The Northern Advocate Daily “NORTHLAND FIRST” SATURDAY, JULY 29, 1939. The Country And The Town

Northern Advocate, 29 July 1939, Page 6

The Northern Advocate Daily “NORTHLAND FIRST”

SATURDAY, JULY 29, 1939. The Country And The Town

Registered for transmission through the post as a Newspaper 1

THE drift of population to the towns has become increasingly pronounced in recent years. Mr. C. J. Talbot's references to this problem, in,his presidential address to the,New Zealand Counties’ Association this week, were by no means ill-timed. To a certain degree the drift to the towns is a symptom of changing conditions of life the world over, but Mr, Talbot views it, too, as a challenge to country people to “set their house in order,” so as to make rural life attractive for young and old.

There is a certain type, of course, which will always be attracted by the somewhat spurious glitter of urban life. To these the lure, of the movies, dances, theatres and the bustle of the towns make an irresistible appeal. Nothing can be done to draw this, class of people back into the country so long as they can make an economic existence in the towns; but there are many others who have a different and perhaps a sounder sense of values, who have been drawn to the towns not so much because of the greater enjoyments to be found there, but because of elements that are lacking in country life in many districts in New Zealand.

Mr. Talbot seems to have been conscious of this when he said: “Lack of recreational facilities, lack of suitable companionship, lack of further and continual study in the form of adult community centres, libraries, drama, and other amenities in country areas, will all tend to make the towns and cities more attractive than the country.” Here he has undoubtedly clutched the crux of the problem. Country life in many districts is too harrow and restricted in its social and intellectual outlook, but there is no reason why broader interest should not be cultivated. Too often, unfortunately, there is a spirit of apathy and inertia among the local population, but this would disappear in many cases if an energetic lead were given, and in this the county councils could play a part. Mr, Talbot believes that the county councils can do much to stop the drift to the towns, but they may be open to the reproach that in the past they have not fully recognised their responsibilities in this direction. Too often the county councils have been content to be just glorified road boards, concerned with roads and bridges and rates and culverts, but not with the cultural and recreational aspect of life in their districts.

The average small country village—in Northland as in any other parts of New Zealand—certainly does not bear much evidence of any active community spirit, or of any directing influence concerned with promoting a full and enjoyable life for the people of the surrounding district. There is rarely any evidence of planned development. With its school, hotel, store, church and factory scattered among a few modest houses, the typical country village looks as if it had “just growed.” There is rarely any effort to beautify the place, and the social life to which younger generations grow up is all to frequently confined to occasional dances in an unattractive hall with a keg in a back room or in a car outside.

Surely it is possible for the country districts to do something better than this. There is a responsibility on the older people, for they show a disposition to leave such things to the younger folk, and among the young folk it is often those who are the most aggressive, but have no other qualities, who emerge as leaders. Is it not possible to visualise a little country village that could have its library and badminton and tennis club all flourishing and well supported, and all centred round a comfortable, well-equipped and well-conducted hall? Of course it is possible, for there are actually such townships, but they are few and far between. Too often apathy has triumphed over the first enthusiasm. The little community centre, instead of being a shining example of a keen co-operative spirit, presents a spectacle of depressing neglect. It would be so easy to improve matters. Certainly money is required, but a more important requisite is enthusiasm. How to awaken that enthusiasm and keep it alive, teaching country people that theirs is a life to be proud of, a life of full enjoyment, is the question to which the Counties’ Association should devote itself zealously, now that its president has given it a lead.