PENALTY OF SATURDAY CLOSING.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 145, 25 July 1914, Page 8

PENALTY OF SATURDAY CLOSING.

To the Editor of THE SUN;

gi r _You have been creating quite a stir by your article on poverty in Christehureh. I think this is very laudable. Charles Dickens pointed out the abuses of his time, and posterity partly remedied them. I have been expecting a large amount of suffering and unemployment fbr some time, and I think it extremely "childish on our part to blame any; Government for, our own follies. Almost every business man of any "standing in the city must know that by giving up our principal business day to the people of Rangiora, Kaiapoi, Hawarden,. Waikari, .Oxford, Sheffield, Ashburton, and. all "the other outlying hundred and one small'towns, we must suffer poverty - and unemployment as a result. When I was in business in the country we used to pray that th« city people'would, be blind, enough and foolish enough to close up on Saturday—the farmers' day for the city—so that we could- retain them for our business. Little did I think that, like the old lady who prayed, for the wind to change, that I* was going to catch it both wavs. Very often I used to take as mucirin the city on a Saturday (and Ave closed at 5.30) as I: took all the rest of the week. I am certainly in favour of a universal Saturday half-holday, Thursday, or any other day. But surely the public Of Christehureh can see the utter folly and absurdity of closing on Saturday "when we have such growing powerful rivals all around us.—l am, G C "' W. R. PEVEREUX. July 24,-1914. "'•