CONCRETE HOUSES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 11, 8 October 1919, Page 7

CONCRETE HOUSES

A NEW SOUTH WALES EXPERI- ' MENT. The New South, Wales Minister of Housing (Mr. Hall)'has found a builder of cheap concrete- houses. Replying to a deputtaion the other day, he said he realised, soon after taking charge ofithe Department, how difficult it would be to overtake the shortage of houses by building in brick. For one thing, there wero not enough bricklayers. For a long while he had been inquiring into the possibilities of concrete. • Ho had found, however, that many of the concrete enthusiasts were faddists, who could not "deliver the goods." Whenever a man came to him with a concrete housebuilding proposition, ho had given him a plan, and told him, ".Build that one, and if it is satisfactory I'll givn you an order for fifty." He was gla<i to announce that, lie had now found an accentor for his offer. This was Mr. Menkin, who was in charge of the construction of the big silo at Glebe eland. .Making ample allowance for accident, Mr. Monkin had undertaken to have both houses up within ihrco weeks. "I don't, know whether lie can do it," said Mr. Hall. "Hat I. have undertaken that if ho does, and if the houses are the kind people want, those who can construct them will not lack opportunity." Ho was not n.uite sure of the cost nf the houses. The larger one would probuljlv be piirchasnli'i' at about .tl Is. a week, and the smaller at about 17s. One was to be a monolith—made out of one big piece of cement—ami the other would lio built out of slabs. As to the first, Hie builders had uttered, for every fifty cottages ordered, to deliver one a week. As to cost, for every .fclCO the Government spent on a cottage the, tenant would, on this principle, have to pay Us. a week, in order to make the cottage his own in twenty-five years. The four days' saie at Sotheby's of rare and early hooks of travel, etc., from the Christie Miller library at Eritwell produced a total of .C 7823 13s.