GLOOMY PICTURE.

Waipawa Mail, Volume XXXVII, Issue 8361, 26 July 1920, Page 1

GLOOMY PICTURE.

NEW ZEALAND OF TO-DAY. “ROSY PICTURES: SCANDALOUS CONDITIONS.” With the object of placing before intending immigrants from England to New Zealand the state of affairs that the writers say they may expect to find on arrival in the country, the Wellington Labor Representation Committee, after discussing the Government’s immigration policy, recent-' ly forwarded a statement for publication to. the leading newspapers of Great Britain, to all Labor and Socialist papers, and to the principal Labor organisations. “The workers here are not opposed to immigration from the Old Land,” it is stated, “provided that preparations are made so that the new arrivals can be assured of work and of decent housing accommodation, and are not merely used -to glut the labor market and make conditions still worse for themselves and others. During the last five years prices have advanced out of all proportion to increases in wages, and workers are in a far worse position than they were in 1914. Food, clothing, boots, and other necessaries are equally dear, and rising all the time —the two latter items particularly have gone up to an extraordinary extent, and as if that were not enough, the Government levies an import tax of 20 per cent, to 25 per cent, on the inflated values, with the result that prices are going up beyond the reach of the average worker and his family. NO HOUSES: NO SHELTER.

11 The first difficulty that immigrants arriving in Wellington will have to face is to find housing accommodation. It is practically impossible to find a house to rent, whilst to purchase a house one must be prepared to put down a deposit of £IOO to £l5O, and, as will be readily understood owing, to the great shortage, values have become inflated beyond all proportion; it is only then possible to get a home by throwing some other unfortunate citizen into the streets. Owing to the prevailing shortage, rents have risen very high. The very last immigrant ship to arrive in Wellington was the Corinthic, and publicity has been given to the fact that two widows with children, after leaving the ship, were unable to secure shelter, and they had to be accommodated temporarily in one of the sheds on the wharfs. We could fill pages of matter relating to the hardships of citizens, as overcrowding is rampant and evictions are daily occurrences. During the influenza epidemic which swept over this country the scandalous housing conditions prevailing were freely denounced, but the local authorities have done nothing to remedy matters, and apparently things will go on as before. “ROSE-COLORED PICTURES.”.

“Country workers are especially advised to beware of rose-colored pictures of conditions in New Zealand. It is impossible to take up land without substantial capital, as good dairying land is selling at £l2O per acre, and even higher, and Government work is to be specially avoided. The Labor organisations here are agitating for the building'of bouses to relieve the overcrowding, and are attempting to get the Government to control the profiteers, but their efforts have been unsuccessful up to the present, and are not likely to have a much greater measure of success in the future, so they naturally do not desire to see an already acute situation further aggravated.”