STRATFORD.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 16679, 28 February 1920, Page 2

STRATFORD.

FROM OUR RESIDENT AGENT. Feb. 27.—1 t would seem that the war, .which has wrought changes iu every aspect of life, turned thrones topsyturvy, and knocked half the value off the pound sterling, has changed the luck; of tn© Stratford school excursion. In all the before-tht-war years that tho children have been given their annual seaside picnic never once did they strike a wet day. Their luck had become proverbial. There was no mistake about the rain yesterday. It meant business from the start, and at the finish, the return train arrived in Stratford 1 , it was still tumbling down fx;om an apparently inexhaustible' reservoir. We have had 41- inches this week, and rather more last week.

The hospital is again almost cleared' of influenza patients, which is just as well, as beds are wanted for the increasingly numerous cases of “motoritis.” One victim died this week, but another one was ready to fill the cap. In America, I read, the Automobile Association has become alarmed at the increasing number of accidents and, convinced that the local authorities can do little or nothing, is taking steps to cull out the 5 per cent, of car-drivers who do .95 per cent, of the mischief. When are things going to. sort themselves? I used to think that the great lessons in organisation, training and discipline that the war was teaching would enable the world to make a'very quick recovery and that, within a twelvemonth or so, the wheels of civilisation would be turning much as formerly. I need not say that things have not justified this sanguine expectation. Shipping, for instance, shows small sign of settling clown into the orderly sequence of former days. In those blessed times if a boat was notified as coming to the port to lift our cheese and butter it came.' Now it seldom arrived until after two or three postponements Although we have got 50,000 men back from the war, labour seems as scarce as when they were overseas. There is nothing for it, I suppose, but to exercise the same patience that we learnt in waiting for the end of war. Order is Heaven’s first law, and wo may be sure that sooner or later it will prevail on this at present distracted planet.