MR. SEMPLE PRAISED

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 55, 6 March 1937, Page 10

MR. SEMPLE PRAISED

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

VIEW

Compliments to the Hon. R. Semple, Minister of Public Works, were freely given at. a meeting of, the council of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce on Thursday evening, when (nembers who recently inspected the Public Works camps on the Main Trunk railway.. made ; their reports, states the "Press." It was said that Mr. Semple- had done all that was humanly possible to provide fcr the physical comforts of the men and to raise the morale of the camp communities, and that recognition of his work for the interests of the men was due. Mr. W. S. Mac Gibbon said that in view of the complaints made he .was agreeably surprised when he visited the" camps. Every camp appeared to be ' fairly close ,to the sea, healthily situated, and the huts were very nice. Hot and cold water was laid on. Every detail of the.camps was inspected and every detail was found-to be in order. It said something for the Minister that he not only allowed city representatives to go up unfettered by his presence, but also that he had personally provided technical books for the men. These technical libraries were to be extended in many. camps.

The social life of the men was being developed, Mr. Mac Gibbon said, and one even had its own orchestra. The Government had spent a lot of money on providing these camps, but perhaps it would. get something in return if the men were happy. The married men's huts as well as.the single men's quarters were very comfortable. The visiting party saw taken at Oaro one of the finest pictures of healthy school children they had seen. It was apparent that everything was well provided for in the camps. "NOT NORMAL COMMUNITIES." Mr. J. E. Strachan said it was obvious to all that the Minister had done all that was humanly possible to establish not only a standard of physical comfort and health but to raise the morale of the camp communities, which was an effective means of improving their happiness and getting the work done well. Even so, the camp communities were not normal communities and they would remain always a difficult problem. They consisted of various individuals thrown together suddenly and casually, and it was a problem to build a genuine social organism out of all the units they contained. A great deal of voluntary help had to be given to the men before they learned how to take advantage of the physical conditions under which they lived.

Mr. Strachan said he felt the Minister was quite aware of this problem. Ho was impressed with the work done for the men and the potentialities of it for raising the morale of the camps.