AN OMINOUS SILENCE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11824, 29 November 1901, Page 4

AN OMINOUS SILENCE.

The discharge of men from, the Main Trunk construction works is still unexplained, but is not longer questionable. The ominous silence of the Government is creating in Auckland the deepest uneasiness. Our rulers are in their favoured South Island, not even Mr. Carroll being present to allay the fears of the North. Apparently, Mi. Seddon does not care the snap of his fingers for the North, having every confidence that whatever injustices may be imposed upon us no concerted effort to remedy them will be made here. We hope and believe that this over-weening confidence is foredoomed to disappointment, even though the city of Wellington is very plainly not enthusiastic for Main Trunk completion. For there is a limit to the endurance of every community and it can hardly be possible that the North Island limit ,is not nearly reached. We know very well that no Government would dare to suspend operations upon an important South Island railway in violation of express promises of vigorous continuation of work. That the present Administration should venture to do so in the North Island, after the increasing feeling shown to exist here, must surely indicate the confidence and complaisance that is proverbially asserted to herald a fall. For it is impossible to think that the state of the public funds will not allow of the continuance of the work seeing that if the funds are running short there is no good reason why the North Island Main Trunk (Auckland end) should be the first and only line to suffer.