NAZIS AND ROTARY

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 188, 26 August 1937, Page 4

NAZIS AND ROTARY

-Preas Association.

Ban May Appiy Only Toi Party Members N.Z. GOVERNOR'S VIEW

By Telegraph-

WELLINGTON, This Day, Comment on the ruling of the higbest Nazi court that Nazis must not be Rotarians was made in Wellington yesterday by Mr F. Hall-Jones, of Invercargill, district governor of Rotary in New Zealand. Mr Hall-Jones said tliat the message stated that any member of tlie Nazi Party had to resign from the Rotary Club before the end of the year if a member of both. "You will see," said blr Hall-Jones, ''that the message says 'Party.' In Germany the great mass of the people are adherents to Nazism, but that does not racan that they are members of the Nazi Party, so I think that the message suggests that Rotary is to be allowed to continue in Germany, but the members of the Nazi Party may not remain members of Rotary. I take it that the Fuehrer does not wish members of his party to be allied to , any other organisation wbatsoever. "A few years ago Herr Hitler was inclined to discourage the Rotary movement, altogether in Germany, but pastpreaident John Nelson saw him personal^', and was able to convince the Fuehrer of the disadvantage of flying in the face of public opinion. "At tbe present time," continued Mr Hall-Jones, "there a16 ^ Rotary clubs in Germany, a higher number than in any other European country except France, where there are 70 clubs, and Rotary is established in every European country save Russia, Albania find Turkey. When president Will Manier, Nashville, Tennessee, made a tour of Furope only last year, he was received by the ruler of each country— except Germany. Herr Hitler's attitude .was neutral, but not encouraging. He did not interfere with clubs already in existence, but discouraged the formation of new ones. We know- that he has called for reports from Germans abroad on the practical working of Rotary .in the various countries, but I do not think he has had timo to receive such reports and use them as a basis for the party edict Wb are discussfng. "It is always understood that every Rotarian is instructed to be loyal to his own country. The principles of Rotary teach a German to be a better German, a Frenchman to be a better Frenohman, and so on. In Rotary nothing is secret, nothing political, and it is entirely devoid of anything in the way of sectarianism. "As to the latest turn, it may be that the Nazi Party has an erroneous idea of T5ofafy,T'~ suggested Mr HallJones. At the reeent convention in Nice the President of France, M. Lebrun, confeesed that up till recently he had known very little ,ab.out the organisation. He had conceived that it was "» pleasant gathering of incorrigible lovers of good things to eat. .It .was a sorry and hasty judgment which I have had time to xectify sinee." ' ' Actually,' ' said Mr Hall-Jones, "a Rotary club is a collectiou of friends, each representing a ,tradet business or profession, who are devoted to the ideal of eervice— service to the club, service to the community, service to their voca-. tion, and service to humanity generally in the cultivation of principles calcu-. lated to bring about international understanding, goodwill and peace. The Rotary International consists of about 4000 of such clubs, with about 185,000 mombers in 82 countries of the world. Anyone familiar with the work of a Rotary club in any particular com-i munity would find it difficult to un.derstand why the Nazi Party is prepared, deliberately to deprive itself pf the benefits of Rotary service. "My visit to the convention at Nice has only served to etrengthen and intensify my convictions that " Rotary. really stands for something of infinite good for humanity; nor can I be psri suaded that any community in' anycountry is not enriehed by the existence of Rotary in its midst— it asks sqf little, it gives. so much."- i 1