SUMMER TIME.

Waipa Post, Volume 32, Issue 1785, 22 July 1926, Page 5

SUMMER TIME.

LEXTERS TO THE EDITOR.

Sir, —Once more the question of summer time appears on the political horizon, and once more an opportunity is given Parliament to confer upon the people of New Zealand a benefit which appears to me a very real one. In the course of business last year ■I travelled through a number of_the more important countries of the world, and if asked to name the finest institution I met with I would say, without hesitation, “ Daylight saving in Great Britain and France.” I say 4 .‘ and France ” because it was stated in Parliament that France could beat Britain at sport without the aid of ■daylight saving. France adheres to the same time as England. I omit dayli&ht saving in America, for there it is a somewhat hotch-potch business, as public clocks must always indicate standard time, and railway clocks are often provided with three hands to indicate both standard and summer time. During the three months which I ■spent in London I was to all intents and purposes a city dweller, working city hours, and yet I had the equivalent to a half holiday every day. After 5 p.m. there were still five hours of full ■daylight in which to explore the byways and outskirts of London. In those explorations it was brought home to me why summer time had been adopted so wholeheartedly and permanently by the conservative Englishman.

Not only the sportsman but the world and his wife were taking the air on highway or in park, on push bike or in car, on river or on pond, and, mdst noticeable of all, in the fine community gardening plots that are everywhere in England. Think of it! Five hours of complete relaxation in the warm glow of a summer afternoon, and the afterglow of a summer evening. An hour in the garden before breakfast is very delightful to me, but then the work of the day lies ahead. Better, I think, is the hour -at the close of the day, when work can he forgotten and the mind can relax. I know that my remarks are applied to industrial England:, but with ourselves secondary industries are growing apace, and city life is becoming more tense. The constant u!rge to the hygienist is towards a more free and open-air life for everybody, to healthful relaxation of mind and exercise of the body. Summ'er time gives opportunity for this. Consider, for instance, the fine sea beaches which surround our cities and towns. How few of us, even with a oar, enjoy the inestimable benefit of a Sea bathe after a strenuous day in factory or in office. I have studied the various objections which have been raised, and they seem to me, if not futile, at least very limited in their application compared! witih' the wide benefits that the institution of summer time would bestow. There are two notable facts to remember. England tried it. over a long period, and made it permanent, and England is raising a statuje to the man who championed it, but did not live to see daylight saving achieved. Mr Sidey deserves a statue, and. I trust that he will soon see his unfailing efforts crowned with success. —I am, etc., W.D.