NEW SCOUT TROOP

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 9, Issue 94, 3 July 1946, Page 4

NEW SCOUT TROOP

UNIT AT OTAKIRI POSSIBILITY OF CUB PACK Scouting interests throughout the Whakatane district will welcome the formation of a new troop at Otakiri. This took place last week when District Commissioner N. Matthews addressed a well-attended meeting of parents and boys on the history of Scouting and its ideals. The result was a unanimous decision to form a new troop with the possibility of a Cub Pack later. The election of officers resulted as under: — Chairman: Mr A. E. Smith. Secretary-Treasurer:" Mr R. J. Barton Jnr. SJcouter: Mr W. Billing. Committee: Mesdames Jessup, Gilbert, Winters, Messrs. O’Sullivan, Massey, Harris, Mackrell, Whalley, Briggs and Peck. Delegates to local Association: Chairman and Scouter. There were 15 boys waiting to be enrolled and all Were very keen to start training.

to ‘stand on both feet’ and be respectful, but in view of the above we wonder if he deserves the adjective. If the groyne cost more than £39 14s, we wonder why the full cost is not stated! We are not mindreaders and can only report what the Writer chooses to send in to the 7 council. The opinions of Councillors as expressed are no concern of ours, but we conceed that they have every right to them and are not worried if our correspondent thinks otherwise. We suggest that he stops hair-split-ting and faces up to the actual position as it is. Ed.)

RUSSIA’S ACHIEVEMENTS

Sir, —“Onlooker” in his letter, “What is Democracy?” urges Mr Bradshaw to study the Maloney report on Soviet Russia as a refutation of the success of planned production. Nothing could be more dangerous and stupid, than anti-Soviet slanders of this' type. The report is quite untrue. Maloney’s own archivist in Moscow, Miss Sanby, says: “I want to make it public that I am in complete disagreement with Mr Maloney’s views and ..consider he is putting before the Australian people, a wildly distrorted picture of life and conditions in that country. I found Russia, in spite of some difficulties, a good and inspiring country to live in. Unemployment is unknown, and there is a great freedom of choice for the individual of occupation or profession. labour regimentation is a slanderous falsehood.” .

As for the success of planned production, here are a few of the figures:—

In 1940 Russia produced 15 million tons of pig iron—4 times as much as in 1913; 18,300,000 tons of steel—4| times as much as in 1913; 166 million tons of coal—s 4 times as much as in 1913; 31 million tons of 0i1—34 times as. much as in 1913; 38 million tons of marketed grain 17 million tons more than in 1913; 2,700,000 tons of raw cotton—34times as much as in 1913.

This tremendous improvement was achieved in the period of 3 five year plans, starting in 1928. That means that 1-6 of the world was transformed from an Agrarian' country to an industrial country in the space of 13 years. We have every reason to be verygrateful for this success in planned production, for if Russia had not - ! .been so successfully industralised she could not have withstood the Nazi* armies. We should be in a very difficult position today if it had not been for their heroic and successful struggle. Edgecumbe Branch, New Zealand Communist Party. SECRETARIAT, Yours etc.,