ACROSS THE STRAIT.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLII, Issue 133, 6 June 1908, Page 5

ACROSS THE STRAIT.

GOSSIP FROM THE EMPIRE CITY.

[prom our correspondent.] . WELLINGTON, Friday. The famous Makatote viaduct, a little past Ohakune, on the North Island Trunk ilne, is now finished, that is so far as the hoisting into position oi" the last girder is concerned. When I recall the stage to which this great work had attained last winter, when a party of members passed it on their way up to Taumarunui, the achievement of the contractors, the famous Andersons, of Christchurch, seems marvellous. This is the highest viaduct in the Dominion, and, I believe, the highest in /the Southern Hemisphere, a viaduct on the Trans-Andean line connecting Argentine with Chili being its only rival. It is to be hoped that thfl expresses of the future will slacken speed when passing over this splendid work, for the view down the Makatote Gorge is simply superb—l know or' nothing to equal it in Australasia. It says much for New Zealand enterprise and engineering ability that from first to last this wonderful piece of work has been carried out by New Zealanders. The day nae now long passed away when we had to import engineers and bridge builders, even navvies, to carry out our great railway works. Wellington has got a new Drill Shed —Garrison Hall is now the name— and duly opened it was the other night with much ceremony. The Minister for Defence, Mr McNab, crave an address, which was*chiefly remarkable for its straightforward declaration that the Government did not favour any system of compulsory service. We are to rely upon the Volunteers, encourage them, assist them in every,way, and endeavour to foster a greater amount of enthusiasm, especially amongst the young men, for the Volunteer service., This, is all very well, but although the Government may be, and is no doubt, to some extent, justified in "funking" the (compulsory system, that is the system which sooner or later will have to be introduced.^ A modification of the Swiss system is what we want. As was shown in The Express > a few months ago, the Swiss system is not the objectionable conscription system in vogue in France, Germany and other great European States. #At present so potent amongst" politicians is the fear.of offending the so-called "Labour" party, that - neither Government nor Opposition has the pluck to advocate what both sides know to be the right thing, namely, the Swiss system., and so we are to go bolstering up the Volunteer system, which is expensive, and under which we get a perfectly inadequate defence organisation. Sooner or later, the compulsory system will have to come. When that day does come the young men of the State may riot be. able to flock in their thousands to see a football match—to look oh, not to play--but they may be more usefully occupied handing* a rifle. _ For the present we are content to live in a fool's paradise as''regards our capacity to repel a foreign,tog. ' . "Double gangs" are at work palter-; ing Goyerhmen t House to fit it for occupation by our legislators, and there will have to be a '' big bend " put on if. tit© place is to be ready by the end of the 'month. The coveredin bridge or viaduct across1 Sydney Street lls in courisc of construction, and bids fair- to be a very ugly, if necessary, 'structure. There is certainly no '■■extravagance being exhibited by the Government in the fittingup of Government Bouse, indeed, I am inclined to think that economy has been pushed to the verge of parsiinoiry. "''Members,," said an old Parliamentary hand to me the other day, "will be so darned uncomfortable that they will be only too glad to make a short session of it." This is all very well, but rt is an open secret that the Government will put forward a_ fairly big programme of work, and in my opinion the shutters will not be put up at the Parliamentary "talking shop" until well into October. The trip to Auckland, however, will form a very agreeable brea_k in the general monotony of the session. Of course, you have read in the Press Association telegrams of: the big entertainment, programme which is being prepared .partly by the Auckland people* partly by the Government, for the benefit of the "Yankees."

Messrs Hamer and Donne have evidently not been long im getting to work," and that these two officials are essentially the right men in the right place I said the other day. Auckland is evidently to have a real good time, and general business should boom. But surely it is a trifle "tew mutch," as poor Artemus Ward used to put it, to invite all the Mayors of the Dominion and their wives to a free trip up to the northern capital. Then, again, Members, their wives and families are to be invited. The wives no doubt should go, but if every Member is to cart up his family to Auckland there will be a big job on hand for the Railway Department in the way of what is euphemistically called "free transportation." There was some mention a few weeks ago of £5000 as the amount the country was going to spend on the reception of the "Yanks." It looks now as if three times that amount would be nearer the actual figure. . * The Hon. John Rigg, M.L.C., was married on Thursday to Miss Anketell, the daughter of an old Masterton settler. "Jack" Rigg, as his friends used to call him some fifteen to twenty years ago, is still "Jack" Rigg to most of those same old friends who are still living. There is possibly not a man in the whole Dominion who is better versed in the history of labour politics, and of trades unionism, than the quiet mannered but—on occasion —most determined and even pugnacious M.L.C., who entered the 'double state" the other day. Had it not been for iris independence of opinion and action he would still have been Chairman of Committee in the CounciL a berth worth £400 a year, but "Jack" is an uncompromising Radical, and some perfectly honest but slightly ill-timed remarks on the Boer War and on Imperialism generally annoyed the majority in the Council, and he lost his chance. He was far and away the ablest Chairman the Council has had, and many of his friends—this deponent included — looked forward to the time when he should occupy the Speaker's chair, in the. "Lords. But his over frankness killed his chance—for the time being at least. Perhaps he may have another chance. In the meanwhile all his political friends and foes will, I am sure' cordially wish him every happiness as a benedict!

A project has beeiv. mooted for the deepening of the Hutt River so as to allow of coal and other cargo steamers of, say, from 700 to 1000 tons, entering the mouth of the Hutt River—in other words, Petone is to become a seaport. No doubt the scheme, which is now being considered by the Hutt River Board, is quite feasible, but at the lowest computation the cost would

Ibe close upon £100,000, and it seems to me that such an expense would be quite unwarrantable. , It would be far cheaper for the ratepayers in the Hutt Valley to save the £100,000 and devote half of that amount to paying half the tonnage rate on the Government railway from Wellington for the next twenty years to come. The ratepayers would not save by this seeming extravagance, but apparently there is no limit to the absurdities to which local bodies, stimulated by local prile and local patriotism, will go.