NORTHERN ADVOCATE DAILY With which is incorporated the NORTHERN MAIL DAILY. MONDAY, JUNE 3, 1918. THE DRIFT TOWNWARDS.

Northern Advocate, 3 June 1918, Page 2

NORTHERN ADVOCATE DAILY With which is incorporated the NORTHERN MAIL DAILY.

MONDAY, JUNE 3, 1918. THE DRIFT TOWNWARDS.

Registered for transmission through the post as a newspaper.

In the course of his remarks at the reunion of farmers in Auckland last week the Mayor (Mr J. H. Gunson) drew attention to the fact that there was a tendency for copitry population to drift townwardk This tendency Mr Gunson deprecated because he held that the future prosperity of the country depended upon the continued increase in productivity. Naturally, he held that New Zealand was dependent upon its rural ,dis- ; trict for wealth production, hence' the inclination to seek the pleasures of city life was against the best interests of the country. There can be no doubt that our population is showing a desire for town life, but is that not to be expected? Are not the circumstances such that people nai turally seek the comfort and prii vileges of a city in preference to the J discomfort, and frequently downright hardship, of a country existence? If we want to keep our population in the country districts is it not wise to see what can 'be done to counteract the city attractions? We may regret'the drift, but it will assuredly continue unless some effort is made in this direction. A contemporary dealing with this subject points out that New Zealand, in its present state of development, is particularly fortunate in its towns. Unlike New South Wales and Victoria, which have developed two great centres in which half the population of the State is collected, we have four chief towns, in none of which is the population very great, and a number of other centres which are developing just as rapidly as'the larger cities. At present we have, 'except in ,the case of Wellington, which ia badly eituated for a large town, nothing that might not be described as a country town, where most residents 1 can have a garden, where there ia little overcrowding, and the smokd nuisance is unknown. Only those acquainted with the poorer parts of London or the great manufacturing towns of the north of England can realise what a town at its worst can be. Miles of mean t streets where the children's only playground is the pavement or gutter, where clothes are dried on lines stretched from one side of the streets to the other and blackened in the process by the show- " ers of smuts that are constantly fallI ing, with the whole sky, except on ' Sunday, shrouded in smoke from faci tory chimneys, and not a green thing ~ to be seen; these are the conditions in which hundreds of thousands of fc British citizens spend their lives. L We can at any rate resolve that conditions like these shall never be repeated in this Dominions In the old days, when everyone had to live * near his daily work, owing to lack S of rapid locomotion, the evil seemed J beyond remedy, but rapid means of [ transit and improved roads are now ), making it possible for many workers v to live in the suburbs, and it is forF tunate for us that our towns are growk> ing , up at a time when these traffic ► facilities are daily becoming more ► developed. It is therefore probable » ] that with ordinary foresight our * towns will never become so congested as those in older countries. We L must see to it that our towns are kept healthy, but we must also enC deavour to give the people who live f in the country some of the advan- ; tages which those who live in the towns enjoy. When country resii dents can get into town only by Jog- \ ging for hours behind a horse they y are likely to enjoy the pleasure rajre- ► ly and think highly of it. But if ► they can bowl in a motor along good I roads and visit a town frequently without losing much time familarity h will breed contempt, and they will [ realise more strongly the advantages X country life provides. But for I country life to be attractive there, * must be good roads and close settl»ment. Town people pay rates foY

all their conveniences, and grumble far less than the farmer who grudges the provision of a decent road. When a man has a frontage of half a mile or more his share of the cost of roading is naturally large, but if half n. dozen small farms replace the large one the cost r is borne by six instead of one. It is a feature of the evidence before Military Service Boards that in many cases Taranaki farmers make small use of their land. A man with 300 acres will milk 30 cows, and a man with 100 acres a dozen. In ! some cases this means that the land is rough, but in most it means that •;oo much land is held for the labour available, and that dry stock is run, vhich produces far less than dairy ows. The hunger for land is a most curious thing, as it constantly .cads men to monopolise far more ;han they can use most profitably, [fc is difficult for the Government to attempt legislation to cause people to cut up their farms, but it is desirxble that many a farmer should ask himself whether he is using all his and to the best advantage, and whether he is likely to be able to do so in View of the present position and prospects of the labour market; and, if the answer is in the negative, either alter his methods or reduce his ■ holding.