Putting it Plainly.

Speaking at Huntly recently the General Manager (Mr. H. H. Sterling) said that during the past three years over 70 million passengers had been carried on the railways of New Zealand and there had been no fatal accidents. “A man,” he continued, “has a far better chance of winning a first prize in a 'Tattersall's' sweepstake than of being killed on the New Zealand Railways.”

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“The Most Murderous Invention.”

“The 'Sunday Times' may well say that the motor vehicle has proved itself the most murderous invention ever let loose upon the national highways. An average of more than 14 persons were killed every day last year in street accidents (Great Britain) and nearly 150,000 were injured in that year. On the Railways only 13 persons lost their lives in train accidents during the year 1926.”—J. E. Allen, in “Edinburgh Review,” October, 1928.

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The New Garratt Engines.

Writing in regard to the three Garratt locomotives recently shipped from England for the New Zealand Railways; the General Manager of Messrs. Beyer, Peacock and Co., Ltd., states that these engines are the finest examples of Garratt locomotives they have ever built, incorporating as they do so many new and up-to-date features and, incidentally, being the first they have fitted with mechanical stokers. “I am very anxious,” continues Mr. Whitney, “to hear how these engines acquit themselves, and I sincerely hope that they do well and show up to considerable advantage as compared with the orthodox type of locomotive now in use on your railways.

“We have in hand some Garratt locomotives for the South African Railways, which will be the largest locomotives ever built in Great Britain and also the largest in operation outside the U.S.A. They will weigh no less than 220 tons in running order.”

Excursions by Rail.

In a note received from the Passenger Agent for the Auckland district, mention is made of the great success attending the Friendly Societies' excursion from Hamilton to Tauranga.

It was necessary to provide two specials, one of 21 cars, the other of 20, to cope with the crowd. Two thousand two hundred people travelled and the revenue exceeded £500.

Mr. Lovell states, “The whole arrangements worked like clockwork, and the Secretary of the Combined Friendly Societies thanked me on behalf of his organisation for the successful manner in which the excursionists were handled.”

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European Railway Progress.

All over Europe new railway links are now being built to improve long-distance transport (writes our special London Correspondent). Of all recent works of this character probably the most interesting is the new route opened between Nice, on the Mediterranean Sea, and Coni, in Peidmont, Italy. This additional link in the European railway chain gives easy access from the Riviera sea-coasts to the Alps, and connects, via the cities of Turin and Milan, with the Simplon and St. Gothard routes.

The Nice-Coni railway has been built jointly by the French and Italian Governments. It is some 63 miles long, and an exceptionally large number of engineering difficulties were met with. In the Alps Maritimes, for example, forty-five tunnels have been called for, and everywhere the scenery passed through is of rare grandeur. At Breil, where the customs formalities associated with the crossing of the frontier are carried out, a commodious international passenger station has been erected, and admirably equipped depots have also been provided at other cities en route. The Breil station actually accommodates no fewer than fifteen passenger trains simultaneously.