WAR AGAINST GAS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 63, 1 April 1937, Page 11

WAR AGAINST GAS

-Own Correspondent.!

(By Air Mail.-

LONDON, March 12. Some of the greatest scientific braing in tl^ country are working night and day finding means of countering the poison-gas peril that threatens civilisation Are our latest respirators proof against mustard ghs? What are the best methods of dealing with fires started by ineendiary bombs 1 These are but a few of the questions these scientists are trying to answer. , Sheir researches will eost the taxpayer £120,000 during the next twelve months. But this is only a fraction of the £6,000,000 the Government is to spend on air raid precautions. This includes small charges from various departments. The net vote for the air raids department itself is £4,617,500 according to the Home Offie.e estimates issued yesterday. This is an increase of £3,259,250. over last year. An additional £598,000 for fire bri-' gade services includes a grant of £88,000 to local authorities towards the initial cost of training emergency personnel. Half a million is the estimated cost of stocks of emergiency fire-fighting appliances that are to be stored for use in the event of war. 4 Gas masks ior everybody — and similar devices — will cost £3,530,000 and £466,000 is to be spent on "other equipment and materials." The estimates provide for an expenditure of £200,000 under the somewhat vague heading ''Special Servioes." This sum has been included to cover the cost of the special equipment which will be required for the 300,000 air raid wardens for whcm the Home Secretary appealed recently.