Complaints against the present man agement of the Canterbury Kail ways are frequent, and in the opi nion of the general public well founded. The system of booking ap pears to have become a hopeless ques tion to master, and the consequence is that unfortunate passengers are car ried beyond their original destination, or detained on the journey to any par ticular place in the most aggravating manner. With regard to goods, the state of things is even worse. It would appear that it has become a matter of the merest chance when goods en trusted to the Canterbury Kailways will be delivered, more especially on certain lines. The transit of live stock present dilficulties which induce owners to travel their animals along the road sooner than submit them selves to the tender mercies of the officials under Mr Lawson, If any one wishes to send a horse, for in stance, from Christchurch to the Ash burton, he would naturally be under the impression that the booking of the animal through to its destination would be sufficient. Let the deluded individual try it, and he will find to his sorrow how he has miscalculated the amount of difficulty that can be thrown in the way of such an appa rently simple operation. He is in formed, first of all, that ho cannot be guaranteed a box at Kolleston, this fresh box being rendered necessary by the change of gauge at that station. He has to go to Kolleston or to tele graph to the station master there, and it is odds against his obtaining the information he requires under some hours of delay. The obtaining of any information at the stations is usually not an easy task. If the officers of the department are overworked, surely it would be an act of wisdom to in crease the staff, as it is evident that the increase of expense will be more than counterbalanced by the increase of traffic. If the traffic has become too large for the main line of railway in the province, it is time that steps were taken to increase the carrying power, as it would be absurd to sup pose that the present line will meet the requirements of the province in a few years, if the demands upon its carrying capabilities continue to in crease in the same ratio as they have done lately. 