CANADA AND THE STATES.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 July 1921, Page 5

CANADA AND THE STATES.

A VISITOR’S IMPRESSIONS,

ADDRESS BY MR. W. J. PENN. Last evening Air. W. J. Penn, who was a member of the Imperial Press Conference held at Ottawa last October, gave an address on his travels to members of the Taranaki Chamber of Commerce. The president (Air. T. C. List) occupied the chair. Air. Penn first referred, to the splendid railway services in Canada and the United States. Everything that could be done for the convenience and comfort of travellers was done. The cost was high—from 50 to 75 per cent, higher than in New Zealand—but the service was given in return. The meals were as good as could be obtained in a first-class hotel, ranging in price from two to three dollars for breakfast to from three to five dollars for dinner, plus the inevitable tips, without which the traveller could not go far in America. Equally efficient were the facilities for the care of luggage, which gave the traveller no bother or anxiety, even when it had to be transferred.

In speaking of tramways, he said the overhead system was practically universal, and fares were exceptionally cheap. At Winnipeg one could go any distance for 6 or 8 cents, whilst in San Francisco a fare of 5 cents would carry one on a Several-hours journey. The one-man control system was proving a great success.

Referring to the hotels in Canada, Air. Penn said they were some of the finest in the world. A complete suite was allotted to each person, with his telephone and every possible convenience installed. The charges were in keeping. The, tipping system was very prevalent, every official, from the call boys up, expecting a tip. During dinner a "Jazz band” wds in attendance at many of the places, and it was quite a common thing for couples to dance between the various dinner courses. Five to ten dollars per night was often charged for the occupation of a bedroom, and 20 to 30 dollars for one day. The meals, of course, were extra. ROADING SYSTEM.

A feature of American community life was the various social clubs used as a method of bringing business .men together. Periodical luncheons were held and notable visitors invited. The clubs were a huge success, as also were the country clubs, the latter being used largely for week-end purposes. The speaker thought that if clubs of this description were established in all the large towns in New Zealand it would tend to keep the business men more in touch with each other than was the case at present.

Many of the roads in America were of concrete, which were not a success They cracked up, and the cost of up.keep was exceptionally heavy. The best road he had seen was the Columbia River Highway, which was an ordinary macadamised road with a bituminous surface. The initial outlay was heavy, but the upkeep was practically nil. One of the principal streets of Boston had been made in this way in. 1903, and since then practically nothing had been spent on it. He strongly advocated the adoption of the bitumen surface in New Zealand.

It was an eye-opener, the speaker said, to see the way the traffic was regelated in New York, particularly in Fifth Avenue. The whole of the traffic for a stretch of five miles was regulated from the one point. It was a wonderful system, and was the means of increasing the average speed of the traffic in this particular spot from 4 to S miles per hour. All congestion in the traffic was avoided, and accidents were practically eliminated. Regular queues were formed at theatres and railway stations. No crowding was experienced, and everyone waited his turn. The people on the whole splendidly. The street hoardings in America, instead of being unsightly as in New Zealand, were attractive, and, in many cases, beautiful. Some wonderful lighting effects were often produced.

The speaker briefly touched on the enterprise, of the American Press, but in some ways he was disappointed in it. When the Presidential election was in progress in the United States the Press, instead of taking a live interest in it, was seemingly concerned more with baseball, scandal and murder trials. They seemed to have no inclination to elevate the tastes of the people, being apparently content to print what they thought the people liked. LIFE IN NEW YORK. Air. Penn spent four days in NeJ York, which could not be compared with anything else he had ever seen. It was “just New York”. It was both confusing and wonderful; and yet when one became acquainted with the city it was surprising how easy it was to go about, The theatres in New York were astounding. He visited one place for the evening, and the cost was in the neighborhood of 6 guineas, and in the Hippodrome, the largest theatre in the world, no less than 1000 people were employed as stage hands and attendants. The stage effects were marvellous, and must have commanded a huge expenditure. He visited Coney Island, where every possible amusement was available. An interesting sight was the brokers’ clerks in the street; signalling to their employers’ offices several storeys up. He went to the top of the Woolworth Building, a 57-storeyed structure, 750 feet high. It housed no fewer than 20,000 people. San Francisco was a most interesting place, said Mr. Penn, and evidence of the big fire and earthquake was to be found. There were now no skyscraper buildings in ’Frisco, as in New York. Tram fares, as in other places, were very cheap, a forty minutes’ ride in a ferry costing 8 cents. Chicago was one of the most interesting cities he had ever seen. One of the streets was called “Automobile Avenue”, -and consisted of nothing but automobile show rooms. Public tennis courts were provided, as were play innground facilities for the children. The visitors were taken around Toronto, Afontreal and many other cities, and shown the municipal works and harbor schemes, and all were struck with the great faith the American people had in their country’s future.

Mr. Penn was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for his interesting and instructive address.