21 APRIL 1933, Page 16

THE COST OF BUILDING

[To the Editor of TIM SPECTA'TOR4 SIR,—You kindly published a letter of mine, on " The cost of Building," in your issue of March 31st. • Following this, there were letters in The Times from Sir Lennox lithseij, Sir Charles. Harris, and Sir George Hunter, strongly en ft reing the points which I made, and calling:attention to the im- possibility of building small houses at an economic rent, the burden added on the income-tax-payers by subsidies, and the large number of unemployed building operatives, caused by the maintenance of unreasonably high prices. Notwithstanding this, I see that your contributor in the article on " The War on Slums " states that " building materials are abnormally cheap," " houses are abnormally inexpensive," &c., &c. Feeling that the propagation of such false statements is very harmful to national interests, I trust you will forgive this comment from a very old reader.

am, Sir, &c., H, G. l vs Clarendon Road, Bournemouth.

[It is sufficient to quote figures given to the House of Commons by the Minister of Health last December to the effect that the average building cost of a three-bedroom, non. parlour, house (i.e., exclusive of the cost of land, &e..) was £351 in the December quarter of 1980 and £295 in the September quarter of 1932.—Ed., T/IE SPECTATOR.]