SKY-GLOW

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23417, 26 August 1941, Page 10

SKY-GLOW

Sir—A great deal has now been said about lighting restrictions, for and against, but one aspect of the matter ’ has occurred to me which I have not seen mentioned. ■ Apart from the restrictions, we have excellent lighting in Christchurch as in other-.cities of _ the Dominion, and it can almost said that during the .hours of natural darkness our streets are ablaze with electric' light. U it should unfortunately ever become necessary to impose a strict black-out. the contrast between this brilliance and almost total darkness would be very great There would inevitably be great confusion and the consequences might be very serious. Very brilliant lighting is really more a luxury than a, necessity, and the proof of this is that only a few years ago, well within the memory of most of us, we had probably much less than half the lighting we have normally today. Yet ;we managed to get along very well under those conditions. I do not think the street accident rate was any ‘higher than at present, and there seemed to' be only about the usual amount of complaining. • It is mainly a matter of use or custom; and in view of the present abnormal circumstances it might be well for us to accustom ourselves to; managing with less light in order that we may be in a better position to meet a sudden emergency, which quite conceivably mighf have to be dealt with in no light at all, - 1 I, give this as the chief reason why in my opinion the restrictions should continue, and if thought necessary or desirable, be made even more severe. —Yours, etc.,, GEORGE INGRAM. August 24,1941.