THE DEPRESSION

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 74, Issue 140, 16 June 1931, Page 8

THE DEPRESSION

ONLY TOPIC IN SYDNEY EVIDENCE SEEN EVERYWHERE [Per Pi ess Association.) WELLINGTON, June 15. 1 ‘Over in Sydney tho depression is like the Hawke’s Bay earthquake wa« in New Zealand. It was the topic of conversation,” said Air I’. W. Petre, manager of the New Zealand University Rugby team which returned from Australia by the Makura this morning. In Sydney, said Mr Petre, evidence of the hard times was to bo seen every where, and many of tho people met in the street bore the appearance of being out of work. Mr Petro paid a visit to the naval dockyard at Cockatoo Island, and found that where formerly about 4000 men found regular employment, only a tenth of this number were working. A new lighthouse steamer was just being completed, and when that job was finished there would be more men to join the unemployed. At Richmond aerodrome, where there were usually about 40 men employed, there were only two. Flying had been cut right down and the men were engaged mainly in repair work on Wapitis and Seagulls. The Wapiti is a two seater observation aeroplane, and the Seagull is a naval seaplane. Mr Petro had met Air-Commodore Kingsford Smith, who told him that the aviation companies wore losing money heavily, especially on the Sydney-Melbourne run.