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Hokitika Guardian, 1 June 1921, Page 2

There is a note of promising progress in tile notice of motion given by Mr Pilkington for the next Borough Council meeting. The new Councillor is entering on his duties in quite the right way. He is not seeking to force his personal opinions on the Council as regards town improvements, hut calls for a committee's report, and that report of course can only detail facts. If it reports only in part, it must tell in convincing detail that most of our streels and many of our footpaths are in a deplorable condition. They are water and traffic worn down to the rough stone formation in many places. Drains and drainage are defective, storm watei lias no outlet other than along roads cr footpaths, rather than off them. The streets are unduly rough because of the protruding stones; the roads nr 0 well holed and in wet weather a succession of wet pools or muddy spots. The footpaths ar t « invariably flooded in wet weather, for the want ol latteral dimilage, and where the water lies, mud pools and patches have to be negotiated. The thorough!ares ol the town, we doubt were never in a worse condition or more neglected. The cause is traceable to the fact that the permanent men have been taken oil maintenance work and put on to other work, either in connection with the water works or large drain construction work. To retrieve the position will cost, money. It was therefore false economy to remove the maintenance men from their daily work, and a large sum now will be required to restore the town to that general condition which should be of some credit rather than a reproach to the authorities. Mr Pilkington is to he congratulated upon taking the first practical step towards that end.

Civn, aviation is no less important than that of military aviation. In fact one is the "hand i mid of the other, each by ieas::n of experience and development bringing eiilightment and knowledge to the other. Lu 'the European continenr aviation : s -J great importance as involving air transport, and there are those who are concerned as to the future of this arm of commerce and defence from the British point of view. General Sykes in a recent address it Home re to ml to the present serious position if British civil aviation. Ilf enumerated the reasons as being problems inseparable Irom the adaptation of a comparatively new discovery to a practical purpose, the unfavourable geographical position of the British Isles, and, above all, the general financial stringency, and the difficulty of obtaining capital. In dealing with the value of civil aviation to national security. General Sykes indicated the great poteutiati'ies of aircraft as a fighting ami, also the numerous difficulties attending the provision and expansion of a powerful air force, and considered that the solution lay in the development of • •:vil aviation. As the Navy

to-day depends upon the mercantile marine for its reserve jmwer of men and material, so must air power he

built up on commercial air supremacy. Tli? vital tin porta Are of commercial aviation is that it will keep in existence an aircraft industry, with 'is research, designing, technical (onstructional and experimental staffs, capable of quick and wide expansion in emergency. and Kuril an industry would not lie employed in the design of contrivances for use in a possible way, but in meeting the requirements of every day air transport and navigation. Thus a natural, practical and healthy growth, as opposed to a stereotyped and artificial growth, will be ensured. As to tlie value of civil aviation to commercial prosperity, General Sykes pointed out that it should not be fostered, solely, or

even mainly, for its indirect military value, but for its direct commercial utility. In addition to its speed and its capacity for covering distance, tli 1 aeroplane has great advantages in that it can carry all kinds of freight without the delays entailed by constant handling and changing from train to boat etc. ; it is not dependent upon the upkeep of a permanent way and can take the shortest point-to-point course. The present is a period when we require to put great weight into technical and experimental development, but, as General Svkes pointed out, there is only one way of sustaining commercial aviation through the experimental stage and that by some form of State subsidy. One need look no further afield than France to see the value of a liberal subsidy, which in the case of that- country amounts.' to 33,215,000 francs, and which has temporarily mad ■* it impossible for our air transport cointinnies to compete with similar French companies. Britain cannot afford to yield the palm of eomiperei.il aviation to the foreigner, for, as General Svkes said if commercial aviation dies, we do not only lose a great poEental reserve for our service aviation in time of emergency, and thus risk our national security, but we neglect the use of the fastest means of inter-com-munication yet devised and surrender commercial air supremacy to those PR •

lions which an? already fully aware of its importance. Tlie subject therefore is one for the closest public interest and attention; in fact it is a subject for paramount attention.