The Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. FRIDAY, MAY 23, 1913. THE MINISTERIAL VISIT.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 4538, 23 May 1913, Page 4

The Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. FRIDAY, MAY 23, 1913. THE MINISTERIAL VISIT.

All those who advocate the opening up of the rich East Coast district will welcome the statements made hy the Hon. W. Eraser, Minister of Public Works, at Pongaroa last night both in reply to the loop-line deputation and in his subsequent speech in the town) Hall. Though the Minister made no statement which could give the advocates of t he rival schemes cause to feel elation one over the other, stiJl he said sufficient to shew that he is in earnest in visiting the district in order to investigate its requirements and open it up with tile least possible delay. This is most encouraging for when a man of Mr Eraser’s stamp takes up such ti stand the public ran depend upon it that he means busi-

ness. He is a mini who, while making few promises, keeps those he does make because he never makes a promise u,ideas he can seen his way to carry it out. Mr Fraser is also not. the kind ixf man to visit a district with a, view to opening it up unless, if the results of his investigations are favourable, lie can see his way to do something for that district. We have felt this all along. What he said at Pahiatua on Thursday evening, and more especially what he said at Potiga-

light, tend to eoiifinn that i Minister has now promised to traverse the Dannevirke-

- Wiaipukurau district before -ext session, hut he has also promised to revisit the whole district during the next recess ini company with the Chief Government Engineer. What does this mean? It certainly means that Mr Fraser intends to do someting. It is well that we should all realise this, for the people in this district under the reign of Wardism have got so accustomed to- the Government doing nothing, even after it had made hosts of promisee, that they have resigned themselves to the position of expecting nothing. It is different, however, with men of Mr Fraser’s stamp, and the straight dealers wo have in tile present Administration. The present Government means business. That is what we have got to realise. And why, we ask, should it not mean business? Does not the Wellington East Coast district require opening up almost as much as any other portion of the country? When the requirements of the district are viewed in this light, and in the light of the fact that there is not a single railway line being constructed in the YVellington province at the present moment, excepting away up volcano way, and that vast sums of money are being expended on railways in other parts of the country, it will be set'll that Wellington province is surely entitled to something. The Reform Government evidently views the position in this light, and we may therefore expect an early commencement to be made in opening up the district. In the meantime we would i>oi nt out that the hop liners have their railway league, engineered from Maeterton, while the light line advocates have none at all. It is high time, in our opinion, that a light feeder lines league, was formed. It is to be hoped that something will lie done in this direction as otherwise the interests of the settlers and of the country are not likely to be served. We say this because the country can never countenance the construction of the loop line, and until the district is opened up the settlers and the country will be the poorer for it. The only hop»> of achieving this object is as we have already shown, by the construction of light feeder lines, which cost little and would not compete with ’lie present railway.