A TRIP NORTH.

Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, Volume XXVII, Issue 1349, 15 December 1931, Page 3

A TRIP NORTH.

;d It does one good to travel and see ii- it enlarges one's outlook, freshens a- one's ideas, and, m most instances, >y makes a person more content to return to his own abode and business i- ready to take up the routine of life :ii with renewed vigour. Many of the [r interesting items noted can be written y and the information passed along, g- others are impressions only and no d expression is adequate to explain s- what is m one's memory. a To start with, let me refer to the ■- Railways. The new carriages on the .- express trains aire 'a big improvement b and bring travel comfort moTe m line' f with continental countries. The 1. carriages are more roomy, the p'a's--3 sages wider, the seats higher, giving - a head rest, while the hat and coat ) Pegs, bag racks, etc., are more comi plete. The window facilities are > greatly improved but the best idea is i the double doors at the end, creating . a landing cubicle and stopping all, >,' draughts of rushing air when the in- ■ side doors are opened, even the buffers between carriages are "covered m and practically; dustJproofl What is • still more interesting is the fact that the second class is now equal to the old first class, if not better, and most people should feel thoroughly at home to travel second. . Next m order is the country. Southland generally, is experiencing too dry a summer, but North of Oamaru until near Christchurch, the position is acute. Even with the heavy lahd x about, Willowbridgeno crops of" more than a foot high weiv noticed and lots were m ear and shorter than quoted above. Hundreds of acres appear to have been fed off to keep the .ewes and lambs going, as, m many instances, the ordinary grass paddocks appear like the bare ground. Round -Timaru this is very apparent as the writer walked oyer a number of them and wondered what the sheep were living on. Peculiar as it may seem, the sheep appeared m good order, but the lambs were not thriving, as. they should rand few fats off the mothers were being looked for. Round Christchurch it was different. Local rain had been, experienced and pastures, were green,' while gardens and orchards were a picture. Next m order, -is the new ferry steamer "Rangitira" recently placed on the North and South Island run by the- Union Company. Specially built for the business, she is. complete m% every detail. The most noticeable improvements greatly increased promenade decks; with ample seating accommodation and larger lounges finished m oak. A full boat deck, for promenading and with double and single deck seats' m profusion. The almost vibrationless drive of the new type engines.. The parquet flodring , of the corridors; lounges,, dining rooms', stairs -a^d halls. The 6in. wider bunks, and above all, the,, air ventilation of the cabins, which is done by ventilators shaped like an eye, the pupil of which can be turned and directed to place the .air current on to the sleeper's face or any other desired spot.y.The cabins have hot and cold water service, full length mirror behind the door, ample coat hangers and brackets, with water drinking service, cuirtains and floor mat, etc. The . single fare is 27/6, deck cabins 5/- extra, or top deck cabins,. 7/6 extra. The extra accom- - modation available on this boat should make travelling even at the Xmas period pleasant. To visit Wellington, after a few years' absence, makes~ one realise the progress of our.;- Capital City, Our new Parliament Buildings, so built that, when the old wooden structure is demolished and the new wing added, it will be*.a magnificent erection, worthy of such a wonderful Dominion, , - So many pretentious . buildings have gone up, holding the most handsome suites of offices, with all the most modern appliances,- as lifts, safes, goods entrances, etc., that the visitor cannot help but- be impressed and yet it cannot be denied that these are ocupied only to empty many others of the older days, and which now must be a liability on their owner's hands. The streets too are all paved, sidewalk to sidewalk, automatic traffic controls /a^ei to the letter and motor traffic appears fast, yet safe. The depressing economic times are very evident, not because of lack of bustle and numbers of people, but *because of the placarded windows of-the shops as a whole —"Alteration Sale", -"(Liquidation Stocks," "End of Lease," "Giving up Business," "Ta Be Auctioned To-day" and so on every chain of the busy thoroughfares and usually, sedate business houses having to resort to placards .with jbhesign: "60/-" stroked put anl "Now 30/- to clear." Furriers' shops seemed to be everywhere all having sales, jewellers were equally hard chasing business, while fruit vendors on street corners seemed > more numerous than usual. I That reminds, -n^e that it is very " k noticeable that, the further north you go, the better the.quality of fruit for -, sale, \strawberfjies jnearly ,as big as y L plums, bananas nearly^ all 8 to lOin. ; • long and so on. ' '