HASTINGS W.E.A.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIII, Issue 81, 17 March 1933, Page 10

HASTINGS W.E.A.

FIRST LECTURE OF SEASON. The first lecture this season of the Hastings branch of the W.E.A. was held last night in the Pasa-dena tearooms, where an appreciative gathering listened to a talk by Mr J. A. Brailsford, 8.A., upon the work of David Low, famous New Zealand caricaturist. David Low, said Mr Brailsford, was given leading place in a book of the world’s best cartoons, just published. His clever drawing and original ideas gave a striking view of the course of events in Britain and the world since the end of the Great War, Low having gone to England in 1919. He showed how the high promise of peace at the close of the “war to end war’’ had been belied through the fears and futility of statesmen, how the attempt to force Germany to pay reparations bad made the disaster' worse, and how necessary it was to take stronger measures to ensure world peace. His pictured comments on the economic crisis were challenging and a few pictures on Russia revealed the struggle against poverty proceeding in that country. Low indicated the necessity for political reform. He had no faith in dictatorships, but showed that our party system gives no scope to true leadership In one cartoon he showed the political parties as dogs baying “empty personalities*’ at a moon called “party revival.” After reviewing Low’s life in New Zealand, Australia, and Britain, Mr Brailsford said he considered the trouble with the world was that it had too few David Lows. The cartoonist belonged to the “Not-for-sale Club.” He refused to sacrifice his independence. He had explained in his preface to the recent world-wide collection (“Modern Caricaturists”) that the papers aiming at the greatest possible circulation and income from advertisements would not allow the freedom he demanded. Ho had worked for smaller papers in order that ho might bo true io his own judgment and conscience. Too many people in these days were ready to sell their souls to the commercial interests of the press, to business and financial enterprise, to the political parties’ pursuit of power, or to sectarian dogma. The world needed more people like David Low—people with a sense of humour to save thorn from taking themselves or their little opinions too seriously, but people determined, onco they had reached real conviction on any subject, never to betray their conscience and judgment, whatever might be offered them. The lecture was interspersed with about 60 lantern slides of Low’s work, which made the evening dotiblj interesting.