Progress of Western Australia.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1643, 24 February 1886, Page 2

Progress of Western Australia.

— — — - ■-•;■:* v The capital of Western Australia ap- •„. pears to be growing, from the following .., extract from the Perth Enquireri-r, " Building, building everywhere, yet! no '"'\ house room. The straoeor on hisarri- s val m the Colony, entering- the city by rail, is struck by the number of new* houses which appear on every side, many „,• of which are not completed. In the ( . suburbs, north, east, and we6t, the appearance is that of a new town, while stacks of brick and atone here and there indicate contemplated erections. It would seem aa if preparations were being made to meet the great exodus from the sister colony, and to provide house-room, for , those who elect to settle down m this last-rising Colony ; but. upon enquiry it is fcond tbti eaeb boose ha* its owner, M fctkk ws# hM, md .tisaft m mm&tpkd hmse (£ mw kwd is mk to» he tarf zt fttyftme. We ism emfamXty baring inqtmtes feir B»Aifts©-<Wrti(ia from petseo* who* a»e esmpe-ltei to stays* hottk or lodgiDg-Jnewssss,, mmy &t whom, for f - want of aetmasmdxtion, ba-ve made np *.. their minds to return from whence they came. This is an tmsatufactory state of affairs, for every steamer arriving from the colonies brings a large number of settlers and families whose first want is somewhere to lay their heads and shelr^ ter themselves. At present its is simplr unobtainable. The construction of wooden houses is not permissible, zinc houses ' Are close and suffocating, arid while bricks and mortar are not H to* be obtained, although steam brick-mak- ' ing machinery and hand labonr "are workirig at high pressure, and turning out thousands of bricks every ;i week. In this emergency something will have to be done. Want of house-room is the question of the day, and it is a serious one. The building trade is a tits height — men are working overtime to'push the; iwork 1 ,• forward ; but the supply jslu,negnai : Jolf the demand, while increased prices arp asi|ed by builders, and rents are necesr sarily higher.'. ■ ■ ' L '