh the construction of harbours that had to be done on the West Coasb of bhe Middle Island, where Mr Seddon comes from, to get oub the coal from there, or otherwise across the Midland R.ailway to Christchurch, which traverses a terriblo country on the west end of the line. This may be illustrated by the perusal of a paper read by Mr li. Wilson, engineer of that railway, ab the late meeting.ab Christchurch of the Australasian Association fov tho advancement of Science, a few extracbs of which are here given.

Mr R. Wilson, engineer to the Midland Railway, read a paper on " The Steep Grade Inclines on Mountain Railways," He objected to rope haulage, as it necessitated a curve of large radius, and thus increased the cosb of construction, etc. Tho greabesb improvement which had yet been introduced in working steep-grade inclines had been the Abb system of rack and pinion. Mr Wilson advises the use of the Abb incline over Arthur's Pass on the Midland Railway of New Zealand in place of the summit tunnel, and showed the advantage in the cost of construction. The new locabion of bhe line was estimated to be over £400,000. The cosb of bbc summit tunnel would be a very considerable s_m. In comparison with these difficulties, the cost of a few miles of railway (seven) along a level country should not long prevent the Hikurangi coal from being worked and placed on the market, and it has nothing to fear from competition.