THE SOUTH TRUNK RAILWAY

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIII, Issue 269, 15 November 1909, Page 4

THE SOUTH TRUNK RAILWAY

Mr John Duncan, M.P., has received from the Minister for Public Works a letter stating that the Department has consented to" the opening of the section of railway from! Seddon to Lake Grassmere. for goods traffic, as from December Ist next. A resolution was passed by the Marlborough Chamber of Commerce on Friday last requesting that the section should be opened, and that goods should bo carried at ordinary tariff rates. The telegram from Wellington, published elsewhere, makes no mention of the charges that are to be levied, but we assume that the usual rates for goods will be charged; at any, rate, the settlers are entitled to pay only this amount. The Flaxbourne people have waited a long time for the promised railway accommodation, and it would be unjust in the extreme to make them pay higher rates than are charged on other lines. What is wanted now is the rapid pushing-on of the railway to Ward. At present doubts are expressed as to whether the line will be completed in time to allow of the carriage of this season's grain in March next, as was promised some time ago by the.Minister. More men should be put on the works, so that the disabilities under which the settlers have hitherto labored may be removed as soon as possible. South of Ward nothing has yet been done., Instead of allowing, the!contractors to leave the work as they, finish their contracts, we consider, that they should ;be transferred to,;the next section, as there are some fairly heavy cuttings north of the TJre River, and.there are plenty of teams available. Surely the South Trunk Line is of more importance to the Dominion as a whole than the North Auckland and-the East Coast (North Island) lines! . But the Government appear to be unable to recognise the fact, and talk of a State steamer service from Wellington to Lyttelton. Private enterprise, in the shape of the Union Steam Ship Company, is at present conducting as good a service between these ports as the Government could ever hope to run, even with two vessels of the Maori type, if such could be made to pay. As was well said by a member at Friday's meeting of the Chamber of Commerce, the money that would be expended by the Government in the purchase and upkeep of two "Maoris" would be sufficient to pay for the construction and maintenance of a good many miles of tho South Trunk Railway, and if the 1 Government are so anxious that the connecting link between the two great railway systems of the Dominion should be State-owned they could devote , their energies to a shorter and immeasurably cheaper line of steamers between Wellington and Picton, which are the natural termini of the North and South Island systems of railway. The people of Marlbprough should never rest until the gap between the present ends of the Southern Trunk is linked up, and we trust that strong representations on the subject will be made at the meeting of the Land arid Railway League which.is to be held to-day.