A GOOD CAUSE AND BAD METHODS
Sir, —I see from your columns that a new gamble is' being advertised in order to gather money for a crippled soldiers' hostel. It is good if men have willingly given a t thousand pounds" worth of sheep to help such, a hostel. But that others are willing to"give tho very large amount of time involved in quadrupling tho amount bv widely advertising odds of 40,000 to 1 sad enough. Bad as public lotteries ar« (and they have a black record), it is doubly bad if we, in safety and comfort here, are not happy "to do generously by our soldier crippies without the bait of a hundred prizes.. • ■ I do protest that it is a slur on our good name when,such means are made use of. Ido believothat if the large 'amount of money spent in so advertising were spent in putting tha men's needs and our privileges in plain English, the necessary amount would be forthcoming. Surely the community knows, without my enlarging on it, the evil and misery in our midst caused •by gambling, and that such public procedure is likely to "encourage the evil. How much more trouble and death is , needed before- we recognise the truethought outspoken l>y Admiral Beatty and General Robertson when they speak of the issues of the war depending nob only on men and money, but on the spirit in which the general community is living? I hope, Sir. Editor, you may see your way to endorse this letter. I ■should like to give a pound to the hostel; ten'if it is put np without gambling. And I believe 'most men. would be pleased to give according to their means if tho case was well put. I know you are likely to get a largo amount by appealing to the gambling spirit, but I also know that Now Zealanders, rich, nnd poor, will respond in a very, much better spirit if approached in the best way.—l am, etc., WILL. B. MATHESON. [While most people probably will a<ree with Mr. Matheson's objection, to public lotteries, it is doubtful if the money raised by means of this .aturo Wvould.be forthcoming from ether y.oiuntary sourcos. This is not a particularly pleasant admission to make, bub we believe it to be correct, Hie reason is that tho willing givers have found themselves called on so repeatedly, while others equally or better ablo to give have escaped or refused to n*«nbe, that there is an increasing, tendency to disclaim individual responsibility comment nowadays. It is not that to equitably distributed..!,
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Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3063, 26 April 1917, Page 6
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430A GOOD CAUSE AND BAD METHODS Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3063, 26 April 1917, Page 6
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