THE COMPETITIONS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 29 July 1913, Page 5

THE COMPETITIONS.

(To the Editor.) 'Sir,—l am unable to understand your insinuations respecting the Mastertori You consider amateurs should not 'be asked to compete with professionals. The pi'inted conditions prohibit such a thing. Can you mention an instance in which this rule has been disregarded? Again you want to have local events for which only Masterton, Wairarapa and Pahiatua residents will be allowed to compete. Is not this a somewhat narrow-minded suggestion ? Don't you think such exchisiveness would destroy any interest in the Competitions? Surely some disappointed competitor must have 'been at your elbow when you made these suggestions!—l am, etc., AMATEUR. Masterton, July 28, 1913. [The opinions we expressed are endorsed by quite a large section of the community, and by not a few competitors. It is quite certain that all of those who competed at the recent competitions were not amateurs in the strict sense of the term. There is nothing narrow-minded in having events open only to competitors within the distrct.That is the rule in respect to the Caledonian Society, A. ang P. Association, and many other institutions. The idea is to encourage local competition as far as possible. Of course, there should be a certain number of "open" events, in which" all might compete. The interest in the competitions would not be diminished in the least by having district events. On the contrary, we believe thq Society would benefit considerably by them.—Ed. Age.]