HAPPINESS IS WHERE YOU FIND IT

New Zealand Listener, Volume 11, Issue 266, 28 July 1944, Page 4

HAPPINESS IS WHERE YOU FIND IT

Jack

Acland

MP.,

Recommends The Country

WANT to discuss with you my idea of a "good citizen." I cannot do better than quote the words of the Bible: "Do unto others as you would they should do unto you." A good citizen is a man who thinks not of himself but of the people around him, and in this way there is no difference between a good citizen in the country and a good citizen in the town. The more thought I give to the matter/ the more certain I am that education plays a most essential part in forming the character of the citizen, and that it is with the help of education that we can learn the true value of life. It seems to me that up to date our sense of values has been out of proportion. What people must realise is that it is happiness that counts, not money — a way of life rather than a standard of living. Aad in the adjustment of these values I am certain the school teacher will play an increasingly important part. Our. problem is- to attain a: new perspective of lifé which we will achieve only by a change of opinion and a readjustment of values. I think we generally agree that democracy is the form of government best ‘suited to people of our temperament, and if democracy is to function, the people must be trained to take their responsibilities. As Dorothy Thompson said recently, "Democracy depends on universal, vigorous, moral training’in the home, in the church, and in the school." We must have social discipline, and if people don’t know how to make themselves do the ‘right thing, someone will rise up and tell them. Then democracy disappears. The State, the framework in which the citizen lives, should provide for three things: 1. Economic development. 2. Political stability. 3. A desirable social. life; and to attain this we must have a well balanced community with a vigorous rural population, Life from the Soil I. was struck: by a recent: remark of Mr. W. Brockington, whom some of you met, and most of you have heard over the air: "I think democracy flourishes at its best. in the little towns and the country places-the democracy that treats the rich and the poor as though they were men; that sets men talking about the laws they live by ahd help make; and what heart-warming things men and women do when, as the old woman gathering sticks in the Worcester woodlands said to Lord Baldwin, ‘God, goodwill and good ines adage are their company.’ " I do not think it is necessary to advance any arguments to qualify these statements. We realise that all life comes from the soil, and that it is the basis of our art, literature, and culture,

It is there we must look for our economic development, our political stability, and a desirable social life. As you know, the settlement of Canterbury was brought about chiefly by the efforts of two men, Godley and Wakefield, who hoped to transport a slice of English society from top to bottom to the other side of the hemisphere. The dream was only partially realised. Sir George Grey, who spent his early years in Ireland and had firsthand knowledge of the miseries arising from tenant farming, had no wish to see the same in New Zealand, and upset their plans by throwing open the land and the remainder of the Canterbury Province at a low rental. The very state of affairs which Godley and Wakefield had striven to avoid therefore came about: great areas of land were taken up by individuals and the "shepherd kings" of Canterbury played a prominent part in the political, social and economic life of the community. As a descendant of one of these early settlers, I am not prepared to say tonight whether this was a good or a bad thing, but I do wish to point out the effect on the history of this country. Break-up of Community Life The life of Canterbury to begin with, centred round the big sheep stations and round the station owner, who lived on his estate, even though a manager might be employed, and was the uncrowned king of the district. He was patron of the local clubs and societies, in many cases a man of culture and education, who gave leadership to the life of his particular district. Under this leadership, the people in the. district lived a full life — they were, in most cases, a virile, hard-working, and selfreliant people. The breaking-up of the large sheep stations was a contributing factor in the decline of the community life in the small centres, but this was considerably hastened by the coming of the motor-car, the radio, and the- motion picture. These took the place of the village pub and blacksmith shop, originally the meeting place (the community centre) for the people in the agricultural districts-with advantage, perhaps, to their health but not to their community spirit.

I have not the time to trace the history of local government, but must point out that the powers of the county councils and boroughs are gradually being whittled away under the pressure of centralisation in Wellington, and this means that district people do not have a true civic or social feeling, In the past they had a sense of service to the rest of the community. They also had opportunities of political selfexpression and of making a definite and worthwhile contribution to the wellbeing of society. Among other causes of the decline in community life is the drift to the towns. In 1901, 17 per cent of New Zealand’s population lived in towns with a population of more than 10,000. In .1936 (and the position has since become worse) 41.55 per cent lived in towns of that size. In 1936, 61 per cent of the North Island’s population lived in towns with a population of more than 10,000 people and 56 per cent of the South Island's people. The causes: of this drift were Sablty e@éonomic-the attraction of higher wages, the 40-hour week, no work on Saturdays, and so on-and partly the lack of the right sort of education, In other words, our people have acquired a completely false set of values — they prefer the high-speed entertainment of the town to the more simple and natural pursuits of country life. Then there is the housing problem. In many cases when a single man marries in the country, his employer has to dispense with his services through lack of suitable accommodation for him. It is also noticeable that if any young man shows pafticular promise at school it is immediately said that he must be sent to the town to work, that there is no scope for him in the country, and that his qualifications would be wasted. I do not want to leave you with the impression that I think town life has more advantages than has country life. On the contrary, I believe that country life with all its disadvantages can give greater happiness, more freedom, and contentment than town life. But I think that we politicians, and others as well, ~ do the country a dis-service by continually pointing out the joys of town life compared with the hardships of country life, without pointing out at the same time the advantages of country life compared with the disadvantages of town life. The nearer the people are to the soil, the happier they are, and the more simple and honest their happiness. Less Divorce in the Country For some time, too, I have been meaning to examine the divorce figures as between town ‘and country. From my own observations I would say that there is a larger percentage of divorces in the town than in the country. I don’t suggest that the country man is any (continued on next page)

(continued from previous page) more moral than the man living in the town, but the opportunity is not there, nor are the temptations so great. The farmer toils hard from morning till nightfall, but he sees the results of his work-he has freedom, he is not driven by the machine, he is not just a cog in a wheel. So with the farm worker, who is in most cases more like a partner than a hired man. There is no foreman standing over a farm-worker to supervise his work. If he is a good man he © takes a pride in his work and works because he enjoys it. I thought a man’s feelings towards the soil were well expressed by someone I met the other day — he was a returned soldier of this war, and was working in a paddock near the road. I stopped and said to him, "Well, how goes it, Bill?" expecting a rather unsettled and perhaps discontented reply. But he answered: "Well, there’s the green grass, the trees, and the sheep. It’s all very beautiful, and I’m glad to be home." What of the Future? What then of the future of rural life? It is absolutely essential that we have a vigorous rural community, not only because it will give us a well-balanced community life but also for economic reasons. The question is: how are we to keep up our rural population? Education will be one of the most important stepseducation and propaganda to foster

understanding of town and country problems, We muyst advertise the advantages of living in the country and smaller centres-dissipate the idea that, as high a quality of life is not possible in a village as in a city. We must show that it is happiness that counts, not money. But we must of course have houses to live in. Perhaps you will say, "But that’s a universal problem.’ It is, but the shortage of housing in the country has existed for a great many years, Many landowners do not appreciate the necessity of providing suitable quarters for married men. So housing schemes must be encouraged in the smaller centres so that the farm worker may live in a community with schools and other facilities, and go out daily to work on nearby farms. I said earlier that a young man showing particular promise is encouraged to make his livelihood in the town. Some éf these boys would like to take up farming, but have not the capital to make a start. There is still land in both islands which has yet to be developed, and there young men should be given assistance by schemes such as those outlined by Professor Hudson in his pamphlet on Land Tenure. But if we entice the farmer into the country for economic reasons, how are we going to enable him to enjoy to the full his

economic, gregarious, intellectual and spiritual needs? We must bring up our small centres, replacing and renewing the old-time blacksmith shop, saddler, dressmaker, bakery and hotel by a small flourishing industry. There is nothing to stop this being done but the conservative outlook of many who serve on the directorates of large companies, and of those in Government circles who continue with a policy of centralisation. Does this _ mean imitating the characters of Erewhon, who found that the machine has got so far beyond their control that they had to scrap the machine in order to save their very existence? No. I do not suggest that we go back. It is useless sighing for the past. But we must learn’ from the past, and make use of the present to ensure a better future. Many Children Mean Many Friends If the country-man is to enjoy a full, intellectual and spiritual life, if he is to ‘become a good citizen, we must encourage the community spirit all through our rural life. They found it in the past in the family, which was much larger in those days and the pivot of community life. Many children meant many friends. So one of the first tasks is to build up the family, and we shall never do this until we educate ourselves to honour and respect the mother of a large family, until some form of universal family allowance scheme is introduced, and until school boarding-allowances are. sufficient to make a full education possible for all who can benefit from it. In the past, too, the church played an important part in community life. It was a general meeting place for the district, the place where people met for choir practice during the Week and for worship on Sunday, But the church no longer plays such a prominent part in our life. Neither do Mechanics’ Institutes, which provided library facilities, debates, dances, and so on. They, too, have gone, and nothing has completely filled the gap. I say that education and propaganda must restore the balance. The local newspaper, the church, and the family must be encouraged and assisted. I suggest, too, that community centres should be encouraged in all districts and small towns — the school teacher, particularly in the smaller centres, can guide and direct the community life, not only of the children but of the older people, too. He can also foster and encourage an interest in local history and tradition-because tradition is essential to democracy and good citizenship. We do things, not because we are compelled to, but rather because we have a standard to live up to. If, however, we. are going to have tradition, we must have a knowledge of our own local historynot only a history of the towns and of large estates, dates and figures, but knowledge of our folk lore, stories of our forefathers-stories of the miners, the bullock-drivers, the shepherds. ‘These if they are not gathered shortly, will be Jost for ever. I believe that through a. healthy, happy life in the country, made fuller by community life, we shall build a citizen worthy of a better future, and worthy lof the sacrifice made by those who have served overseas. With the help of education we must teach our people that happiness comes not only with monetary gain; that a way of life is as important as a standard of living; and that these are most surely attained in our rural communities.