The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 1915. THE PROPOSED CARNIVAL.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 7, Issue 263, 12 August 1915, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 1915. THE PROPOSED CARNIVAL.

(With which is The Tai bnpa Post 'iai \Vnimnrin«' New«.)

The question of holding a Carnival ; in Taihapej with the sole object of ' raising money for patriotic purposes ' was again discussed by the General Patriotic Committee a few days ago, j and, after looking at t.h e subject from i every viewpoint, there seems to be i no cause for cavilling at the detejrm- : ination the meeting arrived at. There are these who will still be> opposed to i going on with the project, but they < will be very small numerically compared with these who opposed it whep the public mind had not grasped the proposal in all its important bearings. Taihape must not show what might appear a spirit of meanness when its contributions figur e on the list with f less important, and less rich for that would belittle, the town's presage to its disadvantage. In deciding ! to hold a Carnival we have arrived at [precisely that stage in the considera- | ticn and understanding of the subject | that other towns had to reach before the, collective energies and enthusiasm of their peoples were thrown into it. W e know ther e are those who object to the Carnival on principle, rightly or wrongly so, but their opinions must be respected, it is a duty we owe to .each other. But, shorn of a.'l confusing verbiage, thefir sola"' objection is the earnbling element that is involved in | disposing of articles that are given | for the benefit of the cause. We sympai «thise with these people, and while we ' ar e as wwrh opposed to th^'gambling ' canker as they can be, wo."do-not vieiv toe patriotic d:?r.oPif.ion of gifts hy way of serins tickets- in- any. worse ligfat than .V« do at buy it) g goods at: auction. In the,latter case, It may bf fc-uly • said that yeu 'a iways ■ get some-" • thing ior your, money, but experience has 'abu-.oatit ; ly proved that trans-ac-tions cf the kind arn a "tottery. Life itrpif •• ;: > : ",-." ctring o$ fsp>«esSw.tive

striving, even the piece of bread we pass to our mouths is an act of faith in its wholesomeness, and of belief that it will benefit us. Without wishing" to unduly labour the question, we might reasonably say that every act in life

is more or less speculative; everything we, do is done because we believe it will produce something to our advantage or will give us pleasure. In giv-

ing pleasure to others we are merely 1 j gratifying a desire to seo others happy, I and whatever else the Carnival may j be, it is certainly a cumulation of acts of love and consideration for those ! brave fellows who have offered their I live s to save us and ours from slavery, j ignominy, desecration, or death. Those ' who are opposed to carnivals, with 1 thcs e who sympathise with and resi pect their principles, have tried to raise the money that it is our sacred duty to raise by other methods, and the results have, to say the least, been disappointingly inadequate and now the Carnival seems all that is left to I us. We no not view the subject as some j of. our correspondents do. To effect ' any great purpose needs the creation of a state somewhat out of the normal; a Carnival is not so much a something for cur pleasure as it is to create that extraordinary enthusiasm in a project that is absolutely necess&ry for its success; whether it be a patriotic carnival, an agricultural show, or a church tea. meeting, its pro. | motors labour to Avork up the all-impor- ! tant enthusiasm, and let it be understood that all promotions of the kind are, the result of faith in success.or. in other words, a speculative belief that some advantages are accruable. The venal stage of speculation is reach. ed when it is carriel to a dangerous point with dishonest motives. Normal speculation i s no more dangerous than , normal drinking, eating, walking, or riding; it is the abuse that brings moral or physical defeneration. We cannot believe that investors in the patriotic art union are urged solely or ' largely, even, by a desire to secure something for nothing; for every shil-

ling so invested, we venture to say, there will be a thousand that are given in gratitude to the brave fellows who have cast thejir veiy lives into a lottery from which they may never be drawn in the physical world. If there are any arions?-"t us who honestly feel that principle ir at stake in joining in any of the methods' of disposing of gifts let there abstain therefrom, but let them concentrate their energies on those of opportunity to assist the fund in which no scruples of principle are involved.