APPEARANCES DECEIVE

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 August 1928, Page 6

APPEARANCES DECEIVE

WORKERS—AND OTHERS

(Special to "Star,”)

CHRISTCHURCH, August 10.

There are two kinds of unemployed in Christchurch and their separate existences was delightfully exemplified a few days ago. A householder who has his place of business'in Hereford Street, not so far from the unemployment bureau, was interviewed by a man who claimed to be a qualified gardener, an expert man who could make roses grow on cobble stones, in short, the man who put “culture” in horticulture.

“Very well,” said the householder, “I have a property of some 25 perches or thereabouts. I want you to go up and dig all over the rear portion of the section. There is nothing growing there but weeds and half a dozen apple trees. Turn it over and level it, and I will allow you four dtys- in which to do the job, and pay you 16/per day.”

“Done with you, boss,” replied the unemployed, or words to that effect. He went up to the place the next day, gave the job the expert once over, and decided that the work was too hard.

The following Sunday morning, the householder took unto himself a spade at 7.30 by the clock, and by half-past eleven had got the ground more than half dug. He finished the job off in the next, few days, never working more than one hour in each day. That is one sort.

Here is the other: A small man, just a lightweight, not the kind of man 1 one would give work to, happened to be in the householder's office one day, and overheard a visitor remarking that a pine tree had fallen over a gully at the back of her property al such and such a place: She wanted it shifted. Ont glided the little man, and when the woman returned home he was waiting lor her. He offered to cut up the tree into four foot lengths and stack it for her. all for £5. She agreed. The little man was on the job at 7 a.m. the next day, and before noon had all the branches off. The householder heard of the incident, and could not believe it after his own experience. Ho dispatched one of his hirelings to have a look at the little man. The hireling found him snipped to tlie waist, working a 12foot cross-cut saw all by himself. The middle of that tree was 12 feet above the giound, but the worker reduced it to stacking size and cleared everything up in an amazingly short time. He is an ox-bushman. and he now lias a steady job in town. *

It all goes to show, thinks the householder. that you never can judge by appearances.