VAILE'S RAILWAY SCHEME.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 230, 25 September 1908, Page 2

VAILE'S RAILWAY SCHEME.

» Vestorday afternoon a special meeting of the Chamber of Commerce was convened fur tho purpose ot hearing Mr. Samuel Valla on the subject of the railways of the Dominion, and to discuss the matter Unfortunately, a sulbtderit number of members were i_ot present to form a quorum, and consequeuUy tliv meeting lapsed. The nine gentlemen j»r<.-seiit, however, were thoroughly representative of the whole meeting, and it was decided to liuai- ill an informal inaioner what Mr. Vaile had to say. Mr. Vaile expressed his regret at the appavent. apathy of members on suck a vital <juesl.ion, and went on to refer to -the Public Works Statement recently published. _no votes proposed for the different railways, he said, made it appear that the Government had given 1127,000 more' to the North than to the South Island, and the Premier woidd flaunt this in their faces, and say: "We have given yon the largest share of what we have.." But under anolher account they reversed all that, and what they had given to railway votes under another Public Works Statement J was £87,000 more to the South than lo the North Island; but they had given a great deal more than that —they had | given another J" 277,000 mare lo the South. Altogether, the Public Works I Statement gave £300.000 more to the. "South than to the North. They were J currying on seven lines of railways iv , the NoTth and eleven in the South, ln the South Island —Midland line—there w-as included the vote for Arthur's Pass tunnel. That wa_ done for tne express purpose of deceiving. "They Lake the votos for additions to o|K>n lines under a separate account," added Mr. A aile. •Take the vote this year, never seen before, of £1112,000 for permanent way material. What does that mean? That is jus.t a vote that can lie manipulated to any extent. The South Island will get at" the least 60 per cent of that. Then they have got £350.000 for additions to open lines. The South, you vriil see. will get far the larger portion of that." In co-iciusiou. Mr. Vaile said that he attributed a lot of the trouble to the want of a svdiool of economics attached to the Universities. In England and America such schools wen. attached to all. Universities.