Through Booking of Parcels and Goods.

The volume of traffic conveyed by the Department's through booking system between the North and South Islands continues to increase, and during the past year 14,449 tons were shipped, an increase of 2,624 tons on the tonnage for the previous year. This service was instituted in May, 1925, and the tonnage conveyed for the year ended 31st March, 1926, was 5,183 tons.

The growth of this branch of the Department's activities is sufficient to indicate that the facilities provided are meeting a real need and are being increasingly appreciated by the public generally—(From the Railways Statement, 1930.)

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Railways and Road Transport.

Road transport and road competition formed a most interesting topic for discussion at the International Railway Congress at Madrid this year (says our London Correspondent). The principal points brought out in the discussion were that the present position of road transport should be modified, so that road transport should bear its full share of road charges, and that concessions should not be granted for road services in cases where the district to be served already possessed adequate railway facilities. Close collaboration between rail and road was regarded as most desirable, and railways should be given the preference for obtaining concessions for regular road motor services where they were prepared to take advantage of them.

The progress made by railways in the road transport field was noted, and comment was made upon the success attending the formation by many railways of subsidiary road transport undertakings providing feeder services and relieving congestion. It was the considered opinion of the Congress that motor transport, duly co-ordinated, would become a powerful ally of railways and assist in completing and developing communications for the benefit of the community.

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Praise for New Zealand Scenery.

In the opinion of Captain Geoffrey Blake. C.B., D.S.O., A.D.C., the Commodore of the New Zealand Naval Division, the Norwegian fiords cannot compare with some of the West Coast Sounds.

His flagship, H.M.S. Dunedin, recently completed an extensive cruise round the South Island, having visited Lyttelton, Timaru, Dunedin, Bluff and Nelson. The West Coast Sounds were fully explored on the passage from Bluff to Nelson, and wonderful weather was experienced.

The Commodore, who has visited the Norwegian fiords, gave it as his opinion that they could not compare in grandeur and beauty with the marvellous coast and sounds lying between Preservation Inlet and Milford Sound.

The weather was so clear that Mount Cook remained in sight at a distance of 112 miles.

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Most Popular Railway Gauge.

India has no less than 18,000 miles of track of 5ft. 6in. gauge. This is a nice roomy gauge for such a hot country, permitting, as it does, the employment of passenger carriages of most liberal dimensions. Next to the 4ft. 8½ in. gauge, the metre gauge is the most popular among the railways of the world.

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