Edinburgh, Jan. 14.
Serious trouble threatens those who are making efforts to solve our great housing problem. "It started in Glasgow, but it will spread over the whole country; mealls not only an embargo on the steel houses proposed by Lont Weir; all the other methods' of rapid concrete construction will be equally affected. It is well knowe that the rates of pay in the buid~ ing trae ate biyher relatively than there in thy engineering trae, Partly because of t's difference the atoel house, I there is a large enough armand Zor it, is likely he cheaper to cor" the ordinary stone or brick house, Uneanptover employees, 3 me fortunately Ube bulling trade, bots
fisting toat tors fo steel houses sual gay for all "bu work' ulations in conn work. If their demand were conceded the cost of the steel ronkt be eteraiy, Sacrensed, sod pects. of cheaper hous clit vanish, The attitude of the masters and men is that of the doz in the manger and will have a most Gisastrous effect on our housing problem.
Lord Weir has issued a strong plea on behalf of the so-called steel house. He says that the house need rot be ugly, that it admitted of riety of designs, that it was as little conductive of heat and cold as an ordinary brick house, "and that it had the additional advantage of being damp proof. His main argument ix that the new style of house is designed to meet an urgent racial need. The shortage of houses cannot possibly be made up by traditional building methods. Only Ly emergency methods analogous to those employed during the war for the production of war material can the abnormal demand for houses ever be satisfied. The these methods lies tion of unemployed Icbour, unskilled labour. "For every house we build," says Lord attracted by his bly court cons and unassuming manner. Bs this inherent modesty and treme dislike of anything nature of the limelight for himself to a large extent, the effect of hiding from the public view some of his striking qualities, including that of very marked ability. Those, itowever, who were brought into ial relationship with him were fully cognizant and appreciative of these qualities.
The two chief official posi hho occupied were, first, the Sceretoryship for Scotland, which he filled from 1905 till 1912, and, subsequently, that of Governor of Madras from 1912 to 1919. In regard to the Scottish office, the con. scientious care and thought whicn he devoted to its duties were ex-amplified in the case of the ya portant appointments which he to make. He was dete mined to find the best possible occap ant for any position that he would risk the appearance of delay in order to secure that result.
Lord Pentland's Indian tenure. of office was marked by continued success. Amongst the special feature! of his administration may lie took in education, taking charge himself of the portfolio of Educa tion in the Legislative Council, while his special gift for organizing affairs was a great asset clu the whole of the war period and was, doubtless, responsible for the very large contributions made by the Presidency of Madras to war funds,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.