PARODY HYMNS

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 51, 28 August 1925, Page 6

PARODY HYMNS

AN OFFENDING BOOKLET LABOUR. MEMBERS' PROTEST. A protest was entered by Mr. J. A. Lee (Auckland East), in the House of Representatives last night against the circulation as election propaganda of blasphemous literature. He stated that blasphemous hymns were being thrown over the fences by a certain party for the deliberate purpose qf misrepresenting certain institutions in New Zealand. . The Hon. W. Nosworthy raised a point of .order, stating that the matter had been brought up before, and that the responsibility of the Government for the literature referred to had been denied. Mr. Speaker ruled that Mr. Lee was in order so long as he was not alleging that the Reform Party were the authors' of the hymns. Mr. Lee said he did not make any such allegation. He merely alleged that leaflets containing blasphemous parodies in hymns were issued by the Reform Party, which declared that it stood for the welfare of the children. He appealed to the Reform Party to prevent such pernicious leaflets being thrown over the fences, for the children were getting hold of the hymns ,and singing them. "I don't think it is right in the interests of the community," he said, "that children may be in danger of having these hymns, which are circulated for electioneering purposes, and which are undoubtedly blasphemous, placed in their hands. I call upon the Government to prevent the circulation of such matter, or if such matter is to be permitted to circulate to see that it is only placed in the hands of adults, who shall destroy it ns soon as they have finishecl with it." The Government should take steps immediately to prosecute the ■individual responsible for the ■.circulation of the literature, whether the author was a member of the Communist Party or any other party.

Mr. B. A. Wright (Wellington Suburbs) declared that the Reform Party had never been guilty of circulating the matter referred to amongst children, nor had it ever thrown it over fences. Mr. Lee should bring definite evidence in support of his statements. If the pamphlets had been thrown over fences it must have been distributed by someone else. The Leader of the . Labour Party (Mr. Holland): "But purchased from the Reform • Party." "That may be so," said the speaker, who declared that the Reform Party was not the author of the, literature. Surely the people of the Dominion had the right to know what wa» being taught in certain Sunday schools by a certain section of the community. "In New Zealand?" inquired Mr. Holland. Mr. Wright: "I don't say in New Zealand." (Labour laughter.) He said he made no charge against the Laboor members. The publication referred to was quite justified provided it always circulated in the right quarters. He also denied an innuendo that.the ."Sentinel" received a subsidy from the Reform League. , Mr. A. W. Monteith (Wellington Suburbs) : "Whose candidates does it back?" Mr. Wright: "Oh, that is a matter of indifference." (Laughter.) Mr. P. Eraser (Wellington Central) said the Reform Party was guilty of a dirilection of duty if it had allowed paid Bervants to distribute matter in New Zealand. Mr. .0. Hawken (Egmont) said that none of .the Labour members had denied that the doctrines under discussion were being taught. They seemed anxious to turn the accusation against the Reform Party that they were publishing blasphemous matter. "If this pamphlet is unfit for children to read," he asked, "What about teaching it, in Sunday schools 1" "Where?" asked Mr. Holland.. "The pamphlet does not state that it is being taught anywhere?" Mr. Hawken contended that it did. Mr. W. J. Jordan (Manukau) declared that he was willing to spend the i whole of the recess in assisting the Reform Government to find out where Socialist Sunday schools were operating in New Zealand. LABOUR LEADER'S CHALLENGE. Mr.. Holland said he hoped the Reform Party would give an assurance that its organisation would cease to distribute the pamphlet. He alleged that the sole object of such circulation was I that the Labour Party had some assoI'ciation with the matter published. There had been no attempt to show where the alleged Sunday eohool teachings were taking place. The Reform Party got the idea from I.W.W. publications. If the Labour Party published the same matter in the "New Zealand Worker" a prosecution would be immediately launched for the printing of blasphemous matter. No Labour Party in the world had ever taught such matter in the Socialist Sunday schools. He challenged the Government to repudiate the "Sentinel," which had ■printed the matter referred to, and say there would be no room in the Reform Party for the men responsible for the printing of the "Sentinel." The Hon. A. D. M'Leod: "Will you repudiate "The Worker'?" Mr. Holland: "Certainly not. If the 'Worker' were to take the same attitude as the 'Sentinel' it would have been prosecuted by the Government long ago. Literature of the kind used was not calculated to improve the morals of the people.