NORTH AUCKLAND RAILWAY EXTENSION.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 255, 25 October 1907, Page 2

NORTH AUCKLAND RAILWAY EXTENSION.

(To the Editor.) Sir, —In your issue of the 22nd inst., I noticed a. letter from my friend Mr. \V. H. Jackmiin on the subject of the North Auckland railway, upon which, as chairman of the Auckland Railways League, I should like to make a few explanatory I remarks. Mr. Jackman begins by questioning the accuracy of a map published, upon which is shown the route of the North Auckland railway, as adopted by the Public Works Department, as well as the alternative route favoured by the settlers, on the western side of the Peninsula. The simple facts are that the map in question is merely a tracing of a section of the ordinary county map, upon which the officials of the Public Works Department, at the request of the League, have marked the two routes which have been proposed for the extension of the railway northwards. Mr. I Jackman says the map seems to have j been drawn "'to show that Pukekaroro was in the centr? of the island, but unfortunately for the League, nearly half of the country to the westward was I omitted, «tc" I presume that by "the I centre of the island" Mr. Jackmanmeans the centre of the Peninsula, and, if so, I can assure him that the League -was not in the least concerned to show anything except the line of route decided upon as the best by the Government engineers. The fact that the map does ■ not show the whole country from coast jto coast is, of course, owing to the exigencies of available newspaper space. ; I fail to see how this can be regarded as , fortunate or unfortunate for the League. ] If, as Mr. Jackman asserts, the relative j positions of the places marked on thi3 ; map are incorrect, then the county map jto which he appeals is incorrect, since this map is a copy of it so far as it goes, and should be quite sufficient to show settlers acquainted with the country where it is proposed to take the railway. This is the only object the League has had in getting the map published. It has careiully avoided identifying itself with the advocacy of either of the socalled rival routes, in spite of the efforts of some people to drag the League into the dispute As to your correspondent's assertion that the -ailway routes as shown on this map are neither of them correct, all I can say is that they were marked Jas they appear in the Public Works I Office, whose officers should be in at least as good a position to locate the routea correctly as Mr. Jackman. It is not my intention to express whatever opinion I may have about either route. But it strikes one as rather sur- ! prising that, if the Government engineers are making the blunder attributed to them by Mr. Jackman and his friends, he should not in this letter have made any attempt to controvert the arguments of the Engineer-in-Chief in defence of the route adopted. It.would lead one to suppose those arguments are somewhat difficult to up;«t. At the same ' time, if they can be upset by better arguments and facts of any weight from an engineering point of view, those arguments and facts should be brought forward. At present there has been no answer to the reasons given by the En- ; gineer-in-Chief for the adoption of tho Kaiwaka route in preference to the one ; via Bickerstafl'e. In conclusion, let mc onre more repeat what I have said so often on behalf of the League, viz., that it holds no ■ brief for any particular route to tho ' North, but that it confines itself to the ■ single duty of agitating for the extenI sion and speedy completion of the line by whatever route i 3 selected by the Government's responsible advisers. I ■ am, etc., GERALD L. PEACOCEE.