PRESSMEN’S TOUR.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume IX, Issue 82, 21 March 1919, Page 5

PRESSMEN’S TOUR.

HOMELAND IN AVAR TIME

LECTURE BY MR. W. J. GEDDIS

At a well attended meeting or the Napier Chamber of Commerce held yesterday afternoon, the Hon. W. J. Geddis, M.L.C., a member of the. party of press representatives who recently went home at the invitation of the Imperial Government, delivered a very interesting lecture on his travels and impressions gained thereby. He said their party consisted of 20 Canadians, 12 Australians and one from Newfoundland and others from Africa and New Zealand. At the time of their arrival home the feeling of the people of England was a pessimists, one. It was immediately after the big German advance—just at the turn of the tide and there was no feeling of run fidence among the people. There was, however, a feeling of stieng determination and if war had gone on for twenty years more, the people felt they would win. On their excursion through Scotland ihe party had occasion to see the feeling of the people and no doubt Scotland had been the backbone of the Empire right through the war both in fighting men, spirit of the people and spirit of the women, which was great. 1 Referring to the self-denial of the people of London, the speaker said the railways were used for war } urposes and it was difficult to get food. The privation was indeed great. At their hotel, out of twenty one meals a week they only sr.w meat at four meals. At breakfast tl ey got a little brown roll, not bread but hard as rock, half the size of our penny bun and a small piece of butter the size of a half-crown.

The poor and wealthy people were treated alike and no sum of in- r.ey could procure more. Ihe speaker had heard it said at political meetings that Mr. Masse.’ and Sir J< sc ph Ward were having a mat time at banquets. He had brought seine of the menus back and 0.1 s'-me of them was not even meat. The most elaborate banquet had only two <nurses. I The people Jid not resent- having to do this, they were satisfied and if people lieio only realued what they were doing over there they w-nh! change their opinion. THE WOMEN WORKERS. The women of Britain were splendid. There were six million women workers there —porters. motor drivers, taxi drivers, farm workers (etc. They wore men's clothes and I worked jii the Glasgow dockyards with the men and were paid the same wages. They were in hospitals, wealthy women too worked as waitresses and cooks in the N.Z.Y.M.C.A. hut too and it would have been gratifying to mothers to see how their boys were treated there. They visited the Y.M.C.A’s. training ground at Woolwich, which consisted of girls drilling like ordinary soldiers. They were in different stages of training--well advanced just like, a well drilled company of soldiers, with their officers etc. all looking very smart and soldierly. Then there were the recruit sections where the girls had just come in all their pretty finery to start training. Each girl releases a man for field service, for household work the weekly wage was 10/-, for typists and clerks 28/6 up to -12 6 while in the munition factories some were earning £lB a week—more than the men. The girl who showed the visitors round was a colonel of great dignity and capacity, and in civilian life, a sweet, girl of 25 years. The highest rank in this training camp was General. They had trained 46. 000 girls and still required. 30,000. Many were behind the lines in France, some had been killed, and others wounded. THE MEAT SUPPLIES. Six weeks were spent around the hospitals, munition factories, fleet, etc. They were taken down the London (locks to see the large additional freezing chambers which were being constructed at a great cost. 'The speaker felt that there was a lot of congestion round about, and that the meat was being landed a long way from the place of consumption. They went down the Manchester Ship Canal which was about 200 miles from London, was 35 miles in length and cost 17 millions sterling, but it had converted the city to a seaport town. It was within 40 miles of Manchester where there was a population of ten million people using our meat and our wool and manufacturing the goods our ships bring back. It seemed incredible that our shipping trade was not with Manchester. Our meat is taken to London and then railed, and likewise the goods are manufactured,o railed to London, and then shipped. When the shipping people there were asked why this was, they replied that it would continue so unless strong pressure was used at our own end to alter things. THE SPIRIT OF FRANCE.

In France there was also a wonderful spirit of determination. Three out of every four women were in heavy mourning. It was a credit to the women of Britain where it was the custom not to wear mourning, that they did not ]et their sorrow be known and thus prevent this feeling of depression. The party visited Albert which was close to where the, New Zealanders started from, and one of the first towns taken after the turn of the tide. It was previously a city of much activity. Now it was a wreck. They Iwent on to Bapaume stopping on the way to speak to the German prisoners in the cages. Our advance had started six weeks previously. It was evident that the morale, of the Germans had gone. The impression given by them was that they had lost heart and were fed up with it. They passed many small villages [where now there was scarcely a I stone left standing. The New Zealand Division was at Bapaume. but when the party came up the boys were out of the trenches, they having made an advance of seven miles. The officer told them the Germans were going on hell for leather. Here they saw General Russell—wherever they went there was one feeling of strong sentiment concernring him. He was extremely popular 'and every boy had the greatest possible confidence in him. New Zealand was fortunate in having General Richardson in London—they 'were two of the finest officers in the field. The headquarters, hospitals, etc. in London were an example of the great efficiency. So complete 'was the system that at the New Zealand headquarters General Richardson had a butcher’s shop where the wives of the soldiers (1,800 of whom had married) could get their meat, at New- Zealand retail prices. ' Y.M.C.A. EULOGISED. ' At Bapaume. one branch of work struck the speaker very much, that was the Y.M.C.A. The boys came straggling back tired after their advance and there was the Y.M.C.A.

dug out. As they came in they were provided with coffee, sandwiches and cigarettes free. Some of the boys said to him, say something good about the Y.M.C.A. when you get back to New Zealand. The nearer the line we are the better ths Y.M.C.A. Another said say something about Mr. Rayner, of Masterton —its buckshee here for a fortnight and he pays for the lot. How gratifying if that gentleman could see what his money was doing.

NEW ZEALANDERS FILL THE GAP.

The party then went to Hebuterne this of special interest to New Zea land. It was here that Gouch’s army turned and fled and the New Zealanders filled the gap. There they did the finest thing done in the whole war. The story should be written in letters of gold. The New Zealanders were at Ypres when the break of the sth. Army happened. The battalion in advance was the first battalion of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade and there was a great credit due to that battalion of only 1,000 men. They ha dto march 20 miles on one meal—it was then found thev were in the wrong direction and they had to turn and march another fifteen miles, when they were thrown into the gap facing the German army. They closed a six-; mile gap in the teeth of the German Army, although the whole division usually held only two miles. They were without artillery and had only their rifles and machine guns. Those 1,000 men not only closed the gap but. threw the Germans back a mile and would have driven them further, but their discipline was good and they waited for their reinforcements.

The Australians, who filled up another, gap, chased the Germans for five miles before they stopped. Our§ was a flying army, not keeping to the roads but running across country. What was it?—want- of courage or a question of efficiency that overtook the Tommies here when they fled ! To the credit of our rifle brigade they held that gap for two weeks with only rifles and machine guns. The partv subsequently viewed Passchendaele, Mr. Kenimel etc. The day will come, said the speaker when the people will demand that the story of Passchendaele be investigated if only in justice to those who lost their lives there and to those who acquitted themselves so well when we might have succeeded only that other things were wanted. Up to then the New Zealanders were titled the best fighting division in France, and though they lost their title then, they had, when the party were there, gained up to third again. The casualties at Gallipoli and Suvla Bay were only 6,400 but in half an hour at Passchendaele 7,500 lives were lost. When Messines ridge captured and everything was advancing tiiere was an unfortunate mutiny among the French army and that little trouble lost us the fruit of that advance.

The visitors were under shell-fire for five days in one instance. There had been many crises in this war, but perhaps the greatest took place just before the Americans came in. All our money was gone and we had pledged our last security, when in came America and poured in her money. NAVY AND MERCHANT SERVICE. Speaking of the Navy, Mr. Geddis said, he was sorry they couht not tell more about their memorable trip in this respect. They had been shown recent inventions —wonderful contrivances, ready to t.« s against the Germans —it was rather a pity the war had ended before these had been used. Touching on the Mercantile Marine, he said it had been said that all the boatshad been sunk by submarines, but a glimpse here would show otherwise. There had never been a strike in the Mercantile Marine, and after the men returned after being torpedoed they always went straight to the Ship’s offices. On the party’s boat, the Adriatic, nearly all hands had been torpedoed on several occasions.

SCOTLAND AGAIN. Referring again to Scotland, the speaker said there were here some 5,000 girls making shells and at least 60 per cent of these were people of independant means, not working for wages, but. for the nation. Nearly all the N.Z. and Australian soldiers got their leave tickets made out for Edinburgh—here the hospitality was wonderful, and the houses were thrown open to all the soldiers. As far as soldiers and war was concerned their hospitality was great, sweeping, and wonder-

LIQUOR CONTROL. Touching on the licensing question, Mr. \leddis said they were invited to visit. Carlisle to see State control. Its population was 00,000 and State controlled covered an area of 110,000 people. There were, formerly 119 hotels and four breweries, but the State control reducca the number to 70 hotels and one brewery. The average cost to the State was* £2.000 for a hotel (£5.,000 for the best) while for one brewery they had paid £90.000. This had caused the drunkenness to diminish —they had of course, shortened their hours and the profit, for the year was 15 per cent. This one district was done as an experiment. In Paris the visitors had seen a ■Tittle Bertha” gun captured from the Germans on August Bth. It was an object of interest and had been viewed by one million people in one afternoon. Its barrel was 40 l*-et long, it had a range of 20 miles, weighed 149 tons in mounting, and took 50 men to work it. THE EMPIRE'S UNITY.

Speaking of the marvellous response to the Empire’s call, he said there was not a corner of the globe where Britishers lived that they haa not responded. From the British Club at Honolulu where they visited, the membership had dropped from 490 to 270. The latter were all aged men. They went away on boats in any capacity, as they didn't then have America's consent, ami didn’t care how they got away to the front. He quoted several other instances of the response from the remote British dominions.

As to Ireland one had only to look up the casualties to see how many were serving at the I ront —with the Black Watch and with every- other regiment. The Irishman may not have enlisted as he should have in his own country, but they were in the British Army. It was a mistake to suppose that Ireland was not doing its share. TV hen the speaker and nartv were on the Adriatic en route to England, of a draft of 3000 soldiers from America, half had Irish names. VISIT TO IRELAND.

The partv visited Ireland and there found two sections of the people (Home Rulers) the Nationalists and the Sinn Feiuers. A deputation

headed by Messrs Dillon and Devlin waited on them and said there was an unreasonable wave over the country —the Sinn Feiners would sweep them in the election. Sinn Feiners waited on the visitors. They were educated men of distinction. The party told them of their Home Rule convictions but, the Sinn Feiners said they didn’t have any time for Home Rule and they wanted a Republic, to make their own treaties, have their own army, etc. It. was hopeless. To do what they wanted would mean another Heligoland alongside Britain. He was convinced that in the end they would bo quite reasonable and accept reasonable conditions. They were at present living in the memory of the past. Midst loud acclamation, the speaker, on the motion of Mr. J. H. Coleman, seconded by Mr. R. M. Chadwick, was accorded a hearty vote of thanks.

Mr. Kettle said it would be very pleasing to the Napier public if he would deliver this interesting leetuie at a public meeting. Mr. Geddis said he would be happy to do so if they so desired it, and he would also be able to make use of 100 lantern slides taken on the tour.

Mr. Harvey said it would be very advisable for the Chamber of Commerce to likewise have a talk wiut the sneaker on commercial matters.

Mr. Geddis in reply said it had been said that the prices of commodities Would rule high but from information gained abroad, he was of opinion that there would be a sharp fall in freight when the ships are released, and because of competition then' would be a tendency of the prices on the market to fall. This concluded the address.