THe RAILWAY REVENUF.

Otago Witness, Issue 2456, 17 April 1901, Page 17

THe RAILWAY REVENUF.

WELLINGTON, April 12. The Minister of Railways states that tlie revenue of the depaitment for the year amounted to £1,575,967, an increase over that of the pieceding year of £95,267. In the expenditure account to March 2. £1,028,585 was spent in working expenses alone. This amount exceeds the appropu.ition by £44.715, but the revenue also cx-

cesds the estimate by £139.913 The eX> penditure per cent, of revenue was 65.27, is compared with 65.45 for the pievioua { year Mr Ward points out that the conveniences and facilities for passenger and goods traffic have in many directions been increased, in addition to which the rates were very largely decreased For the las"nine months 758,143 more passengers \ver« carried, and 17.178 more season tickets isMied. Speaking fuither to an mtei viewer about the lailway policy, Mr Ward said the Mmistiy had all along been anxious to keep the manufacture of waggons and carriages in the colony. At the present time the workshops had as much work as it tv.is possible for rhem to undeitake. Though considerable extensions of the workshops were biing made, it was not at piesenfc : contemplated to establish any more w ork1 shop*. It would not be judicious to dupli- ; cate w hole sets of machinery. He hoped j to see the day when the whole of the manuJ facture of railway rolling stock could b» kept in the colony. The growth of traffic in recent years had, however, been so rapid th;>t it was hopeless to expect that a sufficiency could be made locally in the time required.

' A young woman named Fanny M'Hugh, formerly a storekeeper in Turakina, but , latterly an insurance agent, was arrested at I Wanganui last week, and charged with j forging and uttering two cheques — one for 1 £7 16S 10d and one for £9 14s 6d, in the name of Ernest Birn*. The accused was remanded till th n 19th m-t., bail being al lowct'.

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