AIR LINESHIT.

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 139, 15 June 1931, Page 11

AIR LINESHIT.

AUSTRALIA'S HARD TIMES

SLACKNESS IN DOCKYARDS

■ "Over in Sydney the depression is like the Hawkes Bay earthquake was' • inNow Zealand; It is the one' topic' of' conversation," said vMr.. F. M, ?etre, manager of the New: Zealand sity Kugby; team which roturnecT fromAustralia., by the Makura this morning. <Dno6i the beam's' engagements was at Orange,'in'a country district, and the town appeared to have been scarcely -touched by the depression, but .in Sydney,- said Mr. Petrc, evidencp .of ;.the hard times was to be. seen everywhere, and many of the people met in the streets bore the appcaranco of being put of work. ■. ••• ■Mr. Petrc paid a visit to the naval dockyard at Cockatoo Island, and found that whore formerly about 4000 men found regular employment only a tenth of this number were •working. A new lighthouse steamer was just being completed, and when that job was finished there would be more-men to join the unemployed.. At the Bichmond Aerodrome/ -where there were usually about forty; men employed, there were only two. Flying had been cut right down, and ,the men- were engaged mainly in repair woTk on the Wapitis and Seagulls. ■ The. Wapiti is a two-seater'ob- . serration aeroplane and the Seagull is a navaL seaplane. Humorously remarking that the members of the team, had refused to have thciv .right hands touched for the rest of the day after shaking hands with Kingsford Smith, Mr. Pctre said that he had spoken with the famous airmail and had learned that.the-aviation companies were losing money heavily, particularly on the Molbourne-Sydaey run. ."One of the things-that'struck, me most forcibly," remarked -Mr. Pctre, "was the. competition in tho -paper-sell-ing .market. Men and women and boys and girls of all shapes and sizes are newsvendors, and I even saw a woman with a baby in her arms selling papers.

"We were fortunate in being conducted over the new harbour bridge," said Mr. Petre, "and there is no doubt that it is a very fine structure. It ia now very near to completion, and there are considerably fewer men working on if; now thaii'.-thore were.:-The flooring consists of concrete nnd IjUumcn on steel, and they are ■ putting the conJwete {town p?v»w