A BACKGROUND OF THE NEWS

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 235, 3 July 1939, Page 7

A BACKGROUND OF THE NEWS

Island Of Hainan tinder the pretext of military necessity. the island of Hainan, lying between the China Sea and the Gulf of Tongking, has been used by the Japanese for the pursuance of their operations on the South China coast. This development hitherto has not been seriously opposed by France, whose proprietorial interest hitherto has been purely commercial. The juxtaposition of the island to the French Indo-Chlna, however, would give it strategic importance in the event of France becoming involved iu a war situation in the Far East, and in the light of present developments action by the French Government to assert its rights and require the withdrawal of the Japanese is one of the possibili-. ties of the near future. Hainan has an area of 16.000 square miles, in parts very mountainous and in others fertile, undulating plain, well watered, and favourable for the growing of timber, rice, sugar and cotton. The chief town, Kiungchow, is a French treaty P °A fast run of nine days from Russell to Noumea has been made by the Auckland ketch Seaward. Noumea, also called Port-de-France, is the capita) of the French colony of New Caledonia. It has an excellent harbour, used as a base for French light naval cruft. The population numbers about S5OO. New Caledonia has now acquired new interest and importance us a possible airport for transpacific airways.

Australia’s Northern Outposts

The Australian Federal Government is taking special emergency measures for the defence of the Commonweath’s northern outposts, Darwin and New Guinea, The Koya! Australian Air Force station which was to have been opened this year was opened last June. A temporary squadron of Avro Anson bombers was stationed at Darwin. The decision to hasten the establishment of the unit is regarded as a significant precedent in air defence practice. Darwin emerged from obscurity with the coming of the England-Aus-tralia air services, and its defence from that point of view alone has assumed great importance. In reply to questions concerning the defence of New Guinea, the Federal Minister of External Affairs (Mr. Hughes) said that the terms of the maildate under which New Guinea is held prevent the establishment of any kind of fortification or other military works. The adjacent territory of Papua is held an an unconditional Commonwealth dependency. It could, therefore, be brought into the scope of the Commonwealth defence system. Supporters of the Ministry and some Ministers were known to be perturbed by the undefended state of Papua, and favoured preliminary defence measures. Another section of the Cabinet considers that such a step might be regarded by other Pacific Powers as pro-' vocative, but in well-informed Federal quarters it is not doubted that eventually the national.defences would be ('extended to Papua. Turkey Marches With Britain The alliance between Great Britain and Turkey has been a blow for the dictator States. Turkey’s attitude was thus explained by M. Saydar, the Premier, In an address to the Turkish Grand National Assembly, as follows: "You are well aware of the developments of political and military events which have taken place in Europe in recent times. Statesmen have made every possible effort that world peace, should not be troubled by events likely to lead to bloodshed. "The basis of Turkish policy has been, as far as possible, to keep clear of eventual calamitous events and maintain a neutral and pacific position. But events having penetrated the Balkan Peninsula, and having menaced the security of the Mediterranean, Turkey could not remain Indifferent and neutral. "This is why we have resolved, together with other Powers having interests in the Mediterranean, that this sea must be ■ considered as common property. It is a question of security and a necessity to prevent the possibility of the establishment of a hegemony in the Mediterranean. “Turkey has realized the need to collaborate with all States united with a view to safeguarding peace. I ask the authorization of the Grand National Assembly for Turkey fo march side by side with Britain.” . ' . Slum Clearance in London Further slum clearance in London is foreshadowed by the decision of the London County Council to issue a loan of £7.500,000 at 3J per cent, to meet expenditure on this and other forms of public works. Slum clearance is commonly regarded as a modern form of social improvement, but projects of this sort in London date back at least to the middle of the last century. In 1840, a report was prepared on the sanitary condition of Loudon City, which contained such appalling revelations that a public outcry was raised. This, indeed, was one of the factors in the creation of the L.C.C. The work of street improvement and the installation of improved sanitary arrangements was first undertaken in a comprehensive way by the London Metropolitan Board of Works, but, from the time of its inception in the ’eighties, the L.C.C. devoted much attention to the task. Its first clearance scheme was undertaken in 1890, when nearly 6000 persons were displaced and provided with fresh dwellings. The First Housing Scheme It was not until 1898, however, that the first housing scheme, as we understand such a thing today, was put in hand. By 1900 the project was fairly under way, the area acquired for the purpose being one of 39 acres'at Tooting, purchased at a cost of £ll5O an acre. This was followed by a number of other schemes, until by 1919 the L.C.C. had provided about 10,000 houses, and had dealt with nearly 1000 acres of insanitary areas, displacing more than 45,000 persons, at a total cost of £5,600,000. Soon after the war slum clearance again came prominently before the public, and a programme for the erection of 29,000 houses in five years was talked'of. This was afterwards amended because of financial difficulties, and the five-year scheme produced only 8800 houses. Nevertheless, it was a decided advance, inasmuch as the total was comparable with ail that liad been done in the pre-war years. Progress has been maintained since with a steadily-increasing tempo, and bv June, 1934, nearly 40,000 houses had been erected. From 1919 to March of last year the L.C.C. had built 57,831 houses, the aggregate cost of the various schemes being £36,500,000.