THE HOUSING PROBLEM

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13807, 19 January 1909, Page 7

THE HOUSING PROBLEM

Sir Oliver Lodge, the Principal of Birmingham University, opening an e,x liibition of model' houses at \Yolveihampton, said some wise things on the housing-problem, which* the ■ Uirunng]iam Post' 1 reports at. length. Ipter alia, be said there were certain ancient activities- of the human race wliicn had gone on duriug the whole of, the - quar-ter-million years, or whatever the time iWas,Tvhi ch. had elapsed since there had been a human raue. i nuse w«re i»ie activities of cooking, of clothing, and of.housing, and he regretted to say that, in sy.ite of our civilisation, they vrere all three still very imperfectly ■performed. He was told we did not '■•ook well in the country. He could heliovc it. He was sure we were not well clothed as a people. '/ There were too many people who were deficient in good clothing, and, speaking .on behalf of the masculine race,, such clothes as they had were very ugly- As to housing, a large number of our population were at tiresent housed in slums ■\vhich were a disgrace to civilisation. The best method of constructing houses —whether by the individual or by the community—was a matter of -opinion'. He was sure the worst method was that of. the speculative builder. He rather thought if it were the custom for the individual to make bis own house, it .would lead-to a pleasing variety, and to • some, picturesque a rrangement. ■ " He was'not altogether speaking jocularly there, because, if they , went to a Swiss village, the peasantry did erect their own .houses, ana put tliem down, not in regular rows; but jumbled about a- good deal. The result was striking-ly-picturesque, and it looked as if it were comfortable. At any rate, it was not dull. : But, however, that was not the custom in this country. It was not even the custom for us to own tne houses-we lived in. He himself had never owned' a house in his life. He lived in people's houses. We were, a dishorned. nation, more'; than most nations. The result was- we went in for cheapness. Hut a cheap house, a bad quality house,- was not necessarily cheap. They might make too much, sacrifice 'for cheapness., 'lt .was notcheap if they sacrificed -the" welfare of their family, or if the dulness of Borne drove people to. other distractions. " The home night, to bo full ef interest. Home like itself, with the cnildrcn and a garden, »as a liincl or occupation for a nation. But -- was very difficult to carry ;these things out in towns l . The problem of how to change towns and make thom ..really attractive artel [habitable-was a problem that would have to- be f;>oed, though we had hardly begun -to' face it 1 yet. Yi r e must not go, on making the places where people lived so ugly. We ought to take care they .- should ,be the best, places, instead .of, ,as_ was too oiten tie ease, the worst. J