THE RAILWAYS OF THE OLD COUNTRY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2744, 17 October 1906, Page 11

THE RAILWAYS OF THE OLD COUNTRY.

INTERVIEW WITH MR A. GRANT.

Mr A. Grant, railway traffic superintendent, has been enjoying a holiday — well cT-ncd by continuous service en ihe Xr.v Zealand railways since 1874 — for the past months, and he returned to Dunedin 1.r.-paratory to resuming his duties at the eiid of last week. On being approached by a- Daily Times repoi fcer, Mr Grant courteously consented to gi\e somo of the imprp;>ion* h-e gathered while on tour in the O'd Country, and of its railway system. In b's trails Mr Grant, was accompanied by ?*lrs Grant. who?e health ha-5 been much hen'-S'"*! bj the -journey. Leaving Wellington :>t the end of la3t March, Mr Grant }'i oi cc f > ('fid by the Caps 'Horn route to T*>iMo!, whence he took train to Lon- (' vi. Thies week* wevo pkosantly fipentii^wins: tho sights cf the metropolis, an.3 ti-°ri the vii'tovs proceeded up the we-t onast of (iieat Bnlaui to th<> extreme noith of .'coL^i.id, r'-turning aia the oa^t coast to tl'p extienie «-onth of England, ha vine; tiavoiaed the whole length of the island from John o' Groats to Land'o End. Among oiher places -\ 'sit^rl were Crewe. Lncrpool Carl'-le, Edinburgh I where about throe vipelrs w<T" spent), the north-ca^ Plighlands of Scotland, Iveiness, Thurso, Aberdeen, Diimloe. Edinburgh (a second time), tho West, Coast .Sounds to Fo T t Augustus, and G'a^gow. After having paid a flying vivt <o Belfast, Mr Grant proceeded to Tondon, and then made a southern tour, including •-' eh places of interest as I and's- End, Southampton, and the Isle of Wight. The returned colonist brings back with him sonw rery outspoken and refreshing opinions on the industrial condition of Great Br-tain. To him. the prosperity of the c ountry was palpable, and the extreme poverty and privation, concerning which ffo are sometimes told dolorous tales, was, as far as ho could judge from the inquiries he made. r>on-pxistent. Mr Grant does not argue that nowhere in the Homeland do children cry for bread, but bis investigations lead him to say emphat.irally that starving novelty does not exist to any gieat extent. H.-> was not able to explore the slums of London, but lie did visit tha eqiia'id portions of the great cities of Scotland, and there he saw slum children carelessly throwing away and idly kicking pieces of bread such as a star\ing child would certainly not despise. Poverty in some degree he saw, and «qualour, but he attribi ted a good deal of this to drunkenne^. which seemed to be a not uncommon vice. Mr Grant's testimony is more valuable from the fact that he knew England as a young man, and, comparing long treasure 1 memories with more recent experience, ho concludes that the Old Country is more prosperous to-day than it was in "the days of his youth. In arriving at ih)e conclusion, he was forced to disregard the ioremiads of many people he met— the British workman is nrono to grumble Still, Mr Grant thinks th.it prosperity may have declined a little of late. In certain parts of the country there seemed to be a feeling of unrest concerning the pcssihilrrfca of distinctively labour legislation being attempted. For the police force of the Home Country Mr Grant has a genuine and undisguised admiration and regard. Individually ita member* are very intelligent, courteous, and obliging, and as a. force its organisation is admirable. "If you wish reliable information," says Mr Grant. "a.=k a police man " Of the "man in Wue " who controls the ceaseless traffic of the London .streets, often by the rai.iing of a finger. Mr Grant sp°ak^ with enthusiasm. While he wa« at Home a commission sent from New York to inquire into the British police system prepare<l a most fa\onrable report. As a touri-t. the p^articular virtue of the policeman that; appealed to Mr Grant wa3 his fund of general knowledge. Not only is he tho guide. philo»OT>her. and friend to the liapk'fcs gnardian of the public peaoe, but lie is a wayfarer.

'' I consider the railways of Gp°at Britain the finest in the world ■ the permanent way and rolling stock arc- all that could he desired." In these ap-pi'soutn" words (he colonial traffic superintends* pn><] tribute to the r.i'lway service of the Homeland. Of course, operations are carried on in a manner proportionate to the population. Tbe lines have a wider gauge than in New Zealand, the carriages are luxuriously fitted, the engines are powerful, and rush along fche shining rails at any speed up to 60 miles an hour. On the main routes there axe three and four set* of rails, and often tracks reserved for goods or passenger traffic only. The stations in the big cities —

rotably the Waverley in F.dinburgh — are admirably equipped to deal with heavy traffic. The only linos in the Kingdom that can be compared with the New Zealand system aie the North and West Highland hn°s, which penetrate the 6parselyp*opulated Highlands of ikotland. In these ca=es the line is a single one, and is- worked on the electrical tablet and interlocking system which is in vogue in this country. Indeed, the railway system of New Zealand is modelled on the system of these Highland linos. In engineering difficulties these lines also, though they have the narrow gauge, approximate New Zealand lines. The line over Rannoch Moor, in the ftotfch-west -of Perthshire, is built on festoons, as,- foundation could not.be reached, arid n, 'passenger can actually feel the train springing beneath him. The same difficulty has been eurmounted in the 6aane way on tho line between Frankton and Morrinsville, in the North Island. The railways of Britain are all under private management, but eoinpttUtion. which is very keen, keeps the \anou3 companies up to the high-water mark of efficiency. All lines come under tV« supervision of the Beard of Trade, which is served by a staff of very efficient inspectors, and whioh ia very strict in its demands. Mr Grant, in fact, can find no fault with private management as seen at Home, but he declares with fenour such a system would not suit New Zealand, which k well served by the Government. And so in other respects the railway system oi the thickly-populated Home Country, admirable as it is. would prove quite tmsuited to this country. The traffic arrangements at the London stations are not necessary here, where the volume of traffic is hn comparison) so small. As it is, and handicapped by special circumstances, the New Zealand railway system, Mr Grant says, is beyond cavil. In some respects, indeed, it compares favourably with the British linos. In the stress of the summer tourist traffic at Home delays sometimes occur in the running of trains which. Mr Grant thinks, would not be tolerated here. Travelling in this colony is cheaper than at Home, though on routes where competition is very keen tho railway companies of Britain Rive surprisingly cheap fares. Finally. Mr Grant thinks the porters on our stations have a substantial claim on the gratitude of the travelling public. As a body they are much more intelligent, obliging, and civil than English or Scotch porters. Indeed, fche railway porter at Home would seem to give correct information but ra^ly to inquirers as to tho running of trains. When a time-table was not at hand Mr Grant preferred to abk a polxeman.