Sir G. S. Kingston, M.P., and Mr. H. E. Bright, M.P., waited upon the Commissioner of Public Works (Hon. J. Carr) on Wednesday morning, December 7, to request that a platform might be erected at the Mintaro Station, on the Northern Extension Railway. A memorial was presented, to which was attached the signatures of 61 interested persons. It spoke of the great convenience that a platform would be, and mentioned that during last season 80,000 bushels of wheat were sold in the township. Sir G. S. Kingston pointed out that the Mintaro neighborhood was one of the best wheat producing parts of the North, and stated that he did not believe any station would give a larger amount of traffic in wheat than the Mintaro Station if there were a platform. Mr. Bright hoped, as the memorialists were not asking for much, that the request would be acceded to. He reminded the Commissioner of the necessity, if it were decided to comply with it, of the erection of the platform being at once proceeded with, as the carting of wheat would speedily commence. Mr. H. C. Mais, Engineer-in-Chief, in reply to the Commissioner, said no provision had been made for a platform at the Mintaro station. Sir G. S. Kingston mentioned that persons using the railways complained of the delay in receiving their goods, which he understood was in consequence of carriers retaining goods till they had a full truck. One of his constituents purchased two ploughs in Adelaide, which were handed over to one of the agents to be taken to a station on the Northern Extension Railway. The charge for carriage was £2 10s., whilst last year they would have been carried for 5s. each. A week after the purchase they had not been delivered, the carrier giving as his reason that he had not a truck load. The Commissioner, in answer to Sir George, said the Government carried goods on the railways; but they charged 3d. per ton for a single ton per mile. Any person could, however, hire a truck on the same terms as the agents. Mr. Bright referred to a letter which had appeared in the Advertiser from a resident in the Alma district, who complained of very great delay in the delivery of some goods from Adelaide, and stated that he went to the Alma Station fruitlessly so many times, that had he gone to Adelaide for the goods he would have only had to travel about five miles further. The Commissioner had seen the letter, and considered it was a disgrace for a man to have written such a letter to a newspaper without having made any complaint to the railway authorities. He protested against such sweeping accusations and charges without complaint being made. Mr. Bright observed that many country people did not understand the routine of Government business, and the only remedy they thought they had was to address a letter to the public press. The deputation then withdrew, it being understood that a platform would be constructed at the Mintaro Station, on the western side of the line.
