Citizens Say

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 949, 16 April 1930, Page 10

Citizens Say

(To the Editor.)

THE SAMOAN QUESTION Sir, As long as tlie Samoan people are governed by the Big Stick we may expect trouble. The Samoans will not be alienated from their ancient customs, which all through the piece New Zealand has tried to effect, and the sooner the Prime Minister realises this fact the better. It has been a tactical blunder and the Samoans resent it. No wonder; they do not deserve such treatment. My advise is this. Abolish militarism and have a properly constituted police force, picked men from here, properly and efficiently trained and imbued with strong and humanitarian feelings. A fair amount of elasticity should be allowed. • Samoans should not be permitted to act as policemen, because they resent their own colour lording it over them. It is simply waste of good money to pay huge salaries to those men down there, when there are good, practical and experienced men here who would make a success of the job. If this advice is carried out, I predict the Samoan difficulty will be overcome, and peace and happiness will reign supreme. J. F. BURKE. RATIONALISM Sir.—The Rev. D. D. Scott, a.s reported in your issue of Monday, in his criticism of Rationalism, grants “character and ability” to Rationalists in a kind of condescending manner, as if the character and ability of Rationalists were something to be surprised at. Should the Rationalist feel flattered? Not at all. Tie sees nothing so superior in Christian character that he should feel an extra heartbeat at its grudging meed of praise. The Rationalist’s beliefs are not “negative,” as the Rev. Mr. Scott states. They are a positive affirmation of certain rules of thought and behaviour based on human experience, and because they may be, in consequence. in opposition to Christian beliefs, that does not necessarily make them negative. We are told that Rationalism * can best be met, inter alia, by the Christian living a "life “in the service of man.” It seems that I, and countless Christians, are wrong who thought that a Christian’s life was to be lived in the “service of God.” However, adherence to truth is a service to man. Mr. Scott would 'do well to define Rationalism not as he did, as being “the mental habit of using reason for the destruction of religious beliefs,” but as what it really is—an attitude of mind which unreservedly accepts the supremacy of reason to establish a system of philosophy and ethics verifiable by experience and independent of arbitrary assumptions of authority. Rationalism does “not” attempt the destruction of religion as such,

except in the respect that it is believed to hinder the establishment of such a system. PEOFANUM VULGUS. BROADWAY TRAM STOPS Sir. Under the above heading a report has been published in all the local daily papers, being criticism by the Mayor of Newmarket, Mr. S. Donaldson, at the council meeting on April 9. of statements made by me to the Auckland Transport Board when presenting a petition to that body asking for an additional stop for inward bound tramcars in the centre of Broadway. The remarks are misleading and call for a reply by me. I would like to mention here that 1 have always taken a neutral attitude m local affairs, but in this case I was approached by Newmarket business men asking me to give my support to an endeavour to correct a very serious mistake made by the Newmarket Borough Council, causing an acute depression in business, and a very grave danger to the public.. I refer to the alteration to the tram stops. A meetIng of business men appointed a committee oi which I was elected chairman to prepare and get signed bv business people a petition for presentatmn to the Auckland Transport Board, which is now the authorising bod} m all transport matters. This J? 1 ?, and as a courtesy and to stiengthen our case, presented it to the Newmarket Borough Council, seek'if co-operation in presenting it to the Transport Board, but the council decided to take no steps toward changing the stops and to inform the deputation that it would bo prepared nexfj'aTin?; 6 Position at the end of a> ; o r. iH reported to have said that it had been stated to the Transport Board that 150 shopkeepers in llad , signed the petition. rwR? . of ire claimed, would not !-. a ‘;- SlSri U- 1 11 tliey il: id known the true position. We asked the business people to sign a petition asking for an addi‘i, 01 ?? 1 stop in tlie centre of Broadwav ■W t i le -nHu lJO H ty of inst ances thev said vie mil sign anything to improve shopping facilities in Newmarket Things could not be worse and the n=|t el ' r SC , he 3 ar v., n °. t suit able to busiU . °.T* 1 * e VubUc: ' i don't know what tiue position” has been evremarji to both™the "council “and Ihe tion from Rot my tion irom, and I replied that it wis • rection S1 ° n >T had b, correction. Tie nodded and made nn ohirflT comm .*nt. therefore I con \Tavoi n ? est | niate Was correct. Tlv* petS

way, and the fact had been pointed out to the deputation and even after its attention had been drawn to the error, it still persisted in making statement which was not correct. H: presenting the petition to the Tran? port Board I was very particular **• state that it represented 152 signatures of the business community of Newmarket, that the Mayor had pointed out that three in Remuera Road and two elsewhere were outside the borough limits, which fact was not known by us at the time, but that it would not affect the weight of the petition which supplied about 150 signatures out *>*■ an approximate 160. V, e have been making an honest endeavour to improve trading conditions in Newmarket and regret wo failed to impress the Mayor with th* necessity of our claim. G. G. MARRIOTT.