Anzac Day Observance

Dominion, Volume 26, Issue 185, 3 May 1933, Page 11

Anzac Day Observance

Sir, —I thank Mr. Prentice for his kind and courteous letter in to-day’s issue, and ajn pleased to learn that our returned soldiers never intended that Anzac Day was to become superior io such a holy day as Good Friday. I can assure him that it was not from any lack of sympathy with the returned uieii, or lack of regard and reverence for the memory of those who fell that I wrote ilfi 1 did. Several have spoken to me in commendatory terms of what was written. When the matter of Anzac Day as a holiday was being lirst discussed, I Inwriter was secretary of the Wanganui Alinisters’ Association, and forwarded to the then Prime Alinister a resolution passed by the association asking that April 25 be observed annually as u cluse holiday. The letter was acknowledged with an intimation that the matter would be carefully considered. In due course a Bill making the day a public liolid-i.v was passed, and worked all right for two years. But, as Air. Prentice points oat. this did not give satisfaction to the returned men, and so to please them the day was transformed from a public holiday into a Sunday by Act of Parliament.

But one would like to ask, who gave our Parliament such authority? There are some things Parliament cannot do, and one is to create a Sunday. No Parliament on earth should go beyond the law of God and declare any day to be a Sunday other than that day ahcady fixed by God. xlud again one may ask, why should Anzac Day be singled out for such a distinction. Why not have other days .similarly set apart — Trafalgar Day, Waterloo Day. .Somme Day, ami many others? Aly humble opinion is that; if the Returned Soldiers’ Association of this Dominion adopted the suggestions contained in my former letter they would tind that Anzac Day would become mora popular with everybody in the Dominion. This would in no way detract from the sac-redness of the day.—l am, etc., G. W. BLAIR. Featherstone, Afay 1.