1.—6

28

United Kingdom.—Extract from "Abstract of Contracts or Agreements for the Conveyance o Home Mails by Sea."

W. Gray.

Mr. T. Eonayne, General Manager of the Government Eailways, sworn and re-examined. 36. The You were requested to prepare a skeleton time-table showing how it would be possible to expedite the railway and steamship service throughout the colony. Is the plan [produced by the witness] prepared with that object ?—Yes, Sir; that plan shows various proposals, which I shall be able to explain. One specially deals with the short services. The plan was divided into four sections as follow : No. 1, present service, showing through connection between Invercargill and stations north (including Lawrence Branch) by train and steamer to Auckland, giving times, days, &c.; No. 2, showing through connection between Auckland and Southland by a four-days service by rail and steamer after Ist December, 1898, the times of trains being as at present; No.'3, alternative, through train and steamer service between Auckland and Southland, four days per week between Wellington and Auckland, departure time of express from Dunedin to Christchurch altered to 8.30 a.m., steamer at Lyttelton to connect with the express and to leave Lyttelton for Wellington at 7.45 p.m., arrive Wellington 6.45 a.m., north train to leave Wellington 8.0 a.m. after arrival of steamer; No. 4, alternative service, identical with No. 3, except that the train from Wellington to New Plymouth would run on four consecutive days instead of running on alternate days. Upon these diagrams Mr. Eonayne made the following remarks :— Peoposed impeoved Team- and Steamee-seevices between Auckland and Inveecaegill. No. 1 (Present Service). Northivard Running. —This enables mails and passengers from Southland for Qamaru and north thereof to leave Invercargill at 4.15 p.m> daily, arrive Clinton 9.5 p.m., stay for night; resume journey north at 6.5 a.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and reach Lyttelton at 9.40 p.m. on those days, connecting with steamer leaving Lyttelton for Wellington at 10 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. The time taken to do the journey to Wellington under existing arrangements is as follows: Prom Invercargill, forty-three hours, including nine hours' rest at Clinton; from Clinton and Lawrence, twenty-nine hours; from Dunedin, twenty-four hours; and such journeys can be made tri-weekly—namely, by leaving Invercargill on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, at 4.15 p.m., and Clinton, Lawrence, and Dunedin, on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, at 6.5 a.m., 6.25 a.m., and 11 a.m. respectively. The 6.5 a.m. train from Clinton connects with the Lawrence branch train at Milton, and takes on passengers and mails from Central Otago (via Lawrence) to Dunedin, landing them at the latter place at 10.50 a.m. in time to go forward by north express to Lyttelton at 11 a.m. Passengers from stations south of Clinton, who desire to go through to Auckland overland, require to leave by Monday morning's train, and those from Clinton and stations north must leave by Tuesday morning's train, both reaching Wellington on Wednesday, and Auckland about midday on Saturday following. The time taken on this journey could be reduced by twenty-four hours if the Union Steamship Company's steamer connected at Lyttelton with the express train from Dunedin on Wednesday

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