SIR JOSEPH WARD

Southland Times, Issue 20540, 17 July 1928, Page 10

SIR JOSEPH WARD

IMPRESSIONS OF LONLON. THE CHANGING TIMES. London, May 19. Sir Joseph Ward arrived by the Rotorua after a very pleasant passage from New Zealand. He has taken up his quarters at the Hotel Cecil, and his private business is keeping him well occupied. He has acquired a car and a chauffeur to facilitate his movements. It is six years since Sir Joseph Ward was in London, and he naturally finds many changes. Probably no place in the world, he considers, has made so many changes since the war as London. “The rebuilding of Regent Street,” he said, “is one of the things that strikes one. It is a magnificent street now. In the opinion of an acquaintance of mine who has seen much of the Continent and of New York, it is the finest street in the world. Personally, I think there is nothing like it. “Another thing that interests me is the one-way traffic streets. I get from my hotel to the city twice as quickly. Whoever is responsible for the arrangement, it is most scientific. “Then there are the great changes in the West End—the huge blocks of flats and hotels where previously were the town homes of the Dukes of Devonshire and Westminster. They reflect the changing times, and show how the old families under the burden of taxation since the war have had to turn their properties into money-earning institutions. “It has been very pleasant to meet many old friends, but I have also been struck with the absence of many of those I knew. The new generation, however, have faced new situations, and they seem to be as active in all branches of the commercial world as those before them.” BANK OF ENGLAND. Sir Joseph Ward was at the House of Commons on Monday, when the Bill to amalgamate the Treasury and Bank of England note issues was under discussion. He heard the speeches by Mr. A. M. Samuel and Mr. Snowden. “They were both very good speeches,” said Sir Joseph, “and I was very glad that Mr. Snowden, on behalf of the Labour Party, adopted the proposals of the Government. Only in one point did be go counter with them. He considered that the governors of the bank should be representative of various sections of the community, such as trade, industry, labour. “Personally I do not agree with that. The Bank of England occupies a unique position, and to my mind it Is established on the best basis. Obviously, the Bank of England cannot be brought into the whirl of politics. The whole of the financial policy of every bank in England is dependent upon the wise and regular system of the Bank of England, and if that system were subject to any political party it would be certain to create a financial panic. The Bank of England is an institution which must act for the whole community, and not for any section of the community. The matter affects the overseas Dominions in regard to loans. Any political influence would be sure to create a very embarrassing position for the Dominions, for the Governments of the respective Dominions must be credited with knowing what are their actual needs, and there should be no question as to their right to submit their own proposals.” Last Sunday Sir Joseph was at Ranelagh, a club of which he has been a member for many years. There were about a thousand people lunching there that day. In a few days’ time he is to have dinner at the House of Commons, where he is to meet Mr. and Mrs Baldwin. £15,000 FOR £l5 SCUTTLING A STEAMER. REMARKABLE FRAUD STORY. An extraordinary story of how a steamer was bought and filled with a worthless cargo, highly insured, and then deliberately sunk off the Mediterranean coast was told in a confession to the Marseilles police a few weeks ago by M. Angelvin, a member of a prominent family, who was arrested and charged with barratry (ship sinking with evil intent) Angelvin said:—“l was down and out and I decided to make a last desperate effort to recoup my fortunes. After considering various plans with an associate we bought a 500-ton steamer which a Genoese shipowner owned, but which was lying at Marseilles. The cargo consisted of two old boilers worth at the most £l5 and some scrap-iron, but we insured it for £15,000. After describing how it had been agreed that the master and first mate would each receive £BOO and the engineer £BO, Angelvin said that they were much perturbed as to what was the best way of sinking a ship. He continued: “We met at a cafe and discussed various methods. The engineer proposed cutting a hole in the hull with a blow-pipe, but the first mate said it would be better to knock the cement from between plates which had been repaired and at the same time open the seacocks, and this plan was agreed to. Finally the ship made her way to sea where the plan to sink her was carried out.” As the result of this confession several warrants were issued by the Marseilles judicial authorities, and M. Robert Angelvin, a well-known Marseilles business man, was arrested and charged with complicity.