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Hokitika Guardian, 24 February 1920, Page 2

Having jusfc made a suggestion in regard to Cass Square, there is one other eye sore about town to which a iif tie cleaning up will be of great value, not only for the sake of appearances, but also out of pride for the reputation of the town. We refer to the sea

beach behind the. business part of the town, which is the dumping ground of all kinds of refuse deposited by though less citizens rather to the disgrace of tlie whole community. Someone somewhere describe! Hokitika as “a sea-wrecked town”. It is anything but that, and the beach to-day is as formidable a barrier as even it was to the Pacific Ocean. But the beach is strewn with all sorts of unsightly debris, and is in a neglected ragged state.

It wants a clean up. Junior Town could do It. in a day under proper direction. Again assuming the mantle of a. Warwick, if Messrs J. ,1. Breeze, J". Brockloh'urst and W. A. 'Berry, would associate themselves as leaders of Junior Town, and the Borough Council would provide’the labor to sink a large pit, all the tins and debris would quickly disappear from sight. Then

ouid come the task of ornamentation

Lupins might be planted, marram ( grass might be sown, two tenacious plants which would lessen the sand drift, and binding the sand, help ft to resist the waves. Suitable scats could Ire erected and Junion Town patrols provided to see that no more rubbish •was deposited within certain limits, and in case of breach, the patrons to report to the Town dork who must prosecute forthwith. In this simple way the ocean front would take on a more seemly appearance, and we would come to ho proud of it as we should he.

Some light on American-British feelings in regard to the war and peace, and also a side-light on the AA’ilson Cabinet disputes now unfolding themselves publicly, is afforded by a late telegraphic despatch which appear in the London papers at the end of December. A New York message -said I ;—Mr AA’alter Lippmann* one of the editors of the Neu- Republic, who acted during the first yeaV of America’s participation in the u-ar as assistant to Mr Baker, the Secretary for AA T ar, publishes an attack on President AATlson for what he describes as his defeat at the Peace Conference. He ascribes the “failure” of the President to a “defect” which he says is common to the mind of Liberalism, boredom with the problem of organisation and inability to grasp the mechanics of peace. According- to Mr Lippmann, the indispensable basis of a Liberal peace was a working partnership with sea power. For the sake of partnership with the Uni■ted'States Great Britain M’as prepared to make a AA’ilson pence, “but on the sign, ing of the armistice the Administration proceeded to pick a quarrel with Great Britain about a ridiculous battleship programme, and the American officials , arriving, in Europe- were filled with suspicion about the economic position of I England. AVith exquisite tact They | threatened the British people, just -emerged from the terrible raid on their maritime communications, with a neu- race of armaments—America | substituted for Germany. Mr Lloyd George wo s precipitated into the arms of M. Clemenecau and President AVil- | son M'as a beaten man. In rejecting I oi working ‘partnership with Great

Britain iPWesidfeht AA r ilson cut himself off from the nation in which Liberalism is mature and powerful.”