RAILWAY ENGINEER.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20968, 3 September 1931, Page 10

RAILWAY ENGINEER.

MR. F. 0. WIDDOP RETIRES

LONG SERVICE WITH DEPARTMENT

[BX TELEGRAPH. —I'KESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON. Wednesday.

The chief engineer of the New Zealand Railways, Mr. F.., C- Widdop, retired to-day on the completion of 40 yean" service.

At a. farewell gathering to-day the general manager, Mr. H. H. Sterling, said Mr. Widdop was leaving with a record to his credit that had earned the entire admiration of all. His record with the service (feted from boyhood, and he had grown'up with it: The*fact that they were running fast passenger tra.ns in the dead of night without accident was t tribute to the engineering branch and its head. In' regard to the safety of .the public, they left nothing to chance. Replying, Mr.' Widdop said he had seen the railway service grow from » small thing. When he joined in 1891, the total revenue was a little over £1,000,000 and the annual expenditure £706,000. Last year the revenue' was £8,000.000 and the expenditure £7,0(0.000. In 1891 there were 1869 miles of .track down and now there wfere 3399 wile*. "The expenditure on maintenance in 1891-1892 was *245,000 and in 1930 £1.800,000. It was true the standard of track maintenance » New Zealand was very high, but that was largely, due io the intelligence ana education possessed by the staff, in strong contrast to the men employed on some foreign railways. Mr. Widdop was presented with a Limp* stand and shade and a travelling nig.