ESPERANTO CONGRESS

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 15, 18 January 1930, Page 15

ESPERANTO CONGRESS

"UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE"

PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS

With a brief sentence or so of - Es.

peranto, "tho universal language," the

first New Zealand Esperanto Congrew ■was opened in' the Conference Chamber at the Dominion Farmers' Institute yesterday, the president (Mr. C. J.

Adcock, of Auckland) presiding over

some twenty-five delegates representing Esperanto Clubs from all over the Dominion. The pioneers of the movement, tho club delegates, and tho representatives of tho Universal Esperanto federation, the head of the whole movement, were also introduced to one another in the samo language. They were able to hold that conjjress, the first yet held in the Dominion, sajd Mr,' Adcock, because of the establishment about a year ago of the New Zealand Esperanto Association. Much of the work during the past year had necessarily been devoted to organisationj but the new year, it was hoped, would leave them more time for the real propaganda work, to .undertake •which th» association had been set up. Esperanto wa« moving forward on a new wave of progress all over the ■world, he added, and was now coming largely into practical use. It had passed through the stage of pure Esporanto, and had now reached that of applied Esperanto. Three past presidents of the English National Union of Teachers had attended three successive

■ International Esperanto Congresses—at Budapest, Antwerp, and Dantzig-^and having seen those congresses actually ' at work had been convinced that Esperanto provided a practical solution of the international congress language difficulty. Now there was an Esperanto section of the English National Union of Teachers"; while the World Federation of Educational Associations, the chief educational body _of the world, had used Esperanto this year, in all sections as the translation, language. ' The New Education Fellowship, perhaps the most progressive educational body in the world, had also used Esperanto) at its meeting this year; and Professor IFindlay, of that association, the e£aminer in education to the Now Zealand University, proposed an entirely Esperanto Conference, to be held by the Baltic and Northern people of Europe within the next year or two. Esper. «*to, it would be seen, had coiheto stay, and was making most gratifying progress. > ■ The annual report showed that there are now 205 members distributed over 75 different localities, enrolled in the association, pf which the Prime Minister (the Ei'g^t Hon. Sir Joseph Ward), the Hon. Sir Bobert '■' Stout,1 and the Hon. Sir George Fowlds have consented to be patrons, r. ~ ,-, ■..:.■.; , OFFICERS' ELECTED. ' :. The existing.eseoutivfr-president, Mr, A j .T. Adcock (Hamilton); vice-presidents, Mrs. E. M. Watkin (Auckland), Mr, L. E. Dust (Wellington), Mr. J. S. Russell (Auckland), and Mr. N. M. Bell (Chnstchureh); hon. treasurer, Mr. E. C. Jack (Wellington); Masterton Club delegate, Mr A. Dewar; and hon. secretary, Mr. WH. King (Wellington)—was unanimously re-elected «n bloc; and a hearty vote of thank* for their services during the past year was carried by acclamation. It was'decided to hold the second congress during Easter, 1931.