OVERSEAS LEAGUE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22741, 29 November 1935, Page 12

OVERSEAS LEAGUE

LECTURE ON NEW ZEALAND

(From Our Own Correspondent) (By Air Mail) . LONDON,. November 2.

A lecture entitled " New Zealand Today" was given by Mr H. T. B.'Drew (Government publicity officer) to members of the Overseas League at Vernon House. Lieutenant-colonel E. ff Lascelles presided. Mr Drew dealt with the trade, economic and social development of the country. The League of Nations statistics, he &aid, showed New Zealand to be in the forefront of nations as a dairy, mutton and lamb and meat exporting country, while she ranked as Britain's leading supplier of butter, cheese, mutton and lamb and her second supplier of wool. Surely this was a remarkable record for a country so far distant and with so comparatively small a population.

On the other hand, New Zealand today was a better customer of Britain in total purchases of manufactures than any country in Europe. In the last seven years she had bought from Britain £27,000,000 worth of goods more than Denmark, £65,000,000 more thna Russia, £45,000,000 more than Japan, and £34,000,000 more 'than China. It was purchasing capacity and sentiment that told, not populations. Mr Drew spoke of the Dominion's successful weathering of the slump and the steps taken to overcome her troubles. He said that a more-than-balanced Budget had been produced and the public debt had actually been reduced. He also briefly described the present developments in education, child welfare, the post, telegraph, telephonic, wireless and air services. He spoke of the present steps being taken to bring the Dominion abreast of all countries in the matter of transport, especially in regard to the co-relation of rail and motor services. In this connection, he said, the chairman of the New Zealand Railways Board (Mr H. H. Sterling, one of the most alert of the country's experts) was at present ransacking Britain, America, Canada and Europe for information.

The lecturer also referred to the tourist attractions, and illustrated this part of his lecture with lantern slides.