“NOT A TRUE PICTURE”

New Zealand Times, Volume XLVII, Issue 10852, 18 March 1921, Page 5

“NOT A TRUE PICTURE”

..i. UvUiIiGRANT'S STSRY

•THE GREEN FIELDS OF DISTANT NEW ZtALVM):’

BIGH RENTS AND UNEMPLOYMENT

"W«U. it*s a littlo* different to irliat 1 Trask ted to expect, ami it certainly would k© better for the num at Home it the true position of affairs iu New Zealand were put before him.'* Thus >poke an immigrant, who recently arriveu in New Zealand, to a “New* Zealand Times” reporter. The man, who came from Coventry, in Warwickshire, was forty-two years of ajpe, was married, and had three chil-dren—-one. a girl, aged sixteen years, in domestic service; the other two au public school. “NOT A TRUE PICTURE/” "Now, let me make the position clear to you/* ho proceeded. “I don’t w'ant to complain, or to throw bUune about that*s not mv style- I have made a mistake, that's all. and I don’t roind. suffering for it; but it hurts to fee tho wife and children auffetrinff and anxioue. Rut I do want to say that the picture of New Zealand, as presented to us at Home, was not a true one—it was too highly coloured, and tho statement made were scarcely accurate. "For years I have been looked upon aa a good workman. lam a fitter— an<t held responsible position* in Sheffield, Birmingham, n,rul, latterly, at Coventry—at the big Daimler works. I served two years in Franc© and Flnndors, and after* being 'whanged' ‘hiad a spell in hospital, and then went on war work. We certainly made good money—-big money, if vou like, compared to what we earned in pre-war days—’but, mind you. we had to work hard, and there was a great 'do* (complaints, you know !> if we didn't turn out the ‘articles. •'Well, T had saved a hit. and after chatting it over with the wife. <)f?ide»i to come out to New Zealand, \\ e compared all the likely places —Canada, South Africa, Australia—with New Zealand. and decided on the latter. A WONDERFUL COUNTRY, BUT "It is a wonderful country —an island with a great future before it, but it not what it is cracked up to be *' "Might that not be said of almost any part of the globe?” the "Times” man ventured. "Distant field* are always gteen, you know.” "Yes, I admit all that/' was the response, "but the awful position in New Zealand with regard to nousing ita people was absolutely misrepresented to us, noth as to the houses available, and the rents we would be* called upon to pay. The first was possibly multiplied by t w o» and the latter divided by the same number. At any rat* we found that the number of houses available was not nearly enough to go round, and the rents were double what we were told to expect/' "It seems to be a world-wide comElaint and not peculiar to New Zea»nci/’ the "Tirae®" man remarked; "in England the same difficulty presents itT know that—everybody in England and outai<l© of England knows it. The very fact that you know it out here ehows that the true position at Home is made public, and not concealed. I know we are not supposed to know as much about a email place like New Zealand a® we do about the Mother Country, but the point, rather than tho complaint. I wish to make is that the true position as far as house accommodation and rents in New Zealand are concerne ! Is not made known to intending emig*ant.«. The representatives of the , New Zealand Government are surely not j supposed to indue© men and women to j leave Rigland—or anyhere else—by presenting highly-coloured picture* of New Zealand and the conditions obtain'-ig here, and deliberately withholding in- | formation as to the true position. It is , a suicidal policy, for the facte are soon ■ sent back, and possible a wrong im- i nreseion—likely to do the Dominion I harm in the future —is created. ] UNEMPLOYMENT? “Then again, we were told that all available labour would be absorbed. This , also was not the truth. It seems to me that New Zealand's moat pressing need at the present time ia unskilled labour. Carpenters, bricklayers, and others useful for building construction are in good demand, but many skilled tradesmen, mechanics, from Home are nervous that unemployment will stare them in the face during the coming ; winter. Some of my chums have had anything but a pleasant time already.*' "The aftermath of war is affecting all nations/* the "Times'* man said. "That is so. lam not complaining of that. We have to take our chance no matter where we are. But I really do think we have cause for complaint in that we have not had presented to us the true position out here. Remember, New Zealand is little known to many millions at Home, and when men ana women are prepared to give of their best, and seek a now country in which to settle, they should be afforded the fullest—and the truest—-information, and hare to journey 13,000 miles to learn the unpalatable truth."