PRESERVING THE AUSTRALIAN COUNTRYSIDE
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] Snt,—In his notes on "Country Life" in the Spectator dated January 31st, Sir W. Beach Thomas speaks of the difficulties of co-operation between advertisers and preservers of beauty. He may be interested to know that in Victoria, which is the southernmost of the eastern States of far-off Australia, advertisements, which had sprung up like mushrooms along the country roads, had become a serious problem to beauty- lovers. The management of the roads, which are a source of pride to that State, has been taken over by a body of men called "The Main Roads Board." This board is responsible for the building and upkeep of the roads, and has issued a decree that all advertisements painted on fences or on hoardings beside the roads for which they arc responsible must be removed within a specified time.
The advertising agents then painted the sides of barns, and hung advertisements from trees in the paddocks, a little distance in from the roads. Now the edict has gone forth that all advertisements which are visible from the roads must be removed—so Victorian travellers, whether by foot or by car, will once more enjoy unspoiled views of their beautiful countryside.—! am, Sir, &c., 0. M. MCDONALD. Willowburn, Queensland, Australia.
Previous page
