THE BACK BLOCKS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19459, 15 October 1926, Page 8

THE BACK BLOCKS.

Sir,—Writing on unemployment, "Rack Blocks" has given us a few home truths worthy of consideration by cur administrators. Xt is time our Government endeavoured to make the life of the back blocker a little less of a drudge. There are farms at the extremity, of many miles of poorly-formed mud roads, which are impassable for wheel traffic five months of the year. If wife or children require a doctor the amount of money asked by a professional man to go into the back blocks is prohibitive; no wonder, considering what he has to ro through to reach the suffering ones. The children have no school, and in our own case, on making inquiries from the Education Department regarding correspondence classes, we. are told the classes are full; to write again. Just one example of how Our State advances help the back blocker regarding finance. A soldier with over four years' war service - wished to try and continue doing his bit on his return home. With a few hundred pounds he paid a deposit on a farm. * Then he approached the State Advances for a loan for stock, improvements, etc., but after much delay he was refused assistance. After a time he had to walk off the place and took up carpentering in Auckland. Wishing to settle down he became interested in a leasehold section, with the usual 60ft. frontage, and, on application to the State Advances, received £llOO to build a house thereon. What an asset to a country that is depending upon the produce of the land for its very existence! Parawera. W.' Woodward.