Editorial Comment

Progress, Volume XIV, Issue 5, 1 January 1919, Page 397

Editorial Comment

Since the news of the Armistice came, there have been persistent re ports in the newspapers of an early

Price of Pooling Iron.

reduction in the high prices for roofing iron which have ruled for the past two years and more. Actual sales at these reduced prices have been referred to, though the quality of the material i was not mentioned, and there appears to be little doubt that this necessary building commodity will revert to pre-war conditions, as regards supplies and prices, daring the next twelve months. Within a few weeks an augmentation of the depleted stocks in the Dominion may be looked for, but it is doubtful whether the price for the best iron will be much below £SO a ton. This price, while showing a substantial reduc tion. on the prices of a few weeks ago, is still far above the pre-war price, which was about £lB per ton, to which rate or a near price the prices must droj) within the year 1919. ■ A factor which has operated as much as any in making galvanised iron difficult to obtain during the war has been the practice of building huge portable sheds and shelters of ungalvanised corrugated iron, in the war zones. These huge buildings were, it is said, a Canadian innovation, and were made in the shape of an enclosed arch or tunnel. ■ The whole of the framework, which was made in sections of angle-iron, was bolted together and the corrugated iron bolted ovm' it. In a few hours these enormous buildings could be put up or taken down. Their only drawback, from the soldiers’ point of view, was that they were not shell-proof and only moderately shrapnel-proof. The cessation of the construction of these and the reversion of munition factories to ordinary trade industries means that there will be - large, supplies of building iron available for shipment overseas from Britain. Already several New Zealand importers have had advice of considerable shipments being made, and it is only a matter of weeks when fairly ample, supplies of good iron should reach New Zealand. ,

The scarcity and high price of roofing iron, has not been Avith out its advantages as well as its disadvan-

Warm Roofs.

' tages. One of the former lies in the fact that many homes, built during the war, av ill be more warmly roofed than others built under normal conditions. The reason for this is that in many cases, so-called temporary roofs of pliant bituminous material have been used in place of iron, the intention being to cover these over Avith iron or slates Avhen these materials are available at moderate prices. This will be done in order to comply Avith the Avishes of mortgagors, and especially the Advances to Settlers Department, Avho prefer roofs of iron or slates. The result of the combination of these tA\ r o types of permanent and temporary roofing materials must be to make the houses upon Avhich they are placed absolutely Aveather-proof and very Avarm in winter. Particularly should this be the case Avhen the felt roofing has been fixed on Avith cement paint, instead of being nailed on and only the scams cemented. In the former case, Avith the material firmly stuck to the sacking boards, there is no possibility of the Avind getting under it. Double or triple skins of this material fixed in such a manner will rnnke a roof Avhich Avould last Avell over ten years. The material has no chance to wrinkle or sag, as it Avill sometimes do when only nailed to the boards. The danger in the cementing process lies in potting on too much cement. It is then liable to drip through the cracks between the sacking boards on to the ceilings beloAv in hot Aveather. Ordinary care Avill obviate such a contingency, and such a roof is very solid, warm and weatherproof. Necessity has led many house builders to make acquaintance Avith these “temporary” roofings to the advantage of the house builders.

The recently reported advance in the price of Italian marble is likely to be reflected upon the marble-

N.Z. Building Stone.

quarrying and other building stone industries in New Zealand in a marked degree. Ample proof has been demonstrated that the building stones of New Zealand are equal to those of any country in the world, and as the diminishing supply of timber causes the prices of that material to rise, stone and brick must be increasingly used in the Dominion. At the present, and in the- immediate future, however, it is in public buildings that the greatest use will be made of New Zealand building stone. Competition from overseas, especially as regards marble, has hampered the industry in New Zealand. Prior to the war, Italian marble of the best quality could lie landed at Wellington at a price which was 4/- per cubic foot less than that, of marble quarried from the Takaka ranges and carried across the Straits. In spite of this handicap, the men behind the Takaka enterprise have stuck to their industry, and if the reported heavy increase in price of Italian' marble is correct-, they may at last .reap something of the just reward

of Avhich they have been deprived by the discrepancy betAveen the loav cost of Italian labour and the cost of labour in New Zealand. While on this subject, Ave may remark that nothing has been heard for a long time about the Ncav Zealand Government’s plan of providing separate headstones for the graves of our soldiers wherever they are situated. Whatever is, done in connection with this scheme will have to be coordinated with the general arrangements noAV being perfected by a Commission in London representing all the overseas Dominions. We hope, hoAvever, that when a design is approved, that New Zealander’s graves Avill be denoted by a tasteful monument in Ncav Zealand marble, for the sample headstones prepared from this material are excellent, in appearance, and of course, extremely durable. The difference in price between NeAv Zealand and imported marble was largely a question of labour cost, but of late years, the marble saAV and plane have revolutionised the industry, and with this advantage, the energetic capitalists Avho have persevered so heroically for years with the difficult task of getting the local product into the market should be able to secure fair returns, having regard to the high cost of freight from Europe, a handicap on the imported article which will continue for some time, although one reduction in freight has been announced. The losses through submarining, and the enormous demands for tonnage to carry supplies to Europe will keep the Avorld’s shipping well employed for a considerable time, so that we cannot hope to see freights down to pre-Avar level for a feAV years, if at all.

A problem Avhich will have to be faced in Ncav Zealand very soon is that of the croAvding into the cities

Congestion in Cities.

of Avorkers and the difficulty of finding habitations in the cities in Avhich hygienic conditions Avill prevail. Excepting Christchurch, A\ r hero the level country enables tramway trailers to be used, the tramway systems have failed to solve the question of providing suburban services to carry Avorkers to and from their homes, Avith ' the result that the people are acquiring the habit of living in rooms and flats in the cities. The recent epidemic demonstrated the danger of this practice from the health point of aucav. If this problem of croAvded cities is to be dealt Avith seriously, a greater use must be made of the railways, and of the AA ; ater suburbs of Auckland, Wellington and Dunedin. To talk of extending the Wellington tramways to Lower Hutt, for example, as Mr. J. P. Luke, M.P., C.M.G., has been doing, is to evade the issue. What the trams cannot do on short services, they certainly Avould be unable to cope with on longer runs. Railway trains, given quick despatch, arc better than trams, and water travel is better still. The discomforts of Avinter Aveather can be overcome by the provision of adequate ferry boats, of which there are very feAv in New Zealand at the present time. For a young, small country like Ncav Zealand to suffer from croAvded cities is a sad reflection on the enterprise of the people’s leaders.