ROADS AND RAILWAYS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LX, Issue 143976, 19 December 1912, Page 3

ROADS AND RAILWAYS.

HON. MR. FRASER’S VIEWS. Per Press Association. HASTINGS, Dec. 19. The Hon. Mr. Fraser, - --Minister of Public Works, ' spent two hours last -evening with members of the Hastings Chamber of Commerce formally discussing matters of interest, to . Hawko’s Bay. He emphasised his policy of devoting to road-making the restricted funds available. His department regretted having to discontinue for tho time being many railways commenced by his predecessors, but said that railways were useless unless they were fed by rj>ads, and one railway completed, even if only paying one per cent, was better than twenty uncompleted lines. He looked upon the East Coast line as one of national importance and prom feed that money would bo placed on the estimates next session and the work proceeded, with. Ho deprecated wasteful expenditure and assured the ohamber-he would not sanction expenditure for expenditure’s' sake. He was having full enquiries made into the working and advantages of,'light railways in other countries’and if -found satisfactory he hoped that Parliament next session would sanction an extension of the system m New Zealand. Tho Minister, accompanied by Mr. Holmes, chief engineer, left for Wellington this morning. ; On Tuesday next he-proceeds to Auckland.