DAYLIGHT SAVING.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 May 1916, Page 4

DAYLIGHT SAVING.

Britain has followed the example of some of the Continental countries and adopted daylight saving, and it is likely New Zealand will now give Mr. Sidey's haidy anhual a more favorable hearing thaii in the past. For seven years Mr. Sidey brought his Bill forward amidst the ribaldry and indifference of legislators. .Last session it reached the Upper House, lnit was thrown out by a close division on the second reading. But the adoption of the principle by Britain, not to speak of France, Holland, Scandinavia, and the enemy countries, is testimony to Mr. Sidey's prescience and judgment and will afford food for reflection to our New Zealand legislators who opposed the measure or treated it with levity. Economic considerations underlie the adoption of the principle by the European countries. In lighting saving it will represent millions to Britain alone. Mr. Sidey's original Bill provided that the alteration in time should cover a period of six months: but the measure introduced last session limited the months of its operation each year to three. Briefly, the Bill proposed that from the ffrst Sunday ill November in each year standard tlm« in Now Sea-

land should be advanced by one hour. The clocks of the country should be advanced one hour on that date, and that advance would be maintained until the Ifirst Sunday in February—that was, for 'the three longest summer months. The advantages claimed for the alteration were many, the principal being a greater utilisation of daylight for recreation purposes, a beneficial effect upon the health of the community, and a great saving in the cost of artificial light. It was estimated by the supporters of the Bill that the saving effected in 250,000 homes by the curtailment of ons bourns lighting per day for three months would amount to £50,000. The advancing of the clock meant that people would commence work an lionr earlier and go to bed an hour earlier,, thus having for recreative and health purposes an additional hour of sunlight. It was pointed out that while an indisputable boon would thus be conferred upon indoor workers and school 'children, the advantages derived by the farming community were not apparent, seeing that farmers already worked from daylight to dark even in the summer time. It was upon this argument that the principal opposition to the measure was conducted. In the debates the nomic question was not emphasised, stress being laid upon the advantages to health likely to be gained by an -additional hour of out-door recreation. The endorsement of the principle by the Euro< pean countries will make the passing 01 the Bill in New Zealand a simple matter now, and we may look .forward to the measure coming into dperation next summer and the people getting a maximum df daylight.