The Wanganui Herald. [PUBLISHED DAILY.] WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 1913. NORTH AND SOUTH ISLAND RAILWAYS.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14065, 20 August 1913, Page 4

The Wanganui Herald. [PUBLISHED DAILY.] WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 1913. NORTH AND SOUTH ISLAND RAILWAYS.

One of tho greatest grievances the ''Herald” had with successive Liberal Administrations was that their railway policy was largely dominated by South Island influence. Year after year wo complained of the starving of the North Island lines, while big grants wore voted to the already well-railed and roaded South for the continuation of “white elephant” lines that have no prospect of returning interest on the cost of construction.. Some little time before the Ward Government went out a scheme was formulated whereby the North Island should have, year by year a larger veto than tbp South Island, in order to try and equalise a condition of things quite wrong in principle and very injurious in practice, but Sir Joseph Ward was not given the opportunity to put the policy'into operation. It has remained for the Massey Government to reverse the order of things; and, 'though last years vote was nothing like adequate foi; North Island requirements, it is only fair to state that more money was spent in' the North than in the South. There is, however, still a great deal of discontent, particularly in the, Auckland province and on the coast, ,whera>sinmienso areas if fertile land arc lying unproductive owing to the Tack of cqnirauuication. The matter was discussed last week- at some length at the annual meeting of the Auckland Railways League, which body, by the way, displays considerable interest and activity in furthering The claims of the. northern capital and province. The report of the League complained that'while the Government curtailed railway expenditure in this island, it could And money for wasteful expenditure upon such admittedly.unprofifcable enterprises as tho Otira tunnel on the Midland Railway. There seemed to be no reason why they should add to the public loss the country had already incurred by that unfortunate undertaking tho wanton sacrifice of further large sums of money upon this stupendous job. When it was considered that whatever money was buried in tho Otira tunnel meant the curtailment by that amount of the funds available for opening up tho magnificent stretch of productive country between Auckland and Gisbornt s , and between Gisborne and Napier, rendering millions of acres available for prosperous settlement and ensuring dn immense expansion of tho export returns, the League deemed it to be the imperative duty of .Parliament to put a stop for some years to come to any further waste of public money upon a work which, though unfortunately begun, would, be almost useless for many years to come, even if at an enormous cost it were actually completed.