New Britain herald., 1930-11-20

land. Your correspondent recent ly returned from a second sojourn there. It seemed an ideal country with few If any real slums. The people seemed well-clothed and well-fed. The restaurants, big and little. seemed to do a thriving business. There is one of them, The Red Mill" packed to the doors every night and it boasts cabaret that compares favor- ably with those of London and Paris and Berlin.
 But underneath this seemingly fair surface there is something bitter stirring that the casual visi. tor does not sec. There is com plaint about the high cost of liv. ing. There are stiff taxes. There is unemployment. Part of it ,s Norway's fault. During the war Norway made a lot of money. It's shipping was lucrative, even though many vessels were sunk by the Germans and the lives of 1900 CEoilISH NtlC loot' put lllc A>Oi VI e gians spent their money as if the war and the good times were go- ing 10 last forever. Then came the slump.
 With the knowledge that most or the Norwegians, who have Come to Americas middle west and be- come such splendid citizens arg mainly farmers, the general idea is that Norway is predominantly an agricultural country But three quarters of Norway's soil is rocky and unproductive. Most of the farms do not exceed acres in ex- tent In some places the climate is so bleak and damp that the farmers dry their hay by hanging 1t over wires. They have to work hard to make living. B1t they also happen to be the extreme Right of their country with their Aerarian party.
 The middle classes and the busi- ness people give their suffrages D the Conse rvatives and the Radi- calls. Labor works for the Labor party About 150,000 people are employed in the manufacturing in- dustries of the country, which, since the war, have been favored by the development of hydro-elec- tric plants. Another 10000 are engaged in making their living ou. Of the sea. either as sailors on the considerable Norwegian mercan- tile fleet, or as fishermen. These two categories form a considera bla slice Of the G00,O0 odd wage earners of Norway's c,so0,000 population.
 Middle Glasses, Afraid of Labor
 Three years ago when the last Storthing elections were held, NJ. Lykke, leader of the Conserva- tires, was Premier The election resulted; Labor, 62; Conserva- tives, 3l; Radical 3l; Asrarians, os. Lyllke resigned and Labor se- cured it's first Premier M. Horns rud. The new government let it be known that it proposed to bring in further taxes and that it had little concern for the welfare Of the capitalists. Som ething like business panic ensued. Securities fell in value and there was a flight or the kroner from the country. NJ Lykke introduced vote of no confidence in the government. The three parties of the Right com- bined and elected NJ. Mowinckel, leader of the Radical party as Pre- mier and he has been in office ever since.
 In the election just over the Labor party was even more red than it had been three years ago. Moreover, it had high hopes that t would achieve an absolute ma jcrity in the storthing which con- tains 150 members. But it's red ne.s frightened the Norwegian people. The result is Labor dropped tives rose from 31 to A; the Radi- calls from 31 to 8 and the Agrarians from % to 47.
 Labor is still the strongest par ty, but with the Conservatives pressing close. This means that the days of N. Mouinckel as Pre- mier are numbered The Conser- vatives, as the strongest party n the coalition of the Right, will probably demand that NJ. Lykkc once more be made Premier and they will probably get their way.