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Hokitika Guardian, 8 July 1924, Page 2

A o.wu.K message last week, stated that the British Cabinet bad indefinitely shelved the Channel tunnel scheme. Engineers have always fell a professional longing to construct n Channel tunnel, hut- the politicians have persistently shelved the project. Yet to valid object ion to its construction exists (says an English uniter). What tlti> value of it.s existence would have meant in the transport of troops and nilmitions between these shores ahd the Continent during the war .Venr.s is incalculable. Not the slightest diliiculty in its construction from an engineering point of view need be anticipated. The obstacles to tunnelling have been long since stirmounted ill Thames subways, in I.ontloti tubes, in the Alps, under the Hudson river, and elsewhere. Nor is the expense tilore than a trille, a matter of £8,000.(100 or fi0.000.000-the British share—a. mere drop in -the bucket of the present appalling war expenditure. Much water has (lowed under the mill since the dangers of a tunnel were first urged. England Is no longer an island, because aircraft and submarines have deprived her of tho protection of the silver streak. The present long-range guns could readily shell a menacing army assembled at tho French end of the tunnel. Electric traction and mechanical ventilation preserve a pure atmosphere. Tho cutting of a wire, or a partial flooding. would render the tunnel a trap to invaders. Another generation will marvel that this great work is so lei of accomplishment. The benefits which a tunnel would have conferred can hardly lie realised. The transhipment of munitions, or horses, of fodder, food, petrol, timber, fuel, stores, hospital supplies, in addition to that of troops, entails the maintenance of an army of labourers on both sides of tho t hatinel. In addition, there is the vast expense of protecting the transports with ships, destroyers, minesweepers. aeroplanes, hydin-r lanes and KCOIItS.

Tii.krk appears to he a boom in butter at the moment, hut whether it is

merely a temporary sriirt or a movement likely to last for some little while, remains to lie seen. The recent quotations for New Zealand salted butter were as follows.:—June 19, I7Bs per cwt.; .Tunc 20. 182 s per cwt.; July 1. 184 s. per cwt.; July 2,186 s ]er

cwt. There has been an advance of Bs. per cwt. in a fortnight, and the only conclusion that one can come to is that European supplies are not coming in as freely as was anticipated, or it may be that the embargo on French export of butter is being continued. It was to have expired on June 80. Tho butter market has been moving upwards steadily since Map 08. when New Zealand salted butter was quoted at 106 s. A fair quantity of butter has arrived in London, or is due to arrive now; the Port Pirie has -1-1,984 boxes, the Ruahine. -11..549 boxes, tho Mahana 48.484 boxes, and the Otaki 11,173 boxes. There is also a fair quantity in cold store in the Dominion awaiting shipment. Butter was sold for export last week at Is Od f.o.b. The shipments of butter for the eleven months ended June 30, compared with the figures for the corresponding period of the previous sea-

son decreased, tint cheese increased. The figures arc as follows:

Compared with the previous year butter decreased 350,161 boxes, but compared with the corresponding period of 1921-22 there was an increase of 331,517 boxes. Cheese shows steady growth, the increase over last season being 76.870 crates, and over the season of 1921-22 an inorcaso of 220,337 crates.

11 months to Butter Cheese Junto 30. Boxes. Crates,. 1023-21 ... 2.022,310 011,179 1022-23 ... 2.375,470 864,309 1021-22 ... 1,090,709 720,742