MINISTERS ON THE COAST

Evening Star, Issue 23129, 1 December 1938, Page 22

MINISTERS ON THE COAST

MESSRS SEMPLE AND WEBS ENTERTAINED WARM TRIBUTES [Per United Press Association.] WESTPORT, November 30. The Minister of Public Works and of Transport (Hon. 11. Semple) and the Minister of Mines (Hon. P. C. Webb), who are visiting the Buller district, were the guests at a representative gathering of citizens and members of local bodies at a smoke concert at Westport to-night. The mayor (Mr J. Kilkenny), who presided, said that Mr Webb had started Westport on the road to progress and had turned a downtrodden community into a prosperous one with a great future. Paying a tribute to Mr Semple, the Mayor said he was the greatest Minister of Public Works the Dominion had had. Mr Webb commented at some length on land development schemes in the Buller district which were proving successful, and also the Pakihi land experiments which, he said, had produced great results. The prosperous state of the coal mining industry, not only in the Buller district, but in other districts, was also commented on by the Minister. , , , , . Mr Semple spoke of the mechanisation system for developing farm lands, and the big experiment to be made in February at Westport. He predicted successful results and groat benefits lor the farmers who had large areas of land to clear. The Minister paid a tribute to the public works engineers in New Zealand as the best in the

world. . ' Tlie Ministers inspected the V\est-port-rnan<rahna railway and other works, and also Psikihi land developmental are?s. with which they were greatly, impressed l .