ALPINE SPORTS

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 September 1930, Page 11

ALPINE SPORTS

FEDERATION QF CLUBS. [Pffiß PBESS ASSOCIATION.] < WELLINGTONN, September 12. A federation of Alpine, Tramping, Ski, and Winter Sports Clubs was arrived at in Wellington, as the result a conference convened by the New Zealand Alpine Club, the object being to present a united front on various matters of importance and to develop facilities for enabling New Zealanders to enjoy their rich heritage of scenic wonders. The Chairman (Mr A. P. Harper) President of the New Zealand Alpine Club, who presided, pointed out that there was a common factor behind all these movements, and urged that there should be some scheme by which they could speak with one voice on all matters which affected this common factor. “While all this had been developing amongst our young people, the Government had also moved with the times and declared national parks, provided certain facilities to open up mountain districts, and made special efforts to attract New Zealanders and outside visitors to our mountain districts. All these things have grown with no settled plan, and on no definite lines, consequently they now found many problems arising which required supervision and organisation. Yet the people most interested were divided into separate bodies and there was no way in which they could effectively speak with one voice. Mr Harper then outlined a few of the matters requiring attention, such /as licensing of guides. The present want of system is scandalous, he said. The question of a representation of the clubs on National Park Boards should be considered, also the use of huts, which built by public money, were now placed out of reach of the man who wished to camp by reason of the prohibitive charges. There was also the question of whether national parks shoukf be handed over to private monopoly. Competitive private enterprise was sound, but monopoly tended to place our finest resorts out of reach of the man with a small purse. Mr Harper then explained the draft constitution proposed by the New Zealand Alpine Club. After much discussion, the constitution was adopted and the following committee set up to darry on until the first general meeting: Messrs A. P. Harper, D. R. Hoggard, C. J. Thornton, S. A. Wiren, J. H. Silson, L. O. Hooker, R. C. Murie, and T. G. Mace (acting-secre-tary). The conference passed a unanimous resolution that, it strongly supported Mr Harper in his endeavour to procure some regulation to provide for licensing of alpine guides as an essential safeguard in the interests of all climbers, and requested him to hand this resolution to the conference called by the Government on the guide question. i