THE HALF-HOLIDAY.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 April 1921, Page 4

THE HALF-HOLIDAY.

PECULIAR POSITION IN

SHOPS CLOSED YESTERDAY.

(From Our Own Correspondent.)

Stratford, Last Night. i The half-holiday question has d« veloped into a peculiar tangle as far Stratford is concerned, and to-day town was divided against itself on this perplexing problem. After the poll on Wednesday, the conn mittee of the Thursday Half-holiday As< sociation met to discuss their in regaining Thursday, and as a result} of that meeting an advertisement was inserted in the Daily News advising the public that the shops would be closed from noon to-day and would open till 9 p.m. on Saturday. Many however, declared that they intended tqj keep the present Saturday half-holiday; until the law permitted them to gd back to Thursday. On the one hand! the Thursday Association was advising the shoopkeepers that it would be ab» right to close to-day and open on Satuw day, and on ths other hand the policl were advising them that while they ha 4 a perfect right to close at noon to-dajj they had no right whatever to keeg open on Saturday till 9 p.m. With the object of settling the mat* ter, a number of retailers who are bers of the Thursday Half-holiday Aa4 sociation waited on the Mayor, who afM .terwards sent the following telegram td the Minister of Labor: “Stratford daf cidcd yesterday to revert back to Thursk day half-holiday. If possible it would| be well to make the change at oncoa Will you kindly advise?” Similar telej grams were also sent by the Thursday} Association and by Mr. R. Masters, M.P./ and it is expected that replies will b® received before Saturday. | J The position at noon was rather ex* | traordinary. Most of the shops close® their doors and gave the assistants th® x half-holiday, jwhile a fair number o® others kept open in the belief that the* Minister would not grant for Stratford shopkeepers to evade th«. law. Some shopkeepers declare that i*jis their intention to keep open on Sat* nrday whether permission is given oc not, while others state equally emphatic cally that they will not break the under any conditions. y