W.C.T.U.

Evening Star, Issue 22441, 11 September 1936, Page 6

W.C.T.U.

SOUTH DUNEDIN BRANCH The above branch met on Thursday afternoon in the school room of Wesley Church, Cargill road. Mrs Felling presided and Mrs Williamson conducted the opening devotional exercises. Reports were given of sick and absent members. Mrs Donaldson reported on the activities of the National Council of Women, Mrs Felling withholding her report of the Bible in Schools League in order that a member might read the paper on ‘ Peace,’ which dealt in the main with the position taken by the pacifist. It was decided that the meetings be held in the future on the fourth Thursday. Arrangements were made for the district convention to be held in Lawrence in October. Sympathy with the relatives of Mrs Macgregor, a member whose sudden death occurred during the week, was expressed and the usual tribute of respect tendered. “PEACE DAY.” The following paper was read in connection with “Peace Day”;— “ I wish to come right to the point and say I wish you had asked me to speak on the “ things that make for peace.” A family is the whole community in embryo. The community is the nation in small scale. A nation with its ambitions, hopes, ideals, loves, hates, bitterness, or longings for universal brotherhood pictures for us the whole world. I am speaking of beliefs, for it is impossible to attain peace while we are believing wrong things. While a section of society believes itself God-appointed to rule, discipline, or exploit any other section there never can, and there never will, be universal peace or brotherhood. There still are people who do think it is their mission in to exploit the gifts or possessions of/ their fellow men or the natural resources of other nations for the increase of their wealth or prestige. Try to imagine a man or woman impoverished by the greed—perhaps the thoughtless greed—of some other person, and then imagine that other person attempting to ‘ discipline ’ the one he has exploited and you get a picture of what the strong nations—strong in wealth, organisation, military prowess—have inflicted upon the backward nations. V With regard to the possibility of war, the wisest and the best know that war may come. There are those who will go to the help of their country in its need, there are others who will not take arms. Certainly, if the youth of every country were trained in the principle of non-violence there could be no wars. This attitude of brotherhood — universal brotherhood—must bo attained.