THE STARVING PEOPLES OF EUROPE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 80, 30 August 1945, Page 7

THE STARVING PEOPLES OF EUROPE

, i (To the Editor) J Sir.—ln your issue of 23rd August , appeared a letter signed J. Glendin- ’; ning. The writer says “is it not possible to have at least one meatless day a : week?” in order to help the starving people of Europe. None will make light of the distress of those peoples but the suggestion of “one meatless day a week” seems to indicate that the writer of the letter can know little of present conditions here amongst the general public or else is living in very fortunate circumstances. Almost every household has ’ meatless days under our present I rationing and very many families | several meatless days per week. In j small households of two or three perI sons there may be perhaps four days a week which are meatless. And are “we in New Zealand prob- ; ably better fed than any other country” ; (to quote the letter again)? The meat, butter, tea. sugar rations are fixed at a point which only suffices to keep our people in condition to carry on their duties and remain fit enough to produce and send anything abroad. In fact i some of our workers have already pro- | tested and have carried their point, i that the ration is insufficient to sustain I them in full vigour. I It is dreadful to know that there are , starving people anywhere but we are j doing all we can to relieve them in | respect of rationing ourselves in food. Very many have had several meatless 1 days a week for long since—and often j butterless, tealess, sugarless, days, too. The people of New Zealand have ac J ce Pted willingly this rationing and no I doubt will continue to do so as long as lit may be necessary. But the letter of ] J. Glendinning would surely convey to I persons outside’ New Zealand that we have meat when we like and therefore one meatless day a week would be a small sacrifice and that we feed ourselves now “better than any other country.” This would be a wrong im. oression and one n ot founded on fact —" I am. etc., j Nelson. 25th August.