A phrase has stuck in my mind for years: 'This railway was run by hard-headed businessmen, and all trains were run as mixeds to maintain revenue and reduce operating costs'. I can't find the phrase fast in the book 'West of the Tararuas', a history of W&MR railway by Douglas Hoy, but it does have three photos (p26, p86 & p89). History looks kindly on this company: smartly run, technically innovative, economical without being squalid. Its carriages were smart and well appointed, it ran dining cars. Eventually it was taken over by the government to form part of the Wellington - Auckland North Island Main Trunk. I can't find any photos of the mixed trains online. For a history, see: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellington_and_Manawatu_Railway.

NZR also ran typical branchline mixed trains into more-modern eras.

Roderick B Smith
Rail News Victoria Editor