STRATFORD OMITTED

Taranaki Daily News, 4 January 1935, Page 8

STRATFORD OMITTED

NO VISIT BY THE DUKE ROYAL TRAIN GOES THROUGH.

DUKE WAVES FROM LAST CAR. Though Stratford has always previously been made a stopping place for visitors of note, it was omitted from the original itinerary of the Royal tour, and despite the strong representations that were made for its inclusion the Government did not consent to a readjustment of the itinerary. As a result the Duke’s train passed through without stopping; the public was not permitted to go on to the station platform and the people who clustered outside the railings or at the level crossings saw no more of the Duke than a brief glimpse as the train passed through the town. The train did not stop either at 8 a.m. when it passed through Stratford from Okahukura to New Plymouth or at midday when it returned on the way to Hawera.

When the itinerary of the Duke’s Taranaki tour was announced and it was found that no provision had been made for a stop at Stratford the matter was taken up by the borough council with the Government. Strong representations were made on behalf of the town and it was pointed out that Stratford had been a stopping place for previous Royal visitors, the visits of the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York being cited as comparatively recent examples. The reply stated that the tour was fixed and could not be altered, but that school children would be able to go to New Plymouth by train and attend the ceremony there. In view of the definite statement that the itinerary could not be altered and the advice that school children would be able to go to New Plymouth no further action was taken till on November 25 the chairman of the Stratford school committee, Mr. J. Morrison, was notified that Stratford children would have to attend the reception at Hawera instead of New Plymouth.

ARRANGEMENTS UPSET. That notice upset all the arrangements that the committee had made. Inquiries had revealed that a large number of children and their parents would be travelling to New Plymouth on that day, the prospects of a picnic on the beach being an additional attraction. The Hawera timetable did not suit and at a subsequent meeting of the committee Mr. Morrison said he did not think many would wish to go. The question was re-opened when Mr. S. G. Smith was made Minister of Education, and on December 4 while he was at Stratford before going to Taumarunui he was met by a deputation consisting of Messrs. J. W. McMillan (Mayor), P. Skoglund (town clerk), A. H. R. Amess (principal of the high school) and R. G. Watson (member of school committee). They explained the position and asked that the altered arrangements necessitating sending the children to Hawera be changed again. Far more children would be able to go to New Plymouth, it was stated. The stationmaster, Mr. J. O’Connor, suggested means by which the journey to New Plymouth could be made. The Minister expressed his sympathy with the idea; it would probably be possible to arrange the transport to suit the children, he said. He could give no immediate reply, but he promised to advise the deputation later whether the request could be granted. Mr. Smith lost no time over the matter for the Mayor received advice from him on the night of December 5 that arrangements had been made for Stratford children to go to New Plymouth. At the meeting of the Stratford Borough Council on December 17 complaints that Stratford had been “slighted” because it was not included in the itinerary of the Duke of Gloucester’s tour were made by Cr. A. H. Trotter.. “Who is responsible for this slight on Stratford?” Cr. Trotter asked. “When we applied to have Stratford included in the itinerary we were told that the tour had been definitely arranged and could not be altered, yet since then the Duke’s stay at Hawera and New Plymouth is to be extended by a quarter of an hour at each place. It is galling to me to be asked in the street why Stratford has been left out and to be unable to give a definite reason.” The Mayor outlined the steps taken to secure a place in the Duke’s itinerary for Stratford and the refusal. He could give no definite reason for it. Cr. Trotter: Who drew up the itinerary in the first place? The Mayor: The Minister of Internal Affairs is the Minister in charge.

TRAINS PASS THROUGH. Apart from the elaborate preparations made by the Railway Department, little,, notice was taken of the passage of the Duke’s train through Stratford at . 8 o’clock yesterday morning. The station gates were locked, and no-one was allowed on the platform except railway officials. A few interested spectators gathered outside the station gates and small groups stood by the street crossings within the borough, but they could see very little. Some claimed to liave seen the Royal visitor, but the majority saw no sign of him. Arrangements made by the station staff were comprehensive, providing for every possible contingency. All points in the station or along the route were not only locked but spiked as well; every level crossing was patrolled and closed to all traffic from five minutes before the arrival of the pilot train until after the passage of the Duke’s train 20 minutes later. Apart from the two emergency trains, one before and one behind the Royal train, a third was kept in readiness at Stratford. This comprised a breakdown crane, with steam up, complete with all accessories, driver’s hut and van laden with materials to meet any requirement. This was kept more particularly with regard to the Strat-ford-Okahukura line, where following the recent heavy rains slips were thought possible. At midday, in fact for about half an hour beforehand, small crowds gathered behind the station gates and at the Regan Street and Fenton Street crossings, expectantly watching the line in the New Plymouth direction. Several were misled at the arrival of the pilot train, mistaking it for the Duke’s, but most were familiar with the arrangements. Then the Royal train came slowly through the station, and every car was watched for the appearance of the Duke. Not till the last car had passed was he seen, seated in the rear of the observation car and waving to the crowd. Within a minute of the departure of the train the crowd had dispersed, and the second emergency train passed through almost unnoticed. On the special train run from Stratford to New Plymouth for the convey-

ance of school children to the official welcome at New Plymouth about 200 Stratford children embarked, making the trip under the supervision of members of the school committee.