A LAND OF CONTRASTS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21828, 15 December 1932, Page 8

A LAND OF CONTRASTS.

It’s an ill wind that blows nobody good. A recent cablegram pictured the town of Reno in Nevada as tottering on the brink of bankruptcy. It was filled with stranded American citizens unable to make use of the famous or notorious “ divorce-mill ” because it had been brought to a standstill by the financial crisis, or to recover the dollars which they had deposited in the banks because these institutions had inconsiderately closed their doors. But Reno’s loss is apparently to be the gain of another Nevada city. An attorney at law, from Las Yegas, lately told us of the reputation which that city is building up as a centre of prompt and efficacious divorce activities. Though himself a native of New South Wales he evidently regards the rapid growth of the divorce business at Las Vegas as a matter for considerable satisfaction. Not without a touch of pride he has told how he himself established something of a record in filing four divorce actions in the case of members of one family in one day. But while the law stands as it is at present it is to be apprehended that no envious city-in New Zealand, hankering after a new and thriving industry, can hope to make the process of divorce the basis of either a claim to celebrity or a fresh era of prosperity. In the great American Republic, however, a different soil encourages strange growths and developments. If one State is so old-fashioned as to make divorce a little difficult there are other States more accommodating, and Reno and Las Yegas compete with each other in extending hospitality to prospective divorcees well provided with the necessary dollars. As a land of high contrasts the United States has no rival, either in prosperity or in depression. Just as it has, or had, more millionaires than any other country, so it has more tramps and vagrants. If no country can vie with the United States in munificence, no country can apparently match it in sordidness, A few yards from millionaire homes in New York could recently be found dreary encampments of homeless wanderers, members of the so-called “ Bonus Array.” The spectacle of thousands of vagrants travelling the highways in dilapidated motor cars which they acquire for a song has ceased to be anything new. It is more astonishing to read that social workers estimate that there are several hundred thousand adolescent boys wandering about the country, most of them victims of the break-ing-up of homes by the depression, who live mainly by petty thieving and begging. The great country which is famous for its magnificently endowed educational institutions, as a patron of culture, as a market for the world’s greatest historic treasures, and as a Mecca for its finest artists, has a seamy side which runs equally to extremes. It is the country in which the gangster and racketeer flourish, in which the criminal defies the law with impunity and crime goes undetected on a scale unparalleled in any other land, in which the kidnapper plies his abominable trade, in which conniption among State officials even in high places is an affair of every day, and in which the dissolution of the marriage bond can be reduced to the level of a mere business transaction. All these manifestations seem to be accepted entirely as a matter of course, even as if they represented no more than an inevitable and characteristic feature of the national life. Though these extremes l in one direction or another may never cease to be impressive to the foreigner, the average American citizen does not appear to be particularly conscious of or sensitive about the social inconsistencies or sharp contrasts presented in the civilisation of his country.

Holidays for Children The Mayor (Mr 11. 8. Black) wishes to thank all country friends who have made it possible for him to send so many children away during the holiday period. This scheme, which Mr Black started last year, has been the means of improving the health of a great number of children. There is still quite a number of children waiting a chance to get some country air, and the Mayor would like to hear further from friends in the country who are sympathetic with this movement. Mr Black wishes to thank the owners of buses who have conveyed the children to the country free of charge.

Liner to Visit Milford Sound The Wellington office of the Huddart, Parker, Company has received advice that its new 10,000-ton motor ship Wanganella (formerly the Achimota), which is at present en route from Belfast to Sydney, will leave Sydney on January 12 for Wellington, and will arrive there on January 16. She will, leave the same day on a trip to Milford Sound, and is due back at Wellington on January 20, leaving the same day for Sydney. She will leave Auckland on February 2 for Sydney and Melbourne, and will leave Melbourne on February 8 for Wellington, via Sydney, leaving Sydney on February 10 for Wellington. It is believed that the Wanganella will maintain Melbourne as part of her service, proceeding there from Auckland and Sydney. The Wanganella will only carry first and second-class passengers. The Zeiiandia, which is at present in the New .'Zealand-Australia service, will be transferred to the Sydney-Hobart service, leaving Sydney on January 11 for Hobart.

Cheese and Butler Shipments The steamer Port Brisbane, which arrived at Bluff last Sunday from Australia, loaded 10,000 crates of cheese and 3000 boxes of butter at the southern port for London. The butter consignment included 2000 boxes which were railed from Dunedin to Bluff. The shipment of produce lifted by the Port Brisbane was an exceptionally large one.

Burnside Stock Sales There was a general slump iu the stock market at the Burnside sales yesterday, most classes being sold at greatly reduced prices. This was due to the market being over-supplied. At this time of the year larger yardings are expected, but yesterday’s entry of 370 head of fat cattle was well above the estimated figure. In consequence of this the over-supply caused « drop of 20s per head all round, and in some cases about 30s per head. Consignments of the best bullocks were sent :n from Timaru and Balclutha. but only oue consignment gained the highest price, £9 2s 6d. The balance of the heavy cattle sold from £7 10s to £8 10s. A large number of handy-weight bullocks were entered, but these only brought from £6 10s to £7 10s. Heavy cows were worth from £3 to £5 10s, and light heifers £4 17s 6d. Prime ox beef was worth only 17s 6d per 1001 b. Fat lambs also suffered from the slide in prices, the reduction being from 2s to 3s 6d per head at the commencement of the sale. There was a further decline as the sale progressed, until lambs were sold well under the prices offered by freezing buyers at the opening. The top price was reached early in the sale when extra heavy lambs realised 13 e 6d, but the majority until then brought from 11s to 12s. Prime heavy lambs were worth only 3|d, and prime light-weights about 4d per lb. A line of light steers in the store cattle pens met with little competition, and brought £3 10s per head. The usual number of aged cows comprised the bulk of the entry, and these sold at late rates. Out of an entry of 2000 sheep only four or five pens of prirtie wethers were forward. The opening prices were about on a par with those realised at the previous sale, but the market soon showed an easing tendency, and towards the close of the sale values all round showed a drop of Is and Is 6d per head. Prime shorn wethers were worth 12s 3d-, and prime shorn ewes 10s per head. In the pig section 124 fats and 27 stores were forward. The yarding met with good competition, and last week’s, values were maintained. Bacon pigs were worth 4§d and porkers about 5d per It, A double sale will lee held next week, which will be the last before Christmas.

Eels Attack Young Duck* Interesting information regarding eels in the Waikaka and other streams was contained in the letter of a Gore sportsman received at a meeting of the council of the Southland Acclimatisation Society. The writer stated that on a recent evening, fishing on the Waikaka at Gore, he had pulled out eight eels and inside three of them had found the loins of young grey duck and the remains of feet. Another large eel contained three one-week-old ducks. His sons had taken about 700 eels out oi; the Mataura in the past two years by means of the two traps sent up by the society to Gore. The reason, he obtained a goed bag from one lagoon every year was because he and his companion had taken about 200 eels out of it, while other lagoons were full of eels and the ducks would not stop in them. On a lagoon behind his property where he had cleaned the eels out it was a pleasure to see the ducks bring out up to 10 young ones and lose none of them. Before the lagoon was cleaned out, the ducks would finish up with only one or two young ones ouf of a clutch.

Useless Works Large sums of public money were being frittered away upon trivial and useless works, merely because they represented an easy method of granting unemployment pay for a pretence of labour, said Mr M. G. C. M'Caul when speaking at a meeting of the Wellington branch of the Town Planning Institute on Tuesday evening. The subject of unemployment, said Mr M'Caul, had been before the country so much in the last two years that the public had become so inured to it as to bo in danger of accepting it. as normal. Every man and woman employed in trade and industry were paying heavily out of wages for the relief of unemployment, and they had a right to expect that the money was administered with a due sense of responsibility, and that those responsible for its disbursement would be able to point to the creation of permanent assets at least equal in value to the money spent. If an inventory were taken of the assets created in the last 12 months in exchange for the vast expenditure, said Mr M'Caul, he believed there would be a wave of indignation throughout the country that would cause Government and local bodies to reform their methods. Municipal authorities were not wholly to blame, as owing to the large amount of unskilled labour discharged from Government employ, an onerous and unfair burden, which should have been borne by the Government, had been thrown on the cities.

Man Lost Overboard A Chinese seaman was lost overboard in the Pacific from the Bank Line steamer Yoseric, which arrived at Auckland from Makatea Island at mid-day on Saturday. The accident occurred in moderate weather during the afternoon, three days after the vessel left Makatea. The man was working on deck when he fell overboard. A lifebuoy was thrown to him and the steamer was put about and stopped. A boat was lowered and sent to the rescue, but before the Chinese could be reached he sank and was not seen again. After cruising in the vicinity for over an hour the steamer resumed her voyage.

Table that Belonged to a King A fine specimen of Flemish craftsmanship from the period of 1650-1700 has come into the hands of a Christchurch firm of auctioneers in the form of a finely-carved oak table, reputed once to have belonged to William of Orange. The table has been valued by the famous London antique dealers, Christie’s and Sotheby’s, at £3OO. When William of Orange came to England in 1688 he is said to have brought this table with him from Holland. The, table then made its ■way to Arundel Castle, the seat of the Duke of Norfolk, and remained there for many years, to be purchased by Dr Sophianopoulas, of Blackheath, London. Still later, the antique came into the possession of its present owner, Mrs PitzHerbert. Described as an outstanding example of its type, the table is extremely massive and intricately carved.

City Police Court At the City Police Court yesterday Sarah Elizabeth Smith, charged witt drunkenness, appeared before Mr J. il Bartholomew, S.M., and was fined 20s, it default 48 hours’ imprisonment.

Tribute to Sir Charles Statham A striking tribute to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Sir Charles Statham, was paid last evening by his Excellency the Governor-General (Lord Bledisloe) during the course of his address at the prize-giving ceremony of the Otago Boys’ High School. After referring to several old boys of the school who had distinguished themselves in public life, his Excellency made special mention of Sir Charles Statham, and said that the school and its pupils might well be proud to number among its old boys a man of the calibre of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. “No man in'any part of the British Empire,” he said, “ who has had occasion to hold the extremely delicate and difficult position of chairman of a representative assembly, has carried out his* duties with greater dignity and efficiency than your Sir Charles Statham. Flock House Committee

At a meeting of the provincial Flock House Committee presided over by Sir James Allen last evening, confidential reports ■concerning three applicants for training were received. It was reported that there were already two boys on the waiting list, and it was hoped to find places for them at Flock House early in the new year, when six boys would have completed their courses. An American Appreciation

It is always interesting to hear the remarks of residents in other countries regarding the Daily Times and Witness Christmas number. Writing to a wellknown resident of this city, an American business man states: —“They are the most remarkable products of their class I have ever seen; the paper, printing, and photography are all wonderful—far superior to anything I have ever seen in America. I have always taken a pleasure in sending these Christmas numbers to many of my friends, and have finally placed them in the libraries of onr schools, with which I have for many years been connected.’

New Zealand Roads Praised The roads of New Zealand are a credit to so young a country,” said Major D. S. Fraser, export'manager of Riley Motors (Coventry), Ltd., who has been touring the Dominion,, when interviewed by a Christchurch Press reporter on Tuesday. Major Fraser, whose tour includes not only New Zealand, but South Africa, Australia, India, and the Far East, travels everywhere possible by car, so that he may, get to understand road conditions in each of the countries he visits. He should know something about a very wide range of roads by the time he completes his present itinerary, for it involves travelling in all some 40,000 miles. “The engineering of the roads in New Zealand is so good,” he said. “ They are well cambered, and those responsible for them seem to have realised that we are living in 1932, when fast travel is the rule. But for the care that has been taken in planning them it would be impossible to travel at anything like the same speeds with safety. Having due regard for the by-laws and restrictions in town areas, I have found that I can make much faster averages over New Zealand roads than in England. I won’t say what my best speeds were, because I might have been breaking some regulation or other, but they were fast, and they were continued over long distances.” Taieri Flood Protection

Arising out of the discussions which have recently taken place regarding the affairs of the Taieri River Trust, some misunderstanding appears to have arisen as to the area affected by the trust’s schemes. It may help to clarify the position to state that only those farmers within the area hounded by the flood protection embankment and the contour channel are included in the area over which the trust exercises jurisdiction, and that the farmers of East and North Taieri are not included among those whose rating schedule in repayment of loan moneys has been altered by the new Bill. Steamers in Ballast

A .number of large overseas vessels will come to New Zealand during the next few months in ballast' to load New Zealand produce for Great Britain. One which has already arrived is the Federal Line steamer Huntingdon, which reached Wellington from Falmouth on November 29 and is now loading. She is being followed by the Shaw, Savill, and Albion steamers Wain,ana and Tairoa, which left England on November 18 and 24 respectively, and the Maimoa, which was scheduled to leave England on December 2. The Federal Line steamers Northumberland and Cumberland left England on November 25 and December 5 respectively, and the Kent is to leave late in December, the Hertford wilt leave early in January, the Cambridge about the middle of January, the Tekoa late in January, and the Somerset early in February. The Commonwealth and Dominion Line steamers Port Sydney, Port Bowen, and Port Victor are to proceed from England in ballast to Port Kembla, where they will bunker before loading either in Australia or New Zealand for Great Britain. The Port Sydney left England on October 27, the Port Bowen is to sail on December 28, and the Port Victor on December 30.

Company with Unusual Objects A company with somewhat unusual objects, the Mausoleum Society, Ltd., has been registered in Auckland. One of the purposes outlined in the memorandum of association (says our special correspondent) is to promote, advocate, and establish by all lawful means, and to undertake the practice of burial of the dead in mausolea or above ground. The company is a private one and it also proposes to carry on the business of undertakers and to conduct cremations. It 's proposed under the articles to maintain mausolea, vaults, tombs, colomburia, chapels and other buildings for interment. The capital of the Mausoleum Society, Ltd., is £SO in ft shares, and the subscribers are Messrs Charles Laycock and C. H. Knight, company directors, possessing '25 shares each.

Don’t forget your battery; it may treat you badly when a long way from home. Call and let us test it before you leave.— Austin, Motors fOtago), Ltd., 284-286 Princes street. Phono 13-213.—Advt. Save your eyes. Be wise* and consult w. ,V. Sturmer, optician (2 Octagon), thus conserving good vision for old aee. Give something Electrical this Christmas.—Barth Electrical Supplies, Ltd.. 50 Princes street, Dunedin. —Advt. A. E. <L Blakeley and W E. Hagley, dentists, Bank of Australasia, corner of Bond and Rattray streets (next telegraph Office) Telephone 12-359.—Advt