"UNJUSTLY USED."

Evening Post, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 89, 17 April 1911, Page 7

"UNJUSTLY USED."

VENUE OF ATHLETIC MEETING. STATEMENT BY COUNCIL PRESIDENT. IST XJBLTGBAPH — SM2CIA& TO THX VOBrJ) DUNEDIN, This Day. The "venue" dispute in connection with, tha Australasian Amateur Afchletio Championship meeting is occasioning considerable attention locally. Mr. MarryatA, of Wellington, president of the Council', who is spending Easter in Dunedin, was interviewed by a Star reporter. He said : "Mr. Pollock and 1 myself feel that we have been unjustly used in the intemperate language employed 1 - in criticising our action. Our long connection with. ths sport, both. in. Oiago and Wellington, should surely have caused those who differed from, us at least to give us credit for having acted honestly in accordance with, our convictions. We have preferred to take up an altitude which we know would entail the loss of our seats on the council and which., in my own case, involves giving up th© office of president, a position I treasure • very highly. We have prepared to act up to our convictions as to what is best for the sport rather than retain our seats on the council by voting against our convictions, and we claim that our action entitles us to respect instead of obloquy. It has been staked that this case is on all fours with the dispute over the old council in Christ/church. We do not wish to reopen that matter, but merely to point ifcb this difference : Mr. Pollock and myself preferred to take an action involving our disappearance from •the legislation on the sport' rather than vote against our convictions, wheTeas, in the case of the old council at Christchurch, the reverse was the case, members retaining their seats in defiance jf an expression of no confidence from, the majority of the centres. "In connection with the resolution of the Otago Centre revoking our appointment, we" are of opinion that that resolution is ultTa vires, but we intend to make no use of that position, and if the Otago Centre will act in a constitutional way they will find that Mr. Pollock and myself will act- in the way they expect of us. One of the speakers at the Otago Centre's meeting said that we had no right to judge between right and wrong, that we were in the council simply to vote as they instructed us. Now I ask this gentleman if he would, under any consideration, accept an honorary position on a sports or -any other body, whereby he was precluded from exercising his judgment as between right and wrong. Grave misstatements have been made to incite opposition to the action of the council in selecting Wellington. It has been alleged that some months ago the council wrote to them to give an indication as to the date on which they would like the meeting to be held, and that in that letter the council stated that the meeting would probably be held in Wellington. No such statement was ever made ■by any member of the council or by any of the council's officials. Furthermore, it has been stated that the Otago del© gates to the conference of centres m Christchurch. met me and obtajned my promise that Otago would receive fair play. These gentlemen met me in Christchurch. and tried their atmostto get me to give an opinion on the locality of the championship meeting. I told them that as president of the council I could not, in all fairness, give 1 any such 'indication and that in any case no member of the council would be justified in expressing his opinion until he had heard the evidence. I certainly promised that Otago would receive full consideration and: fair play. I claim that Otago has had both." CONFIDENCE EXPRESSED. DUNEDIN, This Day. The Civil Service Harriers and Amateur Athletic Club on Saturday night heard Mr. Marryatt's explanation why he voted in favour of Wellington for the Australasian championship meeting, contrary to the wish of the Otago centre. The meeting expressed confidence in him and his attitude, and instructed the club's delegates to the Otago cenlie to rescind the decision revoking the appointment of Messrs. Marryatt and Pollock" as delegates to the association.