WELLINGTON NOTES.

Hokitika Guardian, 17 December 1923, Page 4

WELLINGTON NOTES.

RULE OF THE FOOTPATH. KEEP TO THE LEFT. [Special To The Guardian.] WELLINGTON, Dec. 11. To-morrow the new by-law of the Wellington City Council requiring people to keep to the left on the city footpaths will tome into force. How long Wellington lias been discussing this matter in its customary apathetic fashion it would he difficult to say. fn the earlier days of settlement “keep to the left” was the universal rule, both on the road and on the footpath, hut in the early nineties some municipal busy-body returned from the United States with the story that the Americans “kept to the right ’ and succeeded in persuading the local authorities it was the proper tiling to do, so far as the footpath was concerned. Then followed years of confusion, arising out of one rule existing for the road and another for the footpath, and an inevitable increase in accidents. Now Wellington, having dis cussed the matter in a desultory fashion for two or three years, i- going back to the old rule. A large force of police will he employed tomorrow to sec, as the authorities put it, that the new by-law is observed from the first and that the stream of traffic is kept moving. There is to be no frilling with tile municipal edict. ' DAIRY CONTROL. The promoters of the measure made such a fuss over the Hairy Produce Export Control Bill while it remained suspended between heaven and earth in Parliament that it was expected, when the tanners had an opportunity tu put the finishing touches to tinlegislation, they would exercise their privileges to the fullest possible extent. But si range-to say, om-o the Act was was on the Statute Book their enthuxia-m for its hciiofioiont provisions began to wane, hirst ol all they had to say whether the Act should come into oH’eelivo operation or whether it should remain among the State archives merely as a monument to their exhausted energy. Barely two-fifths of the people eotiild to vote troubled to save it from oblivion. Yesterday the poll for the election of nine members of the Board to administer the measure elosod and it was found that out of 11.’i.000 odd persons entitled to vote fewer than 20.(100 had retiirued postal ballot papers, unless some of the envelopes contain more than one paper. It seems, therefore.

thai after all the campaigning on one side and 1 lie other by interested people. a majority of the dairy farmers do not think tin- whole business worth the stroke ol a* pen. WHAT IT AIEANTb The “Evening l’o-t" lakes tic

apathy of the dairy farmers in the mutter very seriously. “The sucres,, or failure of the Art." it said on thieve of tin- (losing of the poll, “depends upon the Board oi Control, and especially upon the nine men the producers themselves shall elect. Much is said 10-dav of the monetary value of the dairying industry. . . Into Unhands Ilf a Board of twelve men, of whom nine shall he directly larmer-

representatives, tlcn. will he commit, lei! the disnsoal of this enormous mo tcrinl wealth, the product of the Inrm ors. But how are tin- larmcrs Likin;

it p The poll for Hu- nine members o! the Board ol Control closes to-morrow, yet up to the present lime only about one-third oi tin- producer- have voted. Sin h indifference oil so great a matter is really deplorable. This is tic kind if thing; that opens the way for. any amount of trouble due to lact lessnt-ss or worse. Hum offering an inducement to the talkative to .shoulder aside the practical in the management not only of dairy ;'..rmofs’ affairs hut el public business in genet a l.” It ferlainly B disappointing that >o large a number if the people immediately concerned have displayed so little ititeres. 1 in this momentous experiment. THE RAILWAYS. The railway returns for lie- first seven months of the iilianeiiil year, published this morning, show a substantial improvement, upon the figures for flu- corresponding period of last year, hui the criiies -till insist that the host pus si Ido results are not vet being obtained from the lines and th. . radical changes in the methods of management arc •required. Their genera! (oiiteiii i-iii is Unit the railways are being; largely used to exoloii the settlers in the older producing district , and mn at all to assist, the pioneers in the l-nek-Mocks. The foundation for this indie!ment is i uin.l in the liiv.li charges maintained on the paying; lines and the reduction or diseom inua.nee of services on the non-paying lim-s. |i j. complained thai the idea of making the State railways a. sUimiTant to settlement, has been abandoned al together and that they nou are run as might he the most sordid of private enterprises. This, of course, is scarcely lair. At best the railways ai - not paying I per cent upon the accumulated cost of their const met im and

their charges do not romprac unfavourably with those imposed on the Australian lines. What is wanted more than anything else is the consistent development of a sound business policy.