IN THE PUBLIC MIND.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 30, 6 February 1933, Page 6

IN THE PUBLIC MIND.

BEACH MODES. FREEDOM TURNED TO LICENSE. (To the Editor.) May I be allowed to voice a protest ajain.! the vulgarity and unrestrained behaviour IS so many on our beaches to-day.? The maimer, and customs of those bathing seems to bay suffered a serious decline in recent years imtS the beaches are becoming places to which ordinary decent-minded folk are disinclined to go. The trouble is chiefly with a class of young men and women who appear to have no standard of modesty or refinement and who aspire to dress as near nudity as is dob. sible to get without having the polioetnan'j hand on them. It is a sad commentary on our education both at home and school that young girls are the worst offenders. It the duty of the controllers of our beaches to check down-grade habits and to keep the beaches free of things objectionable to the ordinary citizens' ideas. The South Island beach authorities require a full-sized bathin» suit and a reasonable behaviour on the beachet but up here there is a :narked want of con. trol. The habit of walking in the publit streets of Devonport and some other pla«j ill the .barest of bathing rig* without sit cloak is another matter which should he takei up. Surely the ordinary Christian pnhfe should be protected on Sunday morning from the vulgarities of thoughtless young men and women. It is time the Devonport Borongi Council put a little higher standard of mannert on its beaches. DECENT. PEGGING EXCHANGE RATES. The Government's action is at least % attempt, even if it should prove ultimately ineffective, to better the prevailing conditions, and has removed the fear that it would permit the farmer to drift on the rocks without any act to avert imminent 6hipwreck, except ineffectual talk. It is recognised the main business of our Dominion is our primary production, which is the foundation on whkh all our other activities are based. Let this foundation be so undermined that it becomes not only insecure but actually demolished," and what becomes of the superstructures raised thereon? There is no doubt whatever tliit during the last two or three years our foundations have been so seriously undermined by low .prices and high costs that foundations and superstructures are liable to be swallowed up in the waves together. No doubt our Government has carefully considered all that has and is being urged against the course it has adopted, and it must at least be credited with having the courage of its convictions in pursuing a line of action that it could not fail to foresee would bring much antagonism and abuse. I feel satisfied the majority of our people are too level-headed to be carried away by all the frothy talk that is assailing Cabinet s policy, and will await with calmness the result of the Government's action. In any case, if the result denotes failure it cannot be any worse than the disease it attempts to ameliorate. There is one thing certain: the increased local value of primary products, which the increase in the exchange rate will create, will assist the primary producer to keep going. It will enable him to employ more labour, it "will assist him- in keeping back the deterioration of his land, it will give him greater purchasing power which will be expended with the importers and merchants in the towns. Ho will have to pay more for his imported requirements, but he will have more wherewith to pay, aiid if the purchase of imported is found uneconomical the bulk of such necessities can be produced in our own country,* to the advantage of the people in general. It is undoubted the increasing of the exchange will have various reactions, but I trust it will help to keep the ship afloat until we reach the calmer sea that is hoped for; but more, and much more, is necessary to* save our main industrv from collapse. Patumahoe. JOSEPH HENBY^ . . . ENGLISH CRICKET TACTICS. It is evident that Peter McColl's knowledge of great players past and present is very limited, for indeed he will find it impossible to persuade anyone with even an elementary knowledge that there is the slightest analogy between the medium pace and slow bowlers, Badcoek, Brice, Armstrong and Root, whom he mentions, and Messrs. Larwood, Voce, Altai and Co. I challenge your correspondent to prove that the tactics of the latter have AW precedent by old-time fast bowlers to justify them. Messrs. Kortright, Richardson, Jon#, Gregory, McDonald, Cotter and a host of otwi fast bowlers, some faster than Larwood, place-i their field and bowled either on the wicket or on the off. The placing of the field is the crux of the question, and although all_ f™ bowlers do occasionally bowl a ball both to y pitched and badly directed, such wouldJ» accidental, but the setting of the English ne close in on the leg side and then bowling wi terrific pace short-pitehed and bumping o® in line with the batsman's body over a over is just what Mr. M. A. Noble describe it, "preventable brutality." Peter McColl that Giffen, Trott, Darling and Trumble nev growled over Richardson's bumpy ones; qu» so, Mr. McColl, that was because Richardson did not 'bowl the body-line leg theory no complained of. All true sports will i a PP those high ideals with which Woodfull to degrade the grand old game by °P ' . retaliatory measures, but after all>_P er the most effective way of ridding the spo of this "undesirable innovation" would tie adopt the policy of what is sauce f or goose is sauce for the gander a '^ o ' FARMERS' RELIEF. It would be quite a matter for the Government to invite those primary pr • who feel the need of State aid ™ake PP - cations to a committee appointed J- .. House to consider each individual case o merits. A maximum "dole" of £2 a week ana a strengthened moratorium in reia charges that threaten possession womiv sufficient to help necessitous farmers on until markets improve. It would _ that more than half the farmers On £ of course, the wheat-growers) woul in need of the "dole." We have as J' der a group, largely small farmers, • „ not exporters, quite within the comprehe" » of a small tax specifically made for their the taxpayers gladly making this sm .r6 tribution rather than live in an a P of disquietude and fear such as now ~o n This proposition is made on the as K ei . that the majority of the people m * e land will bring such organised pressure to on the Government that the measure y ing the increase in the exchange rate v> to become law, and be cast out as a to the Stability and generalwelfare o Dominion. J- AINFLUENZA PRECAUTIONS. In view of the serious outbreak of i enza in Great Britain and Europe aro dreadful toll of life, quite a few P P ,^ en wondering what precautions ar ?f o o verse as. to fumigate mails and cargoes . jgjg, I have in mind the disastrous epi _ when a little foresight may have k e . e " t . means of saving many lives. a!J d ter will be coming from infect broa d«st if handled in a careless manner may br throughout