TRAIN DELAY

Greymouth Evening Star, 24 December 1942, Page 4

TRAIN DELAY

[TO THE EDITOR.] Sir, —Your correspondent, “Only a Sapper” appears to have been somewhat peeved by his prolonged train journey from Inangahua Junction to Reefton. He had good cause for complaint. Perhaps he felt better after the Stationmaster had explained the reasons for the slow running of the train. I think the public would like to have heard the explanation, as many were inconvenienced by the late running of this train, but probably some regulation prevented this, and of course a certain amount of secrecy has to be observed as it would never do for information about the running of our trains to leak out and reach the enemy. When horse-racing fans travel to their monthly race meeting, they travel by fast, steamheated trains (as advertised). Politicians, of course, travel by motor car de luxe, there is no petrol shortage with them, but anything appears to be good enough for our soldiers when going on leave. This disgraceful state of affairs should be put an end to at once. We can only hope that there were no generals or colonels on this, train, for they would doubtless have been “frightfully bored.” I would like to suggest that the official or officials responsible for our soldiers having to endure this unnecessary inconvenience, should be hunted out without fear or favour, and as a penance be condemned to ride for one week on the slow trains between Inangahua Junction and Greymouth.—Yours, etc. — ’ SYM. PATHY.