IMPRESSIONS OF AUSTRALIA

Hokitika Guardian, 23 October 1929, Page 2

IMPRESSIONS OF AUSTRALIA

, CAPITALS COMPARED. 1 CHRISTCHURCH, October 21. Mr C. J. Morrison, a well-known Christchurbh business man,-has just returned from a holiday trip to Australia. In an interview, Mr Morrison Said lie went across merely for. a holiday and did not pay' a great deal of attention to business or politics 1 ip the Commonwealth. ' J - ...

“ I was surprised to find the old cable trams still in use in one of the main Melbourne thoroughfares, although the electric tram is the principal means of transporting the people,” said Mr Morrison. “Generally speaking, I found the traffic control in Melbourne much better than in. Sydney, but the wideness of Melbourne’s, streets explains this to some extent. In the Victorian capital the traffic is controlled partly by. the police and paddy by automatic electric signals. Red stopped traffic, yellow indicated that the signal was about to change, and green showed for 1 all clear and proceed.’ The automatic signal control system operates very successfully, and is likely to replace the pointsmen. The Melbourne people have been well educated by the traffic officers, and await the signal to proceed before crossing congested intersections. ;

Mr Morrison said he gained the impression that the Melbourne people were more solid from the business point of view than the inhabitants of Sydney, who seemed to live a lighthearted existence very much for to-day. “ They spend their money freely and I don’t think they save much,” he said. ACTIVITY IN BUILDING AND ITS EFFECTS.

“ Although Sydney recently completed the erection of 11,009 buildings in twelve months, spending £17,500,000, New South Wales is still saddled with a huge unemployment problem. Owing to the erection of 647 blocks of flats house-owners are finding it hard to keep their tenants. . “ Christchurch, with its large sections and beautiful gardens, is quite refreshing after the dwellings close to the city of Sydney.. There one sees nothing but row upon row of terrace houses where flowers, trees and shrubs have ceased to exist. One returns to

New Zealand to appreciate ,the elbow room in our cities after being jostled by the' crowds in Sydney and Melbourne. On the streets, in the trams, bn the beacheA and almost everywhere you’go you are moving with masses of people and you cannot help a feeling of relief on returning to our. less thickly populated city areas. ‘‘The scenery along the,traffic routes between Sj-dney and Melbourne does not impress the New Zealander. Scenes along our regular railway linos and toads that we would regard as ordinary would be -styled glorious in Australia.

“While : we \\ v ere in Sydney potatoes were marketed at somewhere about £25 per ton, and’New Zealand, growers are debarred by the embargo from taking advantage of the high pr&e. Coal is scarce owing to the strike, and the price to the public is high in consequence; ; . •• •

“Anned hold-ups were the order of the dav during my four "weeks stay 'in Australia. No fewer than thirty , occurred during that period. BUSINESS NOT SO BUOYANT. “ Business generally did not appear to be as buoyant as it might be, and this is due no doubt to the effect o' the industrial troubles. In the large Australian cities business appears to be getting into the hands-of big syndicates to the detriment of the smaller trading concerns. One big emporium in Melbourne of the “needle to an anchor ” type is alsoHnaking raids on the country districts by sending out fleets of motors stocked with goods They open up in country, towns, make uiek sales and a quick get-away with the profits. This,; .of .course, is very bard on the country storekeeper, who cannot keep the very latest in frocks a lid so on in any variety, ariid must give long credit to secure business. In addition the big concerns can usually undersell him because of the vast scale on which their buying is carried out. “Sydney has spent £120,000,000 during the last ten years in rebuilding the city", and some are of opinion that it wn"id be as well in future to use more of the money available in developing the resources of the country!”

While in Melbourne, Mr Morrison heard an address by a leading trade economist who anticipated a decrease of £30,000.000 in the value of the coming season’s wool clip owing to a drop in prices. It was also thought at that time that the estimated surplus in' the Commonwealth Budget would be wiped out by the expenses of the election.

Mr Morrison did. not hear very rn : uch of politics, but noted that few people seemed to;,have any-idea which way the cat would jump.