INTERESTING TRIP

Northern Advocate, 19 August 1935, Page 5

INTERESTING TRIP

THE PRIME MINISTER JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS. RESEARCH INVESTIGATIONS. The value of the closest possible contact between the various parts of the British Commonwealth, of Nations was stressed by the Prime Minister,- Mr G. W. Forbes, on arrival in Wellington today from the King’s Silver Jubilee Celebrations, and the Empire Economic Conference, in which he was joined by the Minister of Finance, Mr J. G. Coates. , The Prime Minister has had a strenuous time during his absence abroad, and, apart from the Jubilee celebrations, spent some time in investigating the position of New Zealand trade in the United Kingdom and possible avenues for future improvement and extension. Mr Forbes said that the homage paid to Their Majesties, the King iand Queen, during the Jubilee celebration, was a wonderful illustration of the deep and abiding affection, which; the people have for their Sovereign. Lon--doners were in closer contact with the King 1 than any other people of the Empire and their demonstrations of fervent loyalty were spontaneous and unprecedented. They made one realise the pre-eminent and noble part which the King played in unifying the British Empire into the world force it was today. At all times during his reign, . the King had shown a deep concern for the welfare of his people, and his example and encouragement during the trying period of the last 26 years were ineffaceable in the hearts of the people. Deeply Impressed. Every representative of the Dominions had been deeply by the bond that existed between” the King and his people, and it had,, indeed, been a privilege to take part in the celebrations. During i his sojourn in the United Kingdom, Mr Forbes took the opportunity of visiting a number of special research stations, and gained much valuable information about problems, the solutions of which New' Zealand producers and industrialists were endeavouring to find. “At the British Government fuel research station, I was impressed with the progress of research* as applied to coal carbonisation and hydrogenation,” said the Primes Minister,” and I have made arrangements for New Zealand to be kept fully informed as to future developments. From the information I obtained, I would not say that the time is yet ripe for operations along these lines in New Zealand. In fact,' there is every need for caution, as much money has been lost in these ventures already, but .the experiments which are being carried out make one realise that the future; of coal is much brighter than it, w.a^..a few years ago. “I have made arrangements for Mr Joiner, of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, to investigate work being carried out at the Imperial Chemical Industries , great works at Billingham, and to keep in close touch with the fuel research station. This will enable us to be kept fully informed. of the latest developments.” Experimental Farm.

Mr Forbes also visited an experimental farm run by Imperial Chemi-;' cal Industries, and was impressed: by the researches being carried out in pasture preservation and the drying of grass. It was claimed that dried grass was not only,a most palatable form of stored stock food, but also retained all its nutritive qualities. The latest investigations in entomology, particularly in reference to the Controlling of destructive insects, also claimed the attention of the Prime Minister. He paid a profitable visit to 1 the Cambridge University low temperature research station, where problems surrounding the carriage of frozen and chilled meat, and other products, were being tackled with no little success. Investigations into the maintenance of bloom on frozen and chilled meat were progressing favourably, and, if they were brought to a successful conclusion, the selling, value of New Zealand’s meat products would be enhanced. Research into the carriage of fruit was yielding encouraging results, and there was no doubt that members of the staff at Cambridge were both etitliusiastic and highly qualified. A morning was also spent at the paint research station, which has been conducting experiments with kauri gum. “In the Forefront.” “There is no doubt that Great Britain, today, stands in the forefront of nations. She has not endeavoured to combat economic adversity with spectacular, but untried experiments, which 100 frequently bring unexpected repercussions, but has relied on traditionally sound principles. The result is that today she is the envy of most of the other nations of the world.” Mr Forbes went on. “She has achieved stability, while many other nations are still groping for panaceas, and she is in a position to take every advantage of the upward trend of industry and trade. We. in New Zealand, cannot help being gratified by the improvement in her trade and industries, as a prosperous Britain means an ample and remunerative market for our produce."