WELCOME TO NELSON

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LVI, 20 January 1926, Page 4

WELCOME TO NELSON

HON. W. PEMBER REEVES NEW ZEALAND'S SCENIC BEAUTY AIR BEEVES AND INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES There are many reasons for the hearty welcome the Hon. Pember Reeves has been accorded wherever he has gone! on bis present tour of New Zealand. As a journalist, member of Parliament, and -Minister of the Crown in New Zealand, and as Agent -General for New Zealand in Great. Britain, the Hon. .Mr Reeves rendered valuable service to this countrv. When his term at what is now the High Commissioner's office expired, Air Reeves occupied many very important positions in Great Britain, and at the moment he is chairman of directors of the National Bank of New Zealand. His lucks on New Zealand have done much to give, the people of this country a good insight into their own history and to make New Zealand more intelligently known abroad. And it is Pember Reeves, the poet, who has immortalised the tui, "Eaters of honov. honey-sweet

of song.

THIRTY YEARS' ABSENCT

Air Reeves had been away from New Zealand for over thirty years, and speaking to a representative of The Mail to-day he said that during that time be had visited a good many other countries and seen very fine scenery in Europe. North America. and in the tropical islands, and be felt some mis givings as he neared New Zealand as to whether lie won hi find that some of the old pictures in his mind of New Zealand were not exaggerated by affection or fancy. "But." said Air Reeves. "T may say 1 found just the other thing. I have spent over two months travelling rapidly through the country and I am very pleased to say that 1 think New Zealand is a more beautiful country than ever I did.

SCENES OF ENCHANTING BEAUTY

"From the moment I landed, or before I landed, when wo were entering tiie Hauraki Gulf till yesterday in Nelson, I have hardly pased a day without seeing something that in any part of the world would be called fine scenery. Take your own town for example. Now, yesterday, twice I climbed up a little way, once to the Cawthron Institute and again up Richardson Street above Washington Valley- and I can only say that the view from both these places, the extent, the outline of distant mountains, and the sweep of the Bay, the brilliant, sunshine, the rich colouring of the set-Tie, the blues and greens of the sea, and the browns, yellows and greens of the land, equalled the finest views in Italy or Greece. I may say I have seen many views' both in Italy and Greece.

UNSURPASSED IN THE WORLD

"Then to go to one other place. I travelled by motor from Hokitika to Franz Josef Glacier. Of that journey 1 can only say that for combined wild forest scenery, glorious outline of fulls and mountains and great background of ice and snow, that 1 consider it unsurpassed in the world. I don't say that carelessly. I consider it unsurpassed in the world. I can say almost as much for Lake Manapouri in Southland.

TOURIST POSSIBILITIES Continuing, Air Reeves said that if it were possible to make the beanies of New Zealand known in England, Europe and America among the classes able to afford tiie longer journey, he considered there was no doubt that the number of tourists to this country would be doubled or trebled.

A SACRED TRUST "While talking about that," said 'Mr Reeves, "I would say again what I have said elsewhere, that the people of New Zealand ought to regard the preservation of the scenic loveliness of the conntry as a sacred trust. The beautiful scenes of these islands are not only a national asset. It is not too much to say that they are one of the possessions of the world, and to destroy them ought to be regarded as a sacrilege. Now, there is no denying that a good deal of forest scenery has been destroyed and that some of it has been marred recklessly and without any economic advantage.

In a speech which I delivered at Greymouth last week I ventured to advise the people of Westlancl to adopt as their motto —"Keep the trees up and the weeds down." And, said :Mr Reeves (with a smile), I would venture to say the same to the people of certain other parts of New Zealand. "PROGRESS OF NELSON "It is 32 years since I saw Nelson, and I have seen much more, sign of change and progress than Iliad been led to expect. Not only had the business part of the town been enlarged and improved, but the standard of comfort and taste in the dwelling houses had improved very much more. The gardens have gone ahead and the growth of trees, almost imperceptible to the residents strikes the visitor to such an extent that it has changed the whole look of the place. Almost nothing is unchanged, except the old Provincial Buildings, which did not seem even to have been painted. When I last saw them they seemed to be in need of a ccut of paint. Apparently they had not had it yet. Mr Reeves also noticed considerable progress all the way from Reefton, especially in the Waimeas.

A NATIONAL TYPE "•Generally the people, as far as one can judge on such a visit, seem to have shared in the improvement which I have noticed elsewhere in New Zealand to-day. New Zealanders to-day are a finer race physically than 30 years ago and they have a more cheerful and prosperous look. This applies even more to children than to older people The national type which is forming ir, New Zealand and which is a very marked and easily noticeable type is a good one. and it is one that is likely to differ from the British type as it does from the Canadian or Australian. It is. of course, most marked in its great difference Irian the people of the United St."* ps.

Air Reeves's remark concerning native birds was "For Heaven's sake, preserve them." He found the song birds were much less numerous than when he was in New Zealand before anil he hoped every effort would be made to protect them.

successful and more useful than I hoped when 1 framed it. New Zealand has its industrial troubles, but they are small affairs compared with those of the Old Country, and I believe that arbitration is mainly responsible.

VAST COST OF BRITISH STRIKES

"In England, scarcely a day passes without a serious strike, and the cost of these disputes to the whole community is terrific. It is simply appalling. T lie country is trembling to think what may happen if the coalminers and transport workers come out in the .spring. Aleradv it has cost the community £11.000,000 to stave off the trouble for a while, and when you find a Conservative Prime .Minister like Mr Baldwin making a concession like that, you can understand how serious the situation is. If there is a fight the community is bound to win, but. al what a cost! "1 know Hie Arbitration Court- in New Zealand is criticised a good deal; but that 'is. only lo he expected. It is fairly good if an arbitrator can satisiy even one side. The side that does not get all it wants is always inclined to say that it could have got. more by fighting.

OUTLOOK FOR BRITISH TRADE "I do not want anyone to assume from what 1 have said about the troubles in the Old Country that Britain is on ln>r way to ruin,"' continued Mr Beeves, "Talk of that sort 'is simply foolishness. It is true that there is an i nonmcus amount of unemployment, but. unfortunately there lias been a. large amount of it in normal years for a long while past. There are people who wilt tell you that Britain's foreign trade is falling off. The fact is that the world trade litis decreased, but the latest figures shows that Britain has still the same share of it as she hau before the war. She has the best finance in the world. Her banking system is excellent and thoroughly sound, and she litis considerable resources. CO.YI 1N KN'TA L INDUSTRY "So far asToreign trade is concerned, that is bound to recover in time. 1 was on the Continent not long'ago, and 1 found that everywhere industry was getting on to its feet, again, even in politically disturbed districts. That does not mean that- the Continent will need less British goods. Such things have a habit of Settling themselves. When people develop their industries they have more money to spend, and they buy more goods. Germany, it must be admitted, has won back many of her old markets, but she is also becoming a large buyer of English manufactured goods. The Germans are not a people one likes very jnuch, but they have a great deal of common-sense and perseverance, and now with something like a currency they are likely to become good customers of ours.'' SPRAYED APPLES Asked what he thought of the references made at Home to the use of arsenate sprays on apples, Mr Reeves said he did not attach much importance to it. "We have had that sort of thing over and over again. As AgentGeneral, over thirty years ago he had had to write to The Tunes contradicting statements that had been made that frozen meat was most deleterious to public health, He had been obliged to point out that if there was any truth in the statements the whole population would have been ravished because the people had eaten millions of carcases under the impression that it was fresh meai. They had had the same thing with, the cheese and butter. Now they were taking a turn at the apples. It might be the apricots, or .something, else. next. Seriously, he did not attach 'much importance to the matter.

CAWTHRON INSTITUTE The Hon. Mr Reeves yesterday paid a visit to the Cawthrou Institute and he was pleased to meet his old friend, Professor Eastcrtield. "1 was responsible for the Professor coining to New Zealand," said Mr Reeves—at least, when I was Agent-General 1 was asked to select a scientist for Victoria College and 1 advised Professor Easterfield and he was appointed. It was a real pleasure to note the great work already done and m progress at the Cawthron Institute. The Government was carrying on a fine work in this direction, but it was good to have a. private institution also working in the same direction.