"UNITED AGAINST IGNORANCE"

New Zealand Listener, Volume 12, Issue 300, 23 March 1945, Page 11

"UNITED AGAINST IGNORANCE"

N.Z. University Greets Columbia

UCH emphasis has been laid on the power of radio in promoting intimate, friendly relations between the nations, socially and industrially; Now New Zealand has taken its place scholastically in the production of a better understanding, in this instance particularly with the United States of America. _ Students of Columbia University, New York, which was founded in 1754, opened recently a series of weekly programmes honouring the United Nations. The New Zealand Minister to Washington (C. A. Berendsen), asked for a New. Zealand recording, and so, through the NBS, Dr. James Hight, pro-Chan-cellor of the New Zealand University, and a New Zealand student were invited to record messages. The student was G. S. Bogle, of Victoria College. These records were sent to Melbourne to be broadcast by the Australian Office of War Information. Dr. Hight’s message ran: "The University of. New Zealand salutes Columbia and its sister universities. We greatly value ‘greetings from universities older and larger than ours, but large or ‘small, all are brothers united against ignorance and prejudice and pledged to extend knowledge and to broaden the idea of a liberal education. All are bound by a keen sense of obligation to the social good. "In our effort we have been encouraged by "We have had help from endowed corporations who have provided travelling and research fellowships. A few New Zealand graduates have served in the United States, for instance, Dr. Maclaurin, formerly’ head of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I myself am

one of those who, as a visiting professor, owe much to your hospitality. Such intercourse between our institutions has increased and we would recommend exchanges of staff and students and any other means of promoting more intimate relations. "One step taken to promote a better understanding between our two peoples is having made American history compulsory © in our freshman history programme, "May our common outlook on. the many problems of this tortured generation, a result in part of our common ancestry, grow in clarity by our partnership in the war we are waging against ignorance and tyranny. *"T conclude this message of grateful acknowledgment with the warmest fraternal greetings from this university." Mr. Bogle’s ‘contribution was as follows: "Calling President Nicholas Butler and students of Columbia University and students everywhere"IT am sending you good wishes from. New Zealand and news of what New Zealand students are doing and thinking about the war. The war has taken away most of our senior students. Those senior men who remained are mainly students of science, engineering, or medicine. In spite of this the attendance at our universities has grown. In my college there has been an increase of about 30 per cent. since the war began. Enthusiasm for student activities other than studies fell at the beginning of the war, but has since risen. "Students who have not entered the armed forces ‘have raised money | for international student relief by means of student work days. Also, the profits from our annual extravaganza performances have Zone to swell patriotic ee