ON THE HORNS OF A DILEMMA.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5667, 29 May 1879, Page 3

ON THE HORNS OF A DILEMMA.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE NEW ZEALAND TIMES,

Sir, —When a railway company issues tickets for a train specially advertised to convey passengers from one specific place to another at certain specific times, they are bound to provide accommodation according to the class under which each intending traveller may purchase a ticket. It is the practice commonly for the Eailway Department to provide on the Hutt line insufficient accommodation. On Tuesday, there being only one firstclass and one second-class carriage on the 4.45 train for the Hutt, tbe persons iu charge of the traffic refused to put on an extra carriage, and at starting time, when attention was drawn to the fact, called to the passengers to taka their seats (which they were anxiously waiting to do, if there had been any seats to take), rang the bell, started the train, and left a lot of passengers to tumble in peUraeil on the platform of the carriage. Then the public are met with a caution staring them in the face, that they are particularly warned against standing on the carriage platforms whilst the trains are in motion, or of putting their heads out of the windows, because of their liability to accident if they do so. They are further comforted by the assurance that the Government will not be responsible for any damage they may sustain if they disregard this caution. Here then is the dilemma. The ticket purchasers must either lose the passage for which they have paid, or ride in a portion of the carriage where they have to stand and hold on all the time, and are officially told that for suffering this discomfort they render themselves liable to serious accidents, for damage from which they have no claim whatever for redress. It has been decided by the Courts in England that in cases of this sort the persons who have had tickets issued to them have a legal right in the event of not being provided with proper accommodation to hire a vehicle, equivalent to the one they are entitled to from the defaulting company, and charge the company with it. Perhaps if this were tried here once or twice the officials would be a little more careful, and put themselves to a little more extra trouble when the necessity for it arises in future.—l am, lee,, Alpha.