PETONE'S ORISONS. And Petone's Selfish Use of Them.

Free Lance, Volume II, Issue 102, 14 June 1902, Page 8

PETONE'S ORISONS. And Petone's Selfish Use of Them.

NOT one Petone Contmgenter has been killed m the Boer War Why ? The Rev J D Russell explains, according to newspaper repoit. that this is m answer to Pettone prayer If this is co, the Petone people really should be ashamed of their conservatism. Their prayers, it is said, have availed to save then own boys from being slam on the veldt Could they not a& easily have put m a good woid for the' whole of the New Zealand forces operating m Africa' What has the British Army done that Petone did not include it m its protective scheme ? ■* ♦ ♦ If the piayers of Petone availed so much why, in the name of common humanity, did not Petone pray, for the saving of Boei and Briton from the horror^ of war, previous to Octobei 11th. 1899? Oom Paul, whose prayers may be deemed to have been quite as earnest as those of the citizens of Petone, was confident of Divine interference and guidance of his bullets Are we asked to infer that a counter supplication from Petone nullified the effect of his praying' # ♦ * Kiugei also assiued his buigheis that pray eis would turn British bullets, and gave the buigheis immunity fiom harm The whole world scoffed, and Britain went ahead If Mi Russell voices the opinion of Petone and it really believes that it is wholly owing to its prayers no Petone soldiers were lost, the admission 1^ one that savors of selfishness. It parcels off a few people, who have no more right to their lives than have the 6000 odd New Zealandeis who have left these shores for the seat of war, and it thiows the mantle of piotectmg piayeraiound them only ♦ * » Is it humorous, or is it giotesque? Piayers for lam to bieak up the Australian drought did not produce miracle . Kru^ei's prayers a\ ailed nothing The people of Maitmique who weie intensely lehgious, and who persistently pra\ed, were not saved on that account Why 9 Well, peihaps, Petone withheld its supplication Isn't it a trifle Pharisaical for our subuiban neighbours to assume that Me are not as othei men ' ? The piayers of the righteous availeth much. This reminds us that there is ' none that doeth good, no not one. except Petone » • * Does not the litany of the Anglican Church ask for a general immunity fiom 'battle, murder, and sudcten death" every Sunday? Has a strict-

l;y conservative Providence watched over the welfare of Petoneites in the war, to the exclusion of all other subjects of the King? A Petone minister seems to think so. After all, we may have misjudged Petone. Mr Russell may have said a little more than he meant to, and, if he did mean it, Petone may not endorse it. At any rate, utterances of that kind are injudicious. They only cause the profane to laugh