AUCKLAND NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 70

AUCKLAND NOTES.

{From Ocr Own Correspondent.) AUCKLAND, April 8. A suggestion is made by a writer in the HerakTanent the forthcoming Auckland Exhibition which has an foi Uie other Dominion centres. He savs. in order to induce the other communities throughout the country to take an added iXest in the forthcoming exhibition why not allow to each centre a day ol its own. We will suppose that it is Wellington's day at the Exhibition. On that particular da/ it would be Wellington J pride and ambition to attract to the great show a larger number of visitors than had been present on any other . day. How this should be done would be entirely for Wellington to decide. Probably it might be better to allow a week to each centre. In any case, the scheme is workable. It was put into practice at the World's Fair in Chicago in 1893. On "Chicago Day" there were over 800,000 people in attendance, and one ol the features of the programme was a huge historical pageant. The idea may be considered worthy of consideration, and its adoption would at least set up a spirit of friendly rivalry which would inevitably benefit the exhibition funds." During the pre-Easter rush to and from Auckland the traffic on the railways was very heavy, and again proved greater than was apparently anticipated by the Railway Department. Numerous are the complaints of overcrowding by passengers, who were compelled to stand in the carriages during the greater part of long journeys. From what can be gathered it seems to be painfully evident that the facilities in the way of rolling stock are woefully lacking. For instance, on the second Main Trunk express that leftAuckland on Thursday night the carnages provided for second-class passengers were the ordinary vehicles with longitudinal wooden seats instead of the crosswise cushioned chair seats provided on the first express. This suggests that there is a lamentable shortage of carriages suitable for the main trunk express and a lack of foresight on the part of the department. Even the extension of the inadequate special accommodation by the addition of the corridor carriages failed to meet the demand for room, and many passengers have been compelled to stand. On Thursday morning prior to the departure of the 10 o'clock Rotorua express tne ticket office was besieged by intending passengers for some time before the train started, but the process of selling tickets proved extremely slow. Many people who had been down fully an hour early were only able to get seat* in the front carriage of the train almost at the last moment. The scene on the platform between 9 and 10 o'clock was one of absolute confusion. Porters were shouting out directions, while other porters were wheeling luggage to and fro, and passengers, drugging the'ir portmanteaux through the crowd, were running hither and thither in their efforts to find a seat. A little before the departure of the train another carriage was added and was speedily filled, and the train eventually departed with about 450 passengers, occupying 15 carriages. The ordinary express to Wellington on Thursday night was not overcrowded, though it was fully occupied, evidently as many passengers as could do so waiting for the second express, probably in the fear of being jammed out of the first. When the second did go the second-class accommodation was overcrowded, though there were a number of empty seats in the first-class compartments. There were many people who stood on the carriage platforms when the train left, and presumably they would have to explore the train and nestle in the unexpected luxury of first-class upholstery. The station platform was crowded with passengers. One of the crying needs of the Auckland railway station, apart from the question of traffic, is an adequate sytem of lighting. The Bishop of Auckland is not one of those who take a pessimistic view of the position of religion in regard to modern science. Speaking on Good Friday at St. ilary's Cathedral, he declared that the •nx.'pe of th« unknown had increased ratter than diminished in consequence of recent investigation and research. "Theje is no need to be in the least frightened," «iid the Bishop. "The blatant, vaunting Irreverence common in the nineteenth century lias passed away, and in this 'wentieth century men are slow to assert, jven with bated breath, that this or that cannot- possibly be. The whole trend of modern science is towards the Cross." The Herald approves of Sir Joseph Ward's appointment to the British Trade Commission, saying that it would be difficult to name a New Zealander better qualified for the position. "He is a comparatively young man," the paper goes on to say, " and may expect- many years of mental vigour and physical health so that his temporary occupation in important public business of a non-political character is a form of honourable retirementfrom local politics which will not only be restful to one of his strenuous temperament but will keep him in touch with the public life of the Dominion. He will not only have every opportunity to do good service for the Dominion and the Empire upon a commission which is perhaps the most important yet appointed by the Imperial authorities, but his public and private experience should make him one of its most valuable members. We trust that the appointment of a competent representative like Sir Joseph Ward to the imperial Trade Commission will encourage the Hon. T. Mackenzie to make such an appointment to the High Commissionership as will enable Now Zealand to obtain some adequate returns from the I/ondon Office."