THE MIDLAND RAILWAY—AND WELLINGTON TRADE.

Manawatu Times, Volume XLVII, Issue 2753, 20 September 1923, Page 4

THE MIDLAND RAILWAY—AND WELLINGTON TRADE.

The business men of the capital city, having looked upon the construction of the Midland Railway with disfavour for 35 years, mainly, it may be supposed, on account of the menace It offered to a lucrative part of their trade, have decided, philosophically, that after all it is not go.ng to do them much. harm. "Now that the Otira Tunnel is in operation between Christchurch and Wcstland," the importers committee reported to the Chamber of Commerce, "your committee has looked into the possible effect it may have upon trade already built up by Wellington merchants, and we recommend that Wellington merchants should see to it that West Coast storekeepers and others do nor. overlook the relative cheapness of sea carriage on most classes of goods. Owing to the railways charging by weight and the steamers by measurement, it is undoubted that some classes of goods will be preferred by rail, but in general we find the steamer rates compare favourably, and Ave feel certain the bulk of the trade can be retained, and even increased by Wellington merchants if the shipping companies can provide a timetable freight service." And so all's well that ends well. The competition between Wellington and Christchurch will be good for trade. I