Railways.

The position of Christchurch makes it the natural centre not only for Canterbury lines, but also for the railways of the whole Island. Situated on the main trunk line—what is still known as the Hurunui-Bluff line—it is in direct communication with the southern extremity of the colony; and the progress made with the Blenheim line augurs favourably for its speedy connection with the northern end as well. The Midland line is still far from completion, but it will confirm the supremacy of Christchurch as a distributing centre for the southern half of the colony. In addition to these main lines, Christchurch is directly connected by subsidiary lines with every important district in the province.

Between Christchurch and Lyttelton, the chief port (seven miles) fifteen trains run on ordinary days and five on Sundays. Statistics already quoted show that the passenger traffic and goods traffic on this line is greater than on any other similar line in the colony. Attention has also been called to the danger to which Christchurch is exposed through connection with its port by the one line through the tunnel, without any auxiliary road by which, in case of accident, traffic could be maintained. The low fares (8d second, Is first) encourage passenger traffic; but the freight charges are exceptionally heavy, and are not only a source of discontent to Canterbury, but a positive and serious hindrance to the development of her trade. When North Canterbury farmers still think it cheaper to cart their wool to Kaiapoi and ship it to Lyttelton, taking four times as long as the trip by rail, there must be something radically wrong with the railway freights. It is the general opinion in the province that Canterbury is taxed heavily on this one indispensable line, to make up deficiencies on less successful lines in other parts of the colony.

The main trunk line runs north as far as Culverden, and, as already seen, will ultimately meet the Blenheim coast line. Trains run to Culverden (Sixty-nine miles) twice a day; but there is a midday train as well as far north as Rangiora (twenty miles). The run to Culverden takes four hours and a half— an average of fifteen miles and a half per hour—which, considering that the Weka Pass is a serious obstacle, is not, for a New Zealand train, disreputable. The morning train runs up to Rangiora within the hour. On Wednesday and Thursday a train leaves Culverden early in the morning; but on other days in the week, it starts from Waikari, twenty miles south of Culverden. There is an afternoon train every day from Culverden to Christchurch; fares, first, 8s 9d; second, 5s 10d.

From Kaiapoi (fourteen miles from Christchurch) on the northern line, a line is laid to West Oxford, twentyseven miles from Kaiapoi, through Eyreton, fifteen miles from Kaiapoi. On Mondays there is a morning train, but on other days there is only one train from Kaiapoi to Oxford, and that in the afternoon. Similarly there is a Monday train in the afternoon from West Oxford to Kaiapoi, but on other days there is only the morning train; fares— Christchurch to Oxford, first, 5s 3d; second, 3s 6d.

Oxford West is further connected with Christchurch by a line from Rangiora passing through the Cust, twelve miles from Rangiora. The line to Oxford from Rangiora is twenty-one miles. On Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, there is a morning train from Rangiora to Oxford, and on the same days an afternoon return train. There is an early morning train daily from Oxford to Rangiora, and a daily afternoon return. The fares are the same as by the Kaiapoi-West Eyreton line. By both lines the forty-one miles between Christchurch and Oxford are covered in about three hours ten minutes; or an average

Waimakariri Gorge Bridge.

page 62 of about thirteen miles per hour; a result that may be described as depressing.

Southbridge is thirty-one miles from Christchurch, and, lying off the main south railroad, is reached by a separate line. There are two ordinary trains from Christchurch, morning and afternoon, and they succeed in spending two hours and a half on the way at an average speed of twelve miles an hour. The Southbridge train is probably the slowest in the colony, and is certainly oneof the least comfortable. There are two regular trains daily from Southbridge to Christchurch with extras from Lincoln, fourteen miles from Christchurch; and Hornby Junction, six miles from Christchurch, three days in the week. The fares from Christchurch to Southbridge are—first, 4s; second, 2s 8d.

The Peninsula is reached by train to Little River, thirty-six miles. The line follows the course to Southbridge as far as Lincoln Junction, and then runs towards the southern foot of the Port Hills. The morning train runs through to Little River on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday only; but there is an afternoon train on these days and Tuesdays as well. The run to Little River takes about two hours and a half—about fourteen miles and a half per hour. The ordinary return train from Little River runs in the morning and afternoon on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday; but from Lincoln onward, the ordinary Southbridge train connects with Christchurch. Fares—first, 4s 7d; second, 3s 1d.

The line to Springfield (the Malvern line as it should be called) is important chiefly as leading to the West Coast by the famous Arthur's Pass coach road. Springfield is forty-four miles from Christchurch; there are two trains daily, morning and afternoon; and the trip from Christchurch up the constantly rising line occupies three hours and a half, at an average of about thirteen miles per hour. The fall on the return journey makes a difference of nearly half an hour. Fares—first, 5s 7d; second, 3s 9d.

To reach Whitecliffs and the Malvern coal district, a branch line is laid from Rolleston Junction, on the Springfield line, fourteen miles from Christchurch. Whitecliffs is forty-two miles from Christchurch—a run of three hours and a quarter, at less than thirteen miles per hour. There are the usual morning and afternoon trains from Christchurch to Whitecliffs and back. Fares —first, 5s 4d; second, 3s 7d.

In addition to the Rangiora and Kaiapoi branch lines, there is a line to West Oxford diverging from the ChristchurchSpringfield line. It starts from Sheffield, thirty-eight miles from Christchurch, and runs twice a week (Wednesday and Friday) to Oxford, distant twelve miles; returning on the same day. The trip takes forty-three minutes, and the fares are: first, 1s 7d; second, 1s 1d.

From Rakaia, thirty-six miles from Christchurch, there is a branch to Methven, twenty-two miles away. The tram runs and returns on two days in the week only. The time occupied is about one hour and a half, about fifteen miles per hour. The fares are: first, 3s; second, 2s.

Outside the main south line, the average rate of speed maintained on the Canterbury lines does not rise above twenty miles per hour, and on some lines, notably the Southbridge and Springfield branches, actually falls as low as twelve miles per hour. On the plains, where there are no gradients of any importance to contend with, it surely ought to be possible to maintain a higher rate of speed than this without serious expenditure of coal, or very expensive engines.

On the main trunk line—the Canterbury portion of the Hurunui-Bluff railway—the rate of speed is, of course, higher, but still far from satisfactory. The so-called “slow” train take very nearly six hours to get to Timaru—100 miles. The express manages the journey in three hours and three-quarters—at rather more than twenty-six miles per hour. This is still painfully slow, but it is a striking contrast to the absurd rates of travelling quoted.

The express, or through train, to Dunedin starts daily at eleven o'clock, and reaches Dunedin at nine o'clock the same evening. The total distance is 230 miles, the average being thus about twenty-three miles per hour for the whole journey. The fares for the through trip are—first, 28s 10d; second, 19s 3d. The “slow” train runs daily as far as Timaru, starting at eight o'clock, and stopping at intermediate stations, reaches Ashburton, fifty-three miles, by 10.45, and Timaru, 100 miles, 1.55. There is a train from Rangitata daily to Timaru, and a “slow” train from Timaru to Oamaru, connecting with Dunedin, which takes eleven hours to do 130 miles. Of course there are a great many halts, and the steep ascents near Oamaru and Waikouaiti render a high rate of speed difficult to maintain; but this is probably a record of slowness for the colonies. On every week-day but Wednesday there is an afternoon train from Ashburton to Timaru. Every afternoon a train leaves at 4.40 for Ashburton, arriving there at 8 p.m. There is also a daily afternoon train from Timaru to Oamaru. The particulars given show that Canterbury is well provided with railway communication; in fact, almost every town of importance in the province has direct railway connection with the chief city. But the high scale of freightage, and the low rate of speed attained combine to reduce considerably the general utility of the Canterbury lines.

The railway station at Christchurch is one of the best equipped stations in the colonies. There are three large goods sheds, ranging from 300 to 500 feet in length, and from forty feet to fifty-five feet in breadth. There is a large engine shed built of stone, about 130 feet by eighty feet; and two smaller engine sheds of wood. The large carriage shed is 250 feet long, and nearly fifty feet broad. But even this accommodation is not sufficient to cope with the vast and constantly increasing volume of trade. In the wheat and wool seasons, the deficiency of rolling stock on the Canterbury lines becomes every year painfully apparent.