>: ♦ : ■ The Nelson " BTeningMail " of Monday! contains a long criticism of the apeeches 'alth'epubiic meeting : rec ! ei(tly'hkd' 'hpre.; As fc the f ' matter' 'ia one'' of considerable •intere'at, we will make a| few'extra'cts from I the ; ••article; -''After admitting that J; the I guickeet communication between Ly'tteiton and Pioton opi be ascured by 1 Eaat' Coast ! route;;the" Mail "proceeds to quote some |of Mt, Henderson's remarks,' and gays:— "Now m these quotation's from- Mr t Henderson's, apeeoh is. to be found the; , head and front of the Blenheim opposition , to tne > central Une. "It is that they.fear that If the_raUway be taken by way of ihe Tophouse it will never be carried on from :. the Awatere' Valley being tapped by the i. railway, the first section of whioh has bee 4 commenced da , »■■ beyond doubt that the hne would be 'extended 1 down the Wairau Valley from ;the <Top houße, we feel perfeotly convinced that  instead of being m opposition they would work shoulder, to shoulder with Nelson m securing a railway whioh must by necessity l be fraught with suoh large advantages to a producing district like Alarlborough, for 1 once having reached the Tophouse it would not be long before extensions were, made ' to both Nelson and the Valleys of the ' Buller and the ,Grey. ; ' Let - the people of Marlborough understand once and for all that we m Nelgon do not desire, to deprive thi^a'of one frM^nal;pw|-of thg benefits. to be derived from railway communication.- We freely admit that Picton (unless, in deed, Port Underwood were selected as beiDg nearer to Wellington, whereby,;; foo, the dangerous Tory Channel passage would be avoided) must "become the northern entrepot for the Middle Island." We have no desire that it should be otherwise, but what we do claim is that the route selected for the northern line should be i one that would benefit all alike, Marl borough, Nelson, and the West Coast. .ihisjTOnld^bej.efleqted by selecting the central line. 