RAILWAY RETURNS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 18, 26 February 1914, Page 10

RAILWAY RETURNS.

MINISTER IN DEFENCE. Press Association. "WELLINGTON, February 26. In an interview to-day, the Hon. W. H. Herries, after stating that increases and improved conditions had been granted to the employees on the railways by the Government, said that a good deal of criticism had been levelled at the Department owing to the fact that the percentage of working expenses to warnings is abnormally high, while the estimated revenue had fallen very much short of the forecast. Since the forecast was made, the smallpox epidemic and the strike hiave had a disastrous effect on railway revenue, and the tendency, to increase operating expenses was not peculiar to New Zealand. Had normal conditions prevailed, the . revenue would have come up fco expectations, and the pereentake of working, expenses to revenue would not . have , shown any material advance on the percentages for last year. The attempt to fix on the Government the\ responsibility for the shortage's in revenue was ungenerous and unjustifiable.