TIME FOR MINISTER PERRELLE TO WAKE UP!

NZ Truth, Issue 1294, 2 October 1930, Page 8

TIME FOR MINISTER PERRELLE TO WAKE UP!

PIMICITY OFFICE IN SHOCKING STATE OF STAGNATION ,■' v ;: -v,. ■-'>„- :•■■: ..■::'■•:■■'■. ; v ■».-■ ■■,: ■■■■ ■.■',;. ;■■■. <•■.., FORMER- ENTERPRISE AND VIGOR HAS BEEN | JNTIRELY LOST UNDER NEW SYSTEM REA^ SIDE-STEPPED ' In an endeavor to explain why it is that after having developed from a practically useless and ineffective department, into a live and progressive organisation, New Zealand's Publicity Department has fallen back into a state of stagnation, Minister of Internal Affairs Perrelle lias achieved nothing beyond creating an impression that he is deliberately, sidestepping the issues, and trying to hide the fact that the Government's cheese-paring of expenditure is ruining the work of what was once a flourishing department.

BBCAJJSJE. thg value of publicity cany.riofc.b'e. estimated -m exact terms .of ; v : '£.s-yi.j: "t.he ..-., Treasury ; appeals. ; to. ;haye", made this .' young^andl important depk^.ttbe'rit ' the' Object \'ot ' an 'economy raid.'/inste^d . of •'•■ turning' its. attention: to othet departments, where economies could 'be 'effected a great -deal- more profitably: ; ' - ... : " . - ■ . Mr. Pefrelle; .has a ■•'lot; of , explaining Jo do- to tell t}ie country just why the Publicity, .Department is -.being crippled".in its" efforts to carry on the good work' of ' explbring the tremendous .potentialities , of -. the overseas . V tourist! traffic. It is true that .he tried to do the explaining through -a y statement m the daily press a 'short time ago,' but he made a very sorry and unconvincing job of it. „ ..,,' ,.'. . . Oij'r; publicity department, originally unenterprising and unprogressfve, was doing.m uch better work twelve or. eighteen months ago than is. the case^to-day; ! From small beginnings it was built into a progressive and efficient organization ;.t,hat was doing, both at home arid, abroad, remarkably good work, and "which compared favorably with similar organizations m other countries'.: ..'-■' ' , '■■.*:," / : ' S '■,• ' -.. . ' There' can be no question that our scenic attractions were advertised as they had never been advertised before —artistically and : effectively. People abroad- were beginning to realize that such a place as New Zealand existed, and the Dominion was very decidedly being put on' the map. " • "='" • . * But now, just when we- should be striving' to improve tourist • traffic there's a different story to tell. A ridiculous 'atmosphere of parsimony seems to have enveloped the department, and, • the . progressive, virile policy which dominated its ..activities a few months ago seems to have been lost or mislaid. • "You can take it ' from me pretty definitely that; the wings of the Publicity Department have < not ; been clipped," said the Minister, when replying to recent criticism of the re-; strictiohs that kve being placed . on publicity. „;■': V". . - ' And the 'country can also take it definitely, ;'but 'not from Mr. Perrelle, that l the' wings of the . Publicity Department have been most drastically ./clipped. The staff, of the film diyisiori.'has been almost entirely dispensed with; there has been an almost complete cessation,^ m .the work of 'producing New Zealand publicity films; the Government has passed over the opportunity to purchase an up-to- ?. date talkie equipment- which would' enable r New Zealand publicity to ; be restored to -the screens abroad,, and the valuable work carried but } before Mr. Perrelle assumed control of the Department is being, undone by a policy of deliberate parsimony. Publicity work is a specialised art, calling for initiative, imagination, originality, and a wide, tolerant outr look. It is not everybody who possesses these qualities, and it is not everybody, possessing -them who can successfully embark on publicity propaganda. '„■■■ •:..■•".■• Mr. Clinkard, . who now has chargu of the publicity department, is a mail Who. has rendered the' country 'good service 'm Samoa and as a, member of the Commerce and Industries" Departr ment, 'but he is probably finding hia new field a trifle strange, and, with due respect to his undoubted abilities, this paper considers that' Public Sef--vice - Commissioner Verschaffelt would have done better had he appointed a practical, publicity expert, with years of experience m this particular sphere. Mr. Perrelle waxed eloquent m rebutting statements that the work .of the department was stagnating, and, m supporting his case for the defence, referred at length to the intentions of the department m opening up fresh publicity m U.S.A. ■ "Tentative, proposals are m train for the appointment of extensive agency representation throughout Canada arid the ■ tlnited States, where travel or--, ganisations will have a direct interest m .working bri behalf of New Zealand/ said -the Minister. "The effort of these people will be supported by an improved distribution of publicity matter, and, when funds permit, the de~•partment proposes to purchase advertising, space. "in selected journals m. North; America." And . what could be fairer than that? Nothing, on its face value; b.utit is hardly m keeping, with the fact that' Russell Owen, the journalist who accompanied the Byrd expedition, told "Truth" that when he approached the N.Z; Publicity ■ Department for a sends of" New Zealand photographs to use m a , display page- m the "New York Times," he was told that he would have to pay for' them. / , A full page of photographs m that paper — the leading newspaper . of the States— would have represented wonderful ;/ publicity ..for this Dominion. Moreover,' it was free and gratis. And -yet, despite the advertising space, which, according to the. Minister, the °. Department now proposes to purchase", m selected North American journals," -the -Department let an opportunity of obtaining wonderful free publicity pass by because it would not give away a few photographs. Had the "New York, Times" demanded "payment for. publishing the photographs, that action would have been understandable, but. for a publicity department, worthy of the name to ask for payment for photographs which ,an overseas newspaper was. willing to publish for?., nothing, certainly reveals a;, complete lack of knowledge of " the fundamental- principles of publicity. ■ In the light of this, blunder, is. it any wonder that MnP.errelle's statements about opening up the. *North American territory do not ring true.: . Again the scenic films of the Dominion are no longer being manufactured. Three cinematographers attached to the Publicity Department have been dismissed, the reason : given by Mr. Clinkard being that the, advent of the talkies had made it necessary for the, Government to discontinue the production of silent films to the. extent that were being turned out previously. Yet a, few months ago New Zealand Government -films were exhibited at most Australian theatres, and, wer« receiving a distinctly good reception But to-day only a few films are be-

ing exhibited, and these are mainly ones produced some time ago. The explanation is not far to seek; it lies' m the* scrapping of the silent theatres and the installation of talkie equipment. The New Zealand scenic films are silent,, and the theatres don't Want them. So Metro -Qoldwyn Mayer have stopped taking the Government films, simply because they can't place them any longer. Yet, m -March'of this year, the 7 Government was given an oppor- , tunity to .buy an up-to-date' talkie > plant at the reasonable figure of £5000, and they turned it dowt\. For the sake of £5000, the price of one of Mr. Sterling's special coaches, they let slip a chance to put Mew Zealand's attractions on the talkie screens all over the world.,, If this is not clipping the Publicity Department's wings, per- ' haps Mr. Perrelle can suggest what ''??.' ' V ' ■•■ ' «... • ' At- thp nrpspnt timft thft- Dftoartment

has only one man engaged m film work, and the.man doing "still 1 photography is reported to be restricted to pottering around. The film is • the' Department's greatest publicity weapon, and it is entirely disregarding it. , ' Yet m the face of this Mr. Perrelle comes out with the following ;statement: — . "Steps are also being taken, to set to so\ind some of the Department's existing silent films and experimental work m this connection is being carried out m London, Australia', and New Zealand. Several lecturers provided with good quality slfdes, films, photographic enlargements, etc.,' are now operating m the United States and Canada. 1 V If the Government continues its present policy with regard. to the Publicity Department, t^ese lecturei*s will have to go out of business' when the supply of material they have m hand is exhausted. They are not likely to get

■PVIDENCE was produced to show J2i that the woman had undergone an - illegal operation, and though she confided. in a hospital sister that she had carried it out herself, the medical opinion at the inquest that it ' could, riot have be'en self-conducted. The inquest was adjourned for a week so that efforts could be made to procure additional evidence. It was stated by Dr. Paul Joseph Fogarty, who treated her at the hospital, that the woman herself gave no indication as to what her trouble was. Had it been supposed that she was suffering from an illegal operation, he said, she would probably, have been operated on sooner than she was, and this would have increased her chances of life. . • ' :'■:'■' HER LIFE Mabel Ethel Till, mother of , Mrs. Hunt, gave evidence of her daughter's life prior to her death. She said that Mrs. Hunt had been living apart from her husband, and also mentioned that she had' been employed as a waitress at the Occidental Hotel under lier own name.- Mrs. Till further stated that her daughter had. been keeping company! with Charles Irving. . "On the day before she .was admitted to hospital," Mrs. Till said, "she called at my house to see me. She . did not say then that anything was wrong with her.' "I did not see or hear anything from her until September 8, and I was then informed by Charles Irving that she was m hospital.* I went to see her that night. She was semi-conscious, | and. said, ;ph, muni, I did 'not want i you to know.' She told me not to t worry about her." . . . Dr.* Fogarty, house surgeon at the - Wellington Hospital, gave evidence to

anything new for a few years' x to come. So, because. the Government refuses to keep abreast of the times, New Zealand's name has -got to be wiped off the screens of the world's picture theatres, and the. vtry excellent work which has been done m this department of late years is to be thrown into the discard. Publicity is useless unless it is concentrated and sustained; and the unprog/esaive spirit of our now stagnant Publicity Department is glaringly apparent.! Without hesitation, the Government should, as soon as the talkie boom' burst, have- purchased the necessary machinery to allow -for the production of sound-synchronised scenics. O . ' Again the flood of excellent booklets and pamphlets which were doing so much to make New Zealand known abroad seem suddenly to have ceased. Whether this means of publicity is considered by the department to be no longer of. value, "Truth" cannot say, but possibly the explanation is to be found m the prevailing economic depression. j •-■■'. > Mr. Perrelle concluded his defence of his administration with an expression of opinion, that the recently adopted policy^ of amalgamating the activities of the Publicity Office, 'with the Department of Tourist and. Health Re-r I sorts, should show good results m the future. The results so far -have been very much to th.ci contrary, anil Mr.. Perrelle conveniently forgot to : mention that m addition to combining the Publicity Department with Tourists and Health Resorts, the Department of Industries and Commerce was also included m the' combine under the" control of Mr. Clinkard, as general man* ager. " • i To ordinary /mortals not so gifted with the art of explanation as Mr. Perrelle, it may seem hard to explain why. the Department of Industries and Commerce should ,' be merged with two other departments entirely foreign to its sphere of operations. To the lay mind it might seem that all three of the departments concerned are likely to suffer, but as Mr. Perrelle has omitted to deal with this point, it must go unexplained. . "It should be understood that the Department's activities are mainly directed towards publicity m overseas countries, and that these activities do not come prominently under the notice of the New Zealand public.," was another statement made >by Mr. Perrelle. "N.Z. Truth" agrees with Mr. Perrelle and points out at the same time that if activity abroad does not come under the -notice of the New Zealand public, neither doeg inactivity. Publicity work must be more or less inspired, aha the Minister has got to provide the inspiration by remoVirig just as many of the obstacles which lie In the way of practical experts as It's humanly possible to do. . And the way to do this is not to cheese pare expenditure and let slip opportunities to put New Zealand further on tlie map. A virile progressive, publicity campaign with punch and kick m it is called for, and, it is up to Mr. Perrelle to get down .to work and do something about it.

the effect . that Mrs. Hunt was admitted to the . institution under the name of Mrs. Irvine. He said that she was admitted on a note from Dr. Cotton, which stated that the doctor believed that she had fallen from a tramcar. She was then m a state of collapse. On Sunday, September, 7, he said, the woman's condition became worse, and she was then given a blood transfu-' sion. An operation was also performed but Mrs. Hunt showed no improvement. She died on September 10. In reply, to Mr. Bell,* the doctor said that when. Mrs. Hunt's conditlbn did not improve by September 6 he suspected interference. "I pressed her for information that might assist me," he said, "but she* assured, me that she had nothing to tell, and that nothing m the way" of interference had taken place." Dr. Fogarty explained to the coroner that had he known on Mrs. Hunt's admission that she had been interfered with her treatment probably would have been different. She would probably have been operated on sooner, and that would have increased her chances -.of life. Netta Stewart MacKenzie, a sister m charge of No. 2 ward at the Wellington Public Hospital, said that on the evening of Monday, September 8, Mrs. Hunt told her that she had interfered with herself and that no one was aware that she had done so. The pathologist of the hospital, Dr. Phillip Patrick liynch, who conducted a post mortem on Mrs. Hunt, expressed the opinion that the illegal operation had been carried out on. the day of Mrs. Hunt's admission to the hospital. ' It was extremely unlikely, he said, that the wound was self-inflicted. At this stage the inquest was adjourned.