WAITAKI OLD BOYS

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21976, 28 December 1936, Page 5

WAITAKI OLD BOYS

GATHERING IN LONDON IMPERIAL CO-OPERATION DISCUSSED fraoM oua own correspondent.) LONDON, December 5. Dr. R. R. Macintosh presided at a dinner arranged by the Waitaki Old Boys’ Association at the Trocadero restaurant on November 25. Those present included LieutenantColonel E. Puttick, Mr Robert Milligan, Dr. R. R. D. Milligan, Mr M. Maurice Smith, Mr R. F. de Vries (honorary secretary), Mr G. C. Dailey, Mr R. E. Flower, Mr A. B. Walton, Mr G. M. Woller-Jennings, Mr T. A. Bunting, Mr A. N. MacFarlane, and Dr. A. J. Harrop. After the chairman had proposed the loyal toast and “The School,” Dr. Harrop proposed the health of the guests. They were proud that Lieutenant-Colonel Puttick should have been chosen at so important a juncture to represent New Zealland at the Imperial Defence College. It was obvious that close cooperation between the Dominions and the Motherland was vital at present. New Zealand had to some extent, in contributing to the Singapore base and otherwise, played a part in Imperial defence, but all familiar with the Dominion’s history would admit that the balance of obligation was heavily against us. Mr Maurice Smith was shortly to revisit New Zealand, and it would be a wonderful experience to see all the developments that had been made in recent years at Waitaki As secretary of the New Zealand society and a prominent member of other London-New Zealand organisations, he would be able to give much information to the boys of the school and perhaps induce some of them to come to England and strengthen the branch here. They were pleased to welcome Mr Robert Milligan—a former member of the board—and Dr. R. R. D. Milligan, who had been invited by the Secre-tary-General of the League of Nations to cpme from New Zealand to study the; work of the league.

Defence Co-operation In reply, Lieutenant-Colonel Puttick said that there was no doubt about the need of Imperial co-op-eration in defence at present, and he would do all in his power to promote that co-operation. In the last war the heroic efforts of Dominion troops in France had contributed both to Imperial and home defence. There was only one view for both soldiers and civilians to take —that in an emergency the greatest possible strength should be concentrated at once at the vital point. Mr Maurice Smith said that he was greatly looking forward to his visit to New Zealand, and to seeing the developments in the school since he L.st visited it in 1919. The schools of New Zealand possessed so many advantages that he sometimes wondered whether it might not be practicable to attract bovs from this country to them, especially in view of the existing exchange rate. Mr Robert Milligan said that before Waitaki opened in 1883 he had

been attracted by the glamour of a weekly wage of eight shillings, and he had not been a pupil, but later, as a member of the board, for some years, he was in very close contact with the school. The best day’s work of the board in his time, he thought, was the appointment from 45 applicants, of Mr F. Milner as headmaster. Now. after 30 years, he might shortly be retiring and, his place would be difficult indeed to fill. Dr. R. R. D. Milligan said he could recall as vividly as if it were yesterday Mr Milner’s first day at Waitaki and the electric effect he had upon the boys of that time. Referring to his five weeks in Geneva and travels in Germany, where he had visited, among other places, the Brown House at Munich, Dr. Milligan said that he was only beginning to get clear in his own mind the final impression made on him by a close-up studv of international affairs. The thing that seemed most necessary was a cool, objective study of the whole subject. To do the right thing in international affairs was extremely hard, and the language difficulty made a clear exposition of British policy almost impossible when conversing with foreigners. It seemed to him that virtues and defects of character were shared by all nations, and he found it impossible to hate people bv the million, which seemed part of the policy of some governments. A letter from the president of the association (Mr R. H. Hill) was read and Mr Maurice Smith was asked to discuss certain points when in New Zealand.