TWENTY-TWO CLUB’S WIN

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 278, 20 August 1938, Page 17

TWENTY-TWO CLUB’S WIN

Parliamentary Shield For Debating The final debate in a series of contests held annually for the Parliamentary Shield was held last night under the auspices of the Wellington Union of Debating Societies, when the two finalists in this year’s competition, the Lower Hutt Debating Society and the Twenty-two Club, met. „• , The president, Mr. F. M. Benner, presided. The subject for debate, which wa« moved by the Twenty-Two Club, was “That Under Present-day Conditions Childless Marriages are Justified.” The Twenty-Two Club was represented by Messrs. D. Haberfiekl, F. W. Barker and W. Forsyth, and the -Lower Hutt society by Messrs. Giddens, L. Fisher and V. Piper. Mr. George Joseph, LL.B., acted as judge. - The movers of the motion argued that the motion must be considered entirely from the point of view that under pres-ent-day conditions no couple was justified in accepting the responsibility of bringing children into a world in which the future was so uncertain and insecure. With the ever-present threat of war, no parent could feel happy about the outlook and the possible future for a child. It was contended that the two circumstances of war and insecurity justified the race in adopting this attitude, until at least such time as world affairs were in a more settled and secure state. _ The opposers of the motion contended that this attitude was consistent with the practice of racial suicide and held that conditions from the very earliest days of man’s history had always been insecure, and that the question of war and its hideous possibilities* was only worse to-day to a degree. Mr. Joseph in awarding the shield b) a verv small margin to the Twenty-Two Club said that the matter had been particularly well argued and the standard ot tlu-speeches generally was very high and reflected great credit upon the activities of the union.