NO MORE CAPPINGS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1963, 21 January 1914, Page 8

NO MORE CAPPINGS.

; STUDENTS' INDICTED, ''ORGANISED ROWDYISM.'* I SENATE VETOES THE FUNCTION, | (Br TelecrnDli.—Press Asaoolailon.l | t Dunedini January 20, , i The conduct of students at dapping I ceremonies was discussed at tho meetI■: ing-of tho University Senate to-day. t Mr. K. K von Haast. (Wellington) I moved: "That henceforth, until the i Senate decide to the contrary, degrees j be> conferred .at.the meeting of the Unij vorsity Senate." This was, in effect, j ho. said, .an abolition of tho capping- } ceremony.' ' Ho was loth to move it, but j it^.speme.d.,to.him that the time had com© to deal) onco and for all, with tho ! nwtterj'.'and it appeared-to him further j that there was.no other course open I to tho Senate. The disturbances last j year had differed from thoso of prej .vious years, in that, they wero caused f hy "Students who had acted in a conf certed" manner. . Tho ..disturbances ap- ' peared to; have been premeditated and deliberate. -He described at.- length what fi had-,taken place, at Wellington, , Christchurch, and Dunedin, and said !. that "at' Wellington some of tho stu- ! d<siits had been dressed as hallet girls. ( That-, he thought, . should have been I taken cognisance of by tho heads.of j the Students'; Association. They ought ! to have known that, if students attired themselves ill grotesque costumes, it i was absolutely, impossible ;to preserve | order. It seemed -to him that tho mat- ; ter had gone so far that the students ■ ancLtho. university wero being brought j into disrepute. They had got to the ;. position that the students seriously j claimed a right to bargain that speeches !-at the'capping ceremony should be J short. If they, wanted them short no J ono objected-to wit, or an outburst of j high spirits. He . thought that the \ course which he proposed was tlio only ! one to adopt unless tlicy were prcj pared to allow the Senate to become a | laughing-stock in tho eyes of tho pub1, there were another course ho ■ would be happy to withdraw his motion ill. favour of it. Touching upon j .the conduct of some students at cap- [ Ving ceremonies the speaker added that : seemed that what was considered- to j be a gross breach of discipline in a j couego or at lectures was apparently j considered to bo Quito permissiolo at a j junction at which the Senate wero the i hosts, and tho students wero the Quests. He had not heard a single expression or apology from tho students or from ! any board of students.

I ''If tlie Chancellor had had Patience—•• ; Professor J. MacMillan Brown in I seconding tho motion, said that no had ! always taken up the attitude that they ; should not mix tho dignified proceedi ings of tho&enato with a music-hall per- ; iormanco. He knew for a fact that there had been men who liad intended I to make Rifts to the university who ! had withdrawn them because of these I; disgraceful proceedings. j .Professor J. R Brown said that, ; irhie he had no desire to justify tho |,«tudenta. ; .Ie .would like to say that, as.far as;he knew,,they.had no intenI tion..to;msult. the Chancellor at Vici i ot i a C f?fi e ' lf the Chancellor had ! had a little more patience it would ; have been a. reasonably quiet ceremony He was sorry that Mr. von Haast had i

j . Cappings Home ana Here. I The Kev A. Cameron said that he ~*as going to,opposo t'iie mo.tiou. It was i easy,-he-thought, to looK'M these pro- ; cecdings at capping ceremonies from an I altogether too serious point of view Mr I von Haast had spoken as if New Zea- ; land stndeilts had been unique, in their I conduct, and as if their actions were i *> be direct insults to the ! Chancellor.

I -Members: So they were. ! aho speaker went on to say that he ! ?' ad [ liul * le . Privilege of hearing Lord ; Ifosebory dehvar his rectorial address at I Mmbtirgli, and anything he had seen in i iNew Zealand was quito tame when com- ; pared-with what took 1 place on that W- ! casion A good deal of furniture had j been destroyed, and had had to be re- [ Mowed but yet the Lord Rector went j on'and gave Ins address, and did not , consider himself insulted. It had to he I remembered that'these outbursts by i students were not the growth of yesterI day, or of the day before. Mr. Cam- ! won also mentioned that ho had heard I Mr.'/ John Bright, as.rector,'address the ! students of the Glasgow University. Noi thing had ever happened in-New Zea- '. land to be compared with.that occasion.

j Were the "Scenes" Organised? i ~T . h e, Chancellor .(Sir Robert Stout) said ! that ho did not view the matter from La personal standpoint at all. What he ; did think was wrong was .that students ; should.'organise beforehand that there i should be disturbances.-' He did not'ob- : 3ccj>.,Jo students making witty, remark's . or making fun of a speech, but organised : 'disorder was a very different matter. He i .was informed-in Wellington and in Dun--- ; edin ss?to what uwould-fake place. He : ,went;pn to discuss!.at lengtlr what had --4;aken-place at Wellington, andconterid- ; cd disorder had ' been ' pre- ; arranged. Unless they could show that ; .University education tended to courtesy in life, and to order and discipline, they i would notrget people to.-assist the cause I of eduSatiotl. T "V. •",' '■ .. •

j Professor Hunter supported the mo- , I tion, \bw -expressed regret' that the' i mover liad. not contented himself with' ; merely moving it. Ho did not think that : the University would got any credit from j discussing theso disturbances. ; The Rev. Mr. Evans moved as an J amendment to add the words: "And I that the diplomas be forwarded to tho j Registrars m the several colleges." j ' After discussion tho amendI ment was negatived. ■

I Professor Hewitson moved as a fur- ; ther amendment: "That degrees bo con- ; ferred at meetings summoned for the ; purpose at the- four principal centres, J the Senate being responsible for the dis- , cipline." Ho believed that tho function '< bo made a useful ono, and an ef- ; fort ought to bo made to amend it. He ' thought that to end it would be a con- ; fission of weakness on tho part of tho : Senate. The amendment was negatived) and the motion agreed to.