RATIONING IN BRITAIN

Chronicle (Levin), 30 December 1947, Page 4

RATIONING IN BRITAIN

mr. j. w, rimmrr'S letter A vivid description ot the trying •.onditions thd people *. of the Uriited Kingdom are facihg at the j>res£nt tifiie is toid in a lettfef fejeive'd by a local fesident from Mr. /. W. Rimmsr, of Levin, Who is at present ViSitihg the Hdmeiaiid with Mrs. Rirnmer. Mr. Rimmer said that they had had a pleasapt. trip, experipnCihg L-ain on .only two morhingS and one eVehing: Since arriving in England :here had been very little rain and only one snowfall. .Frosts had been heaVy and at times so thick that it appCared like a snowfall. "England is very' like New Zealand," wrote Mr. Rimmer. "The only difference is that the weather is much colder in the, New Year than before Christmas. "So far as rationing is concerne'd, there is none in New Zealand," says the writer, and he then gives the following list of rationed goods allowed each person a week: 2o2s. of butter, 4ozs. of margarine, lo2. of iard, 2ozs. of cheese, 8o2s. of sugar, 1 egg, loz. of bacon, 2ozs. of tea# 3ozs. of soap, 4ozs. of sweets, 31bS. of potatoes, ls worth of meat, and 2 pints of milk. There wete aiS£> what was called bread units or B.U.'s. "Each person is allowed 9 B.U.'s a week and you can get four small tea cakes for 1 B.U. and One small sjjonge for L B.U. Also, one small bun loaf, 2 B.U.'s; one 11b. loaf of bread, 2 B.U.'s; 21b. loaf, 4 B.U.'s; llb. of flour, 3 B.U.'s. "There is no such thing as 25's, 50's or 100's of fiour. Apart from the above rations they also give you what are called points for general gracery lines, each person being allowed 28 of these ner month. These work out as follows: One tin of con'densed milk, 10 points; 16ozs. of chocolate biscuts, 20 points; other ki^ids of biscuits, 10 and 12 points; one 12oz. tin of tongue, 21 points; ' one tin peaches, pears or apricots, 20 points; one pdund currants or sultanas, 12 points; 21b. tin treacle or golden syrup, 1*6 points; marmalade or jam, same weight, 16 points; 1 tin of cooking salmon, 12 points; one pound of split peas, batley, macaroni, peas, oatrfieal or r'olled oats, 4 points. "Retailers can only replaee monthly according to saies. For clothing or household requisites yoti get 48 for the year. For a suit of clothes you give 26; an overcoat, 26: a pair of shocs, 9; socks, 2; gloves, 2; sheets, 8; shirt with tWo collars, 6; pair of slippers, 4; vests, 6; iadies' costume, 18; cotton dress, 7; woollen dress, 13; and shoes, 7. "Theft is rampant, as also is the black market," concludes Mr. Rimmer. "The worries of the business people are there all the time, with the restrictions on everything."