A UNITED DOMINION.

Taranaki Daily News, 9 July 1921, Page 10

A UNITED DOMINION.

TOWN AND COUNTRY TOGETHER.

THE TRUE LINE OF PROGRESS.

(Contributed by the New Zealand Welfare League.)

In submitting certain important questions to farming representatives which raise the issue of the relation of town and country, the evening paper of Wellington has evoked response, in the way of several well considered pronouncements, which muist make for the general welfare of ail citizens of the Dominion. Whilst at all times it id desirable that city and country people should understand each other, and cooperate for the common good, it is most particularly necessary that now, when the Dominion id undergoing special strain of financial, agrarian, and industrial troubles that the slogan of unity, tolerance and goodwill, should be sounded everywhere. We consider that the affirmation of Mr. Thomas Moss of Eketahuna to the effect that “it is well for farmers and townsmen to realise how interdependent we are, one with the other” is a truth that cannot be too often repeated. Another thought that we should ever keep before us is that we are human beings and citizens first and merchants, farmers, cobblers, or anything else afterwards.

THE EVIL OF SECTIONALISM. It is really astonishing at times to find how much people are bound by sectional ties of thought, and move almost entirely in the groove of their own particular calling, viewing all subjects from the standpoint of their own sectional interests. In this respect we are all sinners. The towns people cannot throw stones at the country people, nor the country people at those of the towns, or cities. On one occasion we were present at an important farmers’ Union Conference, with /somes -eighty delegates present, when the following occurred. The subject under discussion was a proposal for the farmers to acquire a line of shipping of their own, and after much talk (common to all large conferences) an old fanner rose and said: “Mr. Chairman, there is one thing I would like delegates to remember and that is that the sun does not rise and set exclusively for the farmers.” Had there been city people present they probably would have applauded that remark and yet, so blind are we to our own faults, they might have failed to recognise that the moral is for the city organisations as much as for those of the country. Many times over have we heard Conferences of Town representatives discuss wide general questions as if the sun did rise and set exclusively for them as manufacturers, commercial men, shopkeepers, tradesmen, laborers, or others as the case might be. The evil of sectionalism lies here that we very often fail to discriminate between questions which are general and affecting many other interests.

NEED FOR CLOSER ASSOCIATION.

People of city and country require to come more together; to understand each others problems and difficulties more fully; to exercise greater consideration in examining each other’s proposals and, in short, to pull together for a United Dominion moving on lines of sound general progress. As a wit has put it ‘ ; we must hang together, or we may hang separately.”

There does exist in our industrial centres a good deal of prejudice directed against the producers in the country. This is due, we believe to" a general want of knowledge of what the farmers and settlers lives really entail in the Way of 'burdens. On the other hand there are country people whose minds are choked with the weeds of prejudice against city people, which again is due to a want of appreciation of the work and trials of the town and city dwellers. On occasions we have read leading articles in a few country papers wherein the city dwellers were referred to as parasites. That sort of thing would be dispelled by closer associations between town and country people, as both would not think of using harsh terms about each other which they would soon recognise to be foolishness.

MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING. Last year the League tried its very, best to bring about a National Industrial Conference at which we suggested that employers and wage earners, farmers and towns-people be represented. The scheme was not carried out, but the propaganda may have had some effect in convincing many of the wisdom of mutual converse on the difficult questions of our time.

We would now suggest that the Farmers’ Unions, representative of the country people, might meet representatives of the city and town industrial and commercial organisations and discuss together several questions which seriously effect us all. We found the Farmers’ Unions in favor of the National Industrial Conference proposal. Expressions o.f mutual goodwill are desirable, but at the same time the members of the organisations herein referred to might consider whether we cannot do something more towards cementing the bonds of unity by occasional conferences of town and country representatives, to discuss matters .from a national rather than a sectional point of view. A united Dominion is the best means of securing real progress, and we urge that every effort be made towards such unity of town and country as will advance the general welfare of our people.