WELLINGTON NOTES.

Hokitika Guardian, 27 December 1923, Page 3

WELLINGTON NOTES.

Cl IRI STM A S EX RE XL>ITU RE. .SHOPPING AND TRAVELLING. [Special To The Guardian.] WELLINGTON, Dec. 21. So far as can he gathered from the retailers themselves to-day the Christmas shopping ibis year lias been satisfactory from their point of view. It shows a substantial improvement upon that of last year and .suggests that purchasers while insisting upon getting good value lor their money arc looking for articles <n better quality and mere durable nature than those they Imve sought on previous occasions. ("neap tlimsv toys and fancy articles ol no particular use have been in less demand. but book-, tools, hou-ohohl utensils, clrapeiy and hosiery have sold well. People' have taken fewer articles, hut have obtained better quality. The general indication lias bee'll ol more money and ol greater care and judgment in its expenditure. The reports from the Railway Department. the shipping companies and other transport agencies are of a. similar character. The crowd at the railway booking office in Willis Street during the lasi tour or live days has been so great that the thoroughfare at times, lias been literally blocked by a queue extending right across its l-ngtli. The shipping offices have not been embarrassed to the same extent, their areomniodatioii being better, but they have done exceptionally good business and all the departing boat . have h, en crowded. There appears to be ph'iity of holiday

AN AFFRONTED MINISTER. The Hon TV. No-Moi'tliy. the Minister of Agriculture. obviously feels a littl" a (fronted by the assume! ion of Mr G. W. Leudley. the chairman of the Wheat Hoard, that the delay in calling the Boat I together to determine the price for this season's wheat v.as due to the Minister being invny from Wellington on holiday. T’lie sting of the assumption lay in the fiiet that. Mr .Massey i- one ol the pillars of tin' Reform Party in Mr NosMurtliy's om n eoii.-nitm'itey. IDs reproach was a -ore wound at the band of ;i friend. But tbe Minister proclaims bis innocence vehemenl ly. "Numerous engagements in connection Willi land, agriculture!. immigration and tourist matters,” lie deviates, "iieci •- sitated iny absence in outlying parts of tin* North I shied : hut Mr L"iuiley evidently ha- no conception <>t the arduous nature ol the work, combined with long hours, which i In-sc visits entail." Probably tin iruth ol the mailer i- that Mr I.e,idles hoi boon reading in the le.al papers the uceomils of tlie various -e.-iai luie turns thnl-L upon the Miai'iet. and had drawn from these the not iiiiiiiituial conclusion tluil a giddy round of dissipation had in ter i end villi the business of the Wheal Board. This is the sort of conclusion Mr NosMorfhy himself reached M lam ! c was in the cool shades of I Ipposiliou and .Ministers ot another party colour went travellingDAIRY CONTROL ROAR’D. It i-. not altogether surprising that the result of the poll Hr tin- election of the North I land producers’ lepr-.-optatives on tile Dairy Board is being challenged. Owing to the decision of the Minister to hold ike poll at the earliest possible moment, the preparation of the poll and the arrangements for the voting, which involved a- much work as half-a-dozen parliamentary byelections would have gone, were hurried through at break-neck -peed am!

neither the electors nor lb" <am -a 1‘ had time to ascertain what "as hap-, I idling. The Chief Electoral Olive., j upon whom the whole burden was j thrust, did his work admirably m j every detail. His method, thorough-j ness and impartiality were beyond all | praise. But with tvo "parties" keen- I lv ion test mg the election, and " ".Si j the regulations governing the polling loosely framed, misunderstanding- . | disputes over minor details were inevitable. ft appears thni one ol tlie-e impeaches llie validity of the election and seeks to have the whole husiliss gone over again. In the circumstances the point is not open to discussion : | but it is tolerably safe to -ay that another appeal to the constituency. though it might slmv, an increase in the number of voles polled would not alter the ('(institution of the R ail'd. WHAT AY ILL IT DO. The "Evening Post,” by i lie vav. Still Inis its doubts as to how the Dairy Board will acquit itself when it takes ui) the whole burden of its responsibilities. "A glance at tbe Act," it sac's, "will show bow great aie tbe responsibilities placed on tlie Board. The nine members elected by the producers are very well acquainted " the producing, and some of them have first-hand knowledge of the distributing side of this great business. Several have gone well into the selling Mini distributing problems in ('real Britain, and some have experience, " addition, of the United States and Canadian markets. But whatever the members of the new Board o! Control may do with their own individual produce i- one thing, and how they will regard the produce the property of others is quite another." There seems t 0 be an underlying suggestion lethal the producers’ representatives ru the Board may not be so lully cquippe 1 for their ta.-k as they should he. but it is pointed out. on the other bann. m en like Mr Coedl'ollnM'. Air Grounds and Mr Morton have Imd very wide experience in the business side ol .’tv imlu-t rv and will have the assistance ef the Government represen la ti"vs and the nominee of the merchants and exporters.