SINS.OF SOCIETY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2455, 18 July 1922, Page 3

SINS.OF SOCIETY.

• ; ; • / . WICKEDNESS OF THESE DAYS. * \. . / , ' ' . : Sfc- ’INDICTMENT BY ARCHBISHOP ||g V j ;. JTJIiIUS. • in an address adnjial meeting of the Women’s Branch of the Social Hygiene ■ ’ -Society, made a- speech attacking the : sins of society and modern wicked- ; ness.; “ ' ’ ■; ' ’ ’. - ■ ' : v i He began by drawing attention to ; ■ - the : fact that clergy and doc- '• tors were on the platform, and said that not many years ago it would have been' an unushhl sight. The two classes instead of working apart as formerly, with some jealousy, now were combining to find a rem- ' *' edy for' a shocking social disease, ' A-plague that was 'devastating the country. He hoped that the politicians also would come into line, and takh advice from those who were studying the problem from every point. It was clear also, that unless. the women went into the work whole-heartedly, the movement would fail utterly. tendency in the past,” the - Archbishop said, “was to put the - fact of the disease out of sight, and to try and forget it, although it was there all the time. Nasty or not > nasty, it .-has, to be dealt with now, • to be looked in the face, and, with the grace. of God, to be overcome. The Church, takes up thd attitude • that men- must- restrain their natural instincts. Men could do so; they can’t;' they should be re- . strained.. • “DAMN- POLITICAL ECONOMY)’ • A " . * ' ' “I know that things are changing. People these days ,must have decent homes to live in. It it is said that what I urge is bad political ec- ;; enomy, then I say, ‘damn political economy.’ It is not as bad in Christchurch as in cities of older . countries. Even before the vlar L: there was a great deal of self-in-dulgence, amongst all the people, from one end of the population to ' the other, in. every 1 single class of society. You have only to look at '/ ' the* birth-rate. You know quite well what it means amongst wealthy and fashionable women. It means that people .don’t, want to-spend money on children. It means the use of an • r. ‘ instraihent, that has become so terribly common that it is increasing ' ummorality to a very, great degree indeed. Then there are late marriages. I am told a man should not . . •'marry until he can afford it. I don’t believe a word of it; a man should marry when he -reaches manhood and is fit to marry. It should not > be said that a man must wait until he is fairly well on in life. INSTRUCT THE CHILDREN. / ./ .• I . • “Ignorance is another point. I have .heard it discussed for forty years. It ip a very bio tty and difficult question, and we’re, told that sexual subjects must be buried out of sight. I say they should not be. On the other hand, I don’t believe ht all in that instruction being giv- - en • by' indifference or ,foolish or illtrained people, to their own children or to any other children. Parents must not say: ‘Because the thing’s nasty, because I don't like to . talk about it,-because I haven’t broken from the false shame that hedged the thing—which is as pure and innocent as anything God has made-—I shall not talk ;of it to my children.’ r ThS trouble is that / somebody else will. The children will learn it in the schools. They will learn all the evil of it, all the vile, wrong, and beastly side of it, not the pure, the good, the chaste, and the holy side. It’s our bounden duty to see that they, learn it in a wholesome and healthy fashion. “I wish.!to make a suggestion: It . may be a narrow one, as it’s about. iQtir own; community. Years, ago, when I was • curate I arranged with ' .. a.doctor, a Christian man, to give a ’ flesson to my children. There are .wise, Christian men in this citythank God we have them —who can do the same thing here.’ V “One . other word. In modern re- - ligion we have dropped hell out of count. It’s not mentioned in polite society now. I think our children need a little of the heH that follows the misuse of the powers God gives. It might, help them in the struggle for purity and truth. It is a disgrace to paranto if - they 'allowed their children to go out to face ap- * t ; palling dangers without one word of warning! / _ - RISKS OF LEGISLATION. 'H..;; " ■ ■:. • -■> •. > i is a delicate one. j Itis legislation. We don’t know . . • ? what will coxne of legislation. They v call me. a Prohibitionist, and I snp- , pose I am one ;Ibnt what’s to come

r \ of Prohibition ? Prohibition might, ' for all I know;, be something worse •-..v • than liqhor. y. I don*t know. Legsv . lation ; means uncertainty. I was .'never bom ito N bea legislator, hot I know that legislation • can’t go very yyfar ahead of public opinion,' and public opinion has to be trained,'and that’s why this society i? doing big work and is workng to. the right end. I want ’legislators to co-operate • with the medical men and with all those who are seeking to help the ■ ■ people. J v •■ - ■ am not qnite ; prepared to say i wfiat the age of consent should be, but as long as you have that ‘reasonable ■belief'. clause in the Crimes •/ Act .you- may. as well chuck the age. .of consent. Can you imagine a boy, i saying *1 didn’t know she was under sixteen?” A great deal that might ; bo done by...legislation has not been tonehed. ' / INCITEMENT TO IMPURITY .‘‘There's so much incitement to • imparity .us! Can any boy or.girl.walk down the streets of Christchurch ~ without meeting in-* ■ _ finte 'Suggestions- .of impunity and evil ?;■ I f saw a great placard; I

won’t say exactly where. It was about as disgusting and beastly a picture as I have seen on the walls of any city. If that kind of thing is to be controlled by authorities in Wellington, the sooner we get local control and keep our streets clean, the belter for us. ,7)1 don’t know what about the movies. I can’t imagine children being taken by their parents to some of' the pictures we have, without those parents realising that the children are imbibing lessons and ideas which are bound to sink deeply into their minds. As long as you feed the imagination with such impurity, so surely, you will reap the consequences. I feel it all the more as the movies might be the most healthful,' instructive, encouraging things that science has ever given us/’ .“ ; " ' 1 ’ v 7 ’ '"■ i: The Archbishop concluded by saying that sympathy should be shown to others, but it should be accompanied by a. measure of severity. “Legislation,” he said, “should go hand in hand with that principle. While we should love the sinner we should hate the sin, and try to cast it out of our country.”