PRESERVING THE BEAUTY OF THE ENGLISH COUNTRY.

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 284, 26 July 1932, Page 2

PRESERVING THE BEAUTY OF THE ENGLISH COUNTRY.

THE MENNCE OF HOARDINGS. That the beauty of the British Isle's will not be permanently disfigured as a resuit of modern transport and its attendant evils— inseparable from so vast a transition in human affairs — is evident from the latest report of the Scapa Society. With regard to hoardings, ete., the report states incidentally that "it is the prevention of the abuses of advertising, not its abolition, that is the' SQciety's object." There were many ways of advertising without disfiguring town or country and if these ways alone were adopted amenity would be protected and commerce not be injured. The report presents a statement showing the number and pefcentage of local autbofities in England and Wales that have exereised their powers and made by-laws. Fifty-eight of the 63 counties have adopted bylaws. The lead of the counties is penetrating to the boroughs and cities, but there is a long way still to go, only seventeen of 83 county boroughs and 43 of the 258 municipal boroughs having taken action. Oi 261 urban districts with populations over 10,000 only 53 have by-laws, but all these figures show an advance in the society's aim. Vigorous Enforcement. "The enforcement of the by-laws, too," says the report, "is beeoming decidedly more vigorous, and local authorities are beginning to realise that the public do wish the amenities of town and country to be preserved. The society's experience, indsed, is that county councils in general are now exceedingly helpful and ready to take the necessary steps when cases of disfigurement are repnrted to them by the society or by members of the public. In the towns the position is less satisfactory. Civic pride undoubtedly exists in very many places, but it does not find expression as often as it should in measures to make a town more beautiful. London and its environs (to go no furthel) are small cause of satisfaction to its citizens in this respect, while the positon of the county boroughs — places surely of sufficient importance to cultivate a measure of aesthetic dignity and self-re-spect — is the lowest of any, so far as the making of advertisements regulation by-laws is coneerned. It is much to be regretted that cites such as (for instance) Oxford, Southampton, Eastbourne and.. Bournemouth, by failing to make such by-laws, are practically defenceless against any outdoor advertising vulgarity. At the sarne time it must be admitted that the making of satisfactory by-laws regulating advertisements in towns is hedged about with technical difficulties, and some mere positive method of control may eventually be found necessary. "In contrast to England and Wales, Scotland is still practically defenceless against the grossest excesses of outdoor advertising. That Scotland should he allowed to remain permanently without any effective restrietions on outdoor advertising is unthinkable, and the society is leaving no stone unturned in the matter." P'^trol-Filling Stations. The maldng of by-laws for the control of petrol-filling stations from the point of view of amenity is progressing very satisfactorily. In 1930 only four counties had by-laws in foree; in 1931 the total was 17. In addition to the counties, the councils of 13 borough and municipal boroughs made by-laws for filling-stations, bringing the total to 22. The report continues: — "By-laws forbidding the leaving of litter in places to which the public have access are beeoming more general, new anti-litter leagues having been formed in Warwickshire and Worcesterehire, and in time we shall doubtless become a tidy nation English people are not eharacteristically disorderly, but they are in some ways lazy, and litter is a form of laziness. The necessity jiwhich is now upon us all for harder work and more thrifty economy may even eventually diminish the litter and refuse dump nuisance; for (as we learnt in the war) there are few forms of rubbish which have not some commercial value if saved in sufficient quantity."