(New Zealand Official News Service).

Chronicle (Levin), 6 August 1946, Page 2

(New Zealand Official News Service).

IvUKE, Augual i). Thc coni now grous in liiroskiaia. It grows ia lit-tlo piuLa wliere ouce tliere were housea but ia aliuoat hidileu by! foot-high rub'ble tliat exteud.s to tlie Tui'off hills. Water runa iu pipes now and eieetrieity urgea along u rew buttered trams. Away from tlie centre of the citv small houses go up evcry day. In. Njina, one of the auburbs, ships ]>ull iu crowded with Japanese returuing from China, Hingupore and Humatra. British Cominonwealth Occupation Foree troopa • clear the repatriatea at the ra'lo of 70u0 to SUOt) tlaily. "I am seated in the btirnt out ahell of lliroshima's city hall. Oppoaite me ia the Mayor and we are sipping tea from littlo J upaueae pota and di.scu.saiugthe progress Hiroshima hua made ;n thc j>ast ycar. It ia just twelvo montha aajiee man unloased the atomie bomi; Jit S a.m, on Auguat (J, 1943. 'Vhousamla of resideuta.were liurrying to work i;i one of Japun'a largest eitiea. At 8.13 there was no city to hurry •{« aud v-ory few people, capable of liurrying. "There arc signs. of life iu the ci'ty today but the Mayor tells me it wiil )>e 20' to 39 years before the oity ia back to liormal. Ten aquare milea that were on.ee covered with buildings where 400,000 people worked, Avas iaid eutirely ilat, exceptM' j&vo f ^u ildi i#a made of reiiiforeed concrele. hotKo aurvived bnt ou She outakirts oi' ihe city 35,000 have been rebuilt. Tliov mostly comprise tlireo or four rooma of trim deal topped o(f witli roof .ahinglea. Shops that are lit tio more than enhirged deal boxea, have sprung up side by ovuu with the houses.

"There ia praeticaily no rebuildipg in the centre of the city because juoal of the people were kiliod. Those ou tlis outakirts who were only burut or wounded by flying glasa or debria, fled to tlie hills aud have now returned. ""Thc people straugely enougli are more friendly in Hiroshima than in moat cities in Jiiptin. The ^Iayor.of lliroahima ia full of titlk about rebuild ing it into a ' peaeofiil city.' 11c toid jue he would like tlie noxi I uternatioiml Peace Conference held there. "Before I left we visited the hospital. There the doctor told ua he had only out-putients sut'l'ering from atoniie ell'ects. There were 500 of them. Iu faet two girla were being treated in tln? next rooni. We spoke with theso girla. Oue had a buru on the side of her faco which the doctor said would leave a lifelong sc'ar. The other girl 's 'face had been cut by splinters of (lying glasa. From time to time they are sliil pryiug out small bits-of ghvss from her facc. "