FENCELESS DENMARK

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 39, 15 February 1930, Page 8

FENCELESS DENMARK

ALL STOCK TETHEEED

A THRIVING COMMUNITY

After an absence of 57 years, Mr. V. Jensen, of Wellington, returned recently from a visit to Denmark, his nativo land. When, he came to New Zealand at the ago of twelvo years in 1873, it was under one of the earliest immigration schemes, and he came alone, a fact which, with his age, made everyone ready to help him, and he found no diiliculty in getting work. Ho came out in the Halcyona, 800 tons, and tho vessel he returned to, the Old Land by, tho Tamaroa, 12,000 tons, belongs to tho same company.

During his nine months' trip abroad, Mr. Jensen saw jt good'deal of England and Franco. London impressed him with, its vastness, and the good-tempered, obliging, energetic, surging millions of people. The wonderful underground traffic system made him think of what may ultimately be tho solution of the traffic problems of Wellington. Though ho visited the Docks and tho East End, there was little evidence of poverty. It struck him that there were very few children or old men, but plenty of people between fifteen and fifty years of ag«, but there was not the squalor which ho had expected. Some of tho numerous garden cities between London and Cambridge impressed him wonderfully, with their two-chain streets and beautiful layout. Fine brick ilats of two, four, and six rooms were set out in roomy surroundings.

In Denmark ho found a great improvement, ,both in tho country districts and the cities, and ho noted prosperity everywhere. Tlio country was one vast dairy farm, with poultry farming and pig raising as well. There were no fences, the farms, many of which were very small judged by New Zealand standards, being separated only by a narrow strip of uncultivated turf, perliaps four, inches high, which in most instances has been undisturbed for hundreds of years. Fences would prevent the ploughing of these small areas to their boundaries, and there ,is no wasto ground in Denmark. Naturally, under such conditions the animals do not roam around, and every one of them, sheep, cows, horses, etc., aro tethered all the summer. In the winter they are housed, because of tho severe conditions, and the cows are tliou fed on oil- cake, or soya kagor, as it is called in Danish. Hundreds of tons of this food come to .Denmark from all parts of tlio world. "It is unpleasant looking stuff,'' said Mr. Jensen, "like dirty lumps of gravel." There were, he said, . 114,000 small farms in Denmark. HEAVY FOOD CONSUMPTION. Good wages were being paid in Denmark, and unemployment w.as not so serious as here. The unemployed ranged in number from 30,000 in the winter to 25,000 in the summer. It was a busy community, . but the average number of hours worked, except on the farms, was eight as here. On the farms people worked from ten to eleven hours a day. One .of the things that struck him most was the enormous amount of feeding, done by I everybody. Ho .found he could not keep paco with tlio natives, and-was twitted a good'deal about it. People in New Zealand did very well, said Mr. Jensen, but in Denmark they would be Jejit far behind in the day's food consumption. Heavy .meals were the rule, and there Was plenty of food in all classes of the community. Perhaps it was the colder cjlimate that seemed to edge everyone's appetite, but he thought it might also bo that during tho war tho people of Denmark were starved, and had not yet got out of the habit1 of eating to catch up. Even in England he found that people ate more than they did here, but nothing like the amount of food was consumed daily as in Denmark, which had the reputation of being tho pantry of Europe.

Farmers were industrious and economical, the mainstay of the country, but in the cities there wore, plenty of well-to-do people, who thoroughly enjoyed life. Everywhere life was gay, but a Government tax of 10 per cent, on all food, and a waiters' tax of 10 per cent., making a total of 20 per cent., made all meals expensive, and taxing what seemed like one of the chief national amusements must have returned the Government a round sum.

An audience with King Christian was granted Mr. Jensen in Copenhagen, his Majesty being deeply interested in New Zealand, and asking Mr. Jensen, to convey his greetings and best wishes to all ]>anos in the Dominion.