TRIP TO OLD COUNTRY.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4645, 7 January 1924, Page 3

TRIP TO OLD COUNTRY.

f CONDITIOxNS AT HOME. ■ DOMINION LITTLE KNOWN. After an absence o£ just on nine months, mostly spent in Scotland, wiih Visits to England and a i;un over to Denmark, Mr Robert Henry, foreman printer of the Waihi Telegraph, has arrived back in Waihi (states the Telegraph). Asked whether his inclination was to remain in the Old Country or return to New Zealand, Mr Henry emphatically declared in favour of returning. “It was,’’ he said, “a fine trip, but when it comes, to choosing a permanent home give me New Zealand every time.” -And wny ?” Queried the reporter. LIVING CONDITIONS. “Simply because the living conditions generally arc better here than at Home,” was the prompt reply. “Where we have some few cases of distress, they are nothing compared with those obtaining in England and Sc Aland. There, on all sides, poverty is to be seen in a form such as is unheard of in New Zealand, and food costs are considerably higher than in this country. With many of the workers it is simply a battle foi ex intense, with nothing to look forward to and a. standard of living far below that enjoyed here. Everywhere one went there were thousands of unemployed, and begging in the streets was rampant. UNEMPLOYMENT DOLE. “Did you form any impressions as to the effects of the unemployment dole?" ’ , “Yes, to some extent I did. In the majority of cases, particularly among the married men, the desire was for work rather than for relief, but ' among the single men I came acTfOss many cases,® where they were Quite content to take the dole, and not.seek employment. In addition to the 15s from the Government these men were in receipt of parish relief, and other assistance from those in work, amounting in all to 35,s to £2 weekly, and were apparently prepared to continue to live in idleness so long as the payments were made. ABOUT NEW ZEALAND. •‘Are our country and products widely known at Home ?” “No; one heard very little of New Zealand and her products. The majority of the Old Country people appeared to be under the impression ■ that this country was part of Australia, and but few of them had seen or heard of our butter or lamb., One often heard of Canada and Australia and of their products, but practically nothing of New Zealand. At the High Commissioner’s offices in London samples of our products, attractively displayed, can be seen, but apart from these I saw nothing except mutton in one or two provincial slmps ticketed as from this country. On no occasion did I see New Zealand butter, announced as such in the grocery stores. and when I made inquiries for Anchor brand butter the stii’-ekeepers were evidently not aware that such a brand existed. Apparently the greater part of the butter ■sent Home is incorporated with inferior butter or with margarine. NEED FOR ADVERTISING. “Then this country and its products want more advertising ?’’ “Unquestionably they do. To some 'extent, ..no doubt, the High Commissioner’s office serves to advertise us, but by no means sufficiently. If our scenic and other attractions were made more widely known in the Old Country the tourist traffic would increase enormously, while in the case of our products there would be a, greatly increased demand. “The dearth of news relating to Nev,- Zealand in the Home papers is ■astonishing. For instance, the big Main Trunk' train smash with its lengthy roll of killed and injured was dismissed by the Glasgow papers with a few lines, while I saw nothing in the press about the Waikino shooting tragedy. Such unfortunate affairs as these are, of course, not in the. nature of advertisements for the Domin- . ion, but the fact that they are not given in greater detail is surprising, to say the least, as also is the fact that we see little or nothing concerning the progress of New Zealand, and of the political doings and changes. Surely more should be don? through the prtess to familiarise the people of the Old Country with the happenings in these parts, and the Dominion’s potentialities.”