The Evening Star FRIDAY, JULY 13, 1906.

Evening Star, Issue 12864, 13 July 1906, Page 4

The Evening Star FRIDAY, JULY 13, 1906.

The annual meeting of the Catiins River Railway League yesterday C»tHns lost nothing in actuality on liaJhray. account of the recent gathering at the time of the Winter Show. On the contrary, the demonstration last month gave increased momentum to the League and made the members all the more anxious to take every opportunity of furthering the interests of their project. For our own part, we offer no apology for returning to the subject, holding as we do that the citizens of Dunedin are intimately concerned with the prosecution of the line to Tahakopa Valley. As Mr Rattray pointed out, the railway is certain to' benefit the commerce of Dunedin; though even if there were no prospect of such a result there would still bo an obligation to redeem the promises made year after year to tlw Catlins settlers. The story,of their necessities, their wrongs, and their pathetic patience need not be repeated; happily there is reason to believe that the community, including the parliamentary representatives of Otago, are now , JM 1 "* Jilixti Lo the ironnrktnffl g£ fjbq SBafc--7

w f h " mcmbors of tho Legislature present at the special meefing in June undertook to support the increased but still essentia ly moderate demands of the League andl it will be a great disappointment-! perhaps leading to practical resentment of as™ ]ami if a rea% substantial is not accorded to the lin e during the cnsumg session. Thanks mainly to the ac tmty of tho League, last year's vote cached respectable proportions, and th work of construction has been steadilv so that there is every ,fl£K tr,i\ r ipapa S6Ction bein K T ™ d Y for traffic before next Easter. But it ft im perative that the rate of progress should be accelerated when the Table Hill section is taken m hand, and as l arge votes will not be required immediately for the Ota K o Central Railway tho Government will have no excuse for failing to make full provision for the wants of the Catlins district. Horupapa (to quote from the annual report) ( is but a halfway-house, and wcr 0 the line to be permitted to stop there indefinitely ( , tho opening of the three miles and a-half at present under construction would not of very material advantage to the struggling settlers of Tahakopa Valley " On tho other hand, when the line is open .'is far as Tabic Hill the Tahakopa settlers will be able to get to tho station and back again on tho same day-though, of course the work must not be allowed to stop short at Table Hill. The last paragraph of the report contains an admirable summary 6f tho claims of the line upon the people of Dunedin in particular and the Colonv in general.

It is tho only means bv which the Catlins district, with its magnificent timber and dairying resources, can be exploited. It is a railway of so short a mileage that it may be readily pushed home to an effective and definite termination; it is a railway which pays its way as it goes, and which will always be a profitable feeder to this City and Port; and it is a railway the merits of which have onlv been equalled by the modestv of its dc"mands on the public purse. And in ten years only three and a-half miles of this notably necessary line have been opened for traffic!

The proceedings at the annual meeting do not call for much special comment. A resolute tone and a reasonable temper were manifested, and it is evident that the Government and tho provincial representatives will not be allowed to neglect their obligations owing to lack of reminder. The president gave an interesting account of tho character of the work to bo taken in hand after the line leaves Houipapa, and we have no hesitation in endorsing his contention that " it is not too much to ask "and expect that the Government will "place upon the Estimates a sum sufficient " to complete the line to Table Hill within "the next two years"—keeping Tahakopa Valley in view as the ultimate objective. Mr Thomas Mackenzie very properly deprecated the idea of the League busying themselves with the question of expenditure at the southern end, and it should bo clearly understood that £50,000 represents the minimum Otago demand for expenditure on the northern side. Finally, wo have much pleasure in emphasising the recognition accorded yesterday to the services of Mr J. B. Waters, the League's excellent secretary. The value of his services can be estimated only by those who have watched the progress of the League from inside, so to Bpeak; but the public may trust us when wo say that there is no limit to Mr Waters's enthusiasm and willing industry on behalf of the Catlins Railway. When tho longed-for day of consummation arrives, the Catlins settlers will place the names of Mr Chisholm and Mr Waters at the head of the list of their benefactors.