Nelson Evening Mail MONDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1921 YOUNG CITIZENS' LEAGUE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LIV, 31 October 1921, Page 4

Nelson Evening Mail MONDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1921 YOUNG CITIZENS' LEAGUE

EOER well-known residents of Auckland are til, present, inuring New Zealand seeking to form bran elms of the Voting Citizens’ League throughout ..a* country. The League has been In existence in Auckland for about three years, with remarkably suceesslitl resells. The objects ol i lie league are first, to arouse the public conscience to the present slate of a (fairs and to the need of every one interesting himself in the matter of the wellare oi the young people of the Dominion; secondly, to galvanise the existing welfare institutions, and, get them to co-ordinate their work; ■’ thirdly, to form girls’ and’ hoys’ clubs when necessary so that there might be welfare institutions where all boys and girls between the ages ot 10 and LS might receive character training through mental and physical activities supplemented to the education (.■lveii under the State system. The fundamental aim of the League to rectify an increasingly obvious defect, in the young life of the country. ft is becoming more and more apparent in all observers that, ail is well with the rising generation, and that our individual and national ‘life is not faring in the right direction. Judges, magistrates, donors, preachers and teachers have detected „ national decadence. ‘•The symptoms arc the increase in juvenile crime; the eraviit 1 * for amusements which ate not trulv recreative, and which in some ( ..,c V s so perilously close to the hoi dot line of decency; the absence of joy and pride in craftsmanship; llippancv in dealing with the serious things o life • ami. worst, of all. a. sell-sat.sfac-,lou which Jieirays ignorance oi the fact that he who seeks to go through life without the rudder afforded by a a tern sense of duty runs a’grave risk ‘„f shipwreck.” One of U.e causes ,s jack of parental responsibility am ■ spirit of disrespect creeping into the behaviour of children to their parents.

Mr E. C. Cullen, S.M.. who is one of fhe prime movers, in a recent: number of-the Young People’s Longue journal, has written a very flioughrlu! and arresting article on character iraining, in the course of winch he ■savs that in our national education

system Intellectual education which prepares ns for material progress is well provided for. the physical receives care, hut, no definite provision is made for training the moral and spiritual side of our nature. A tree, secular. ;uul compulsory ednc.-M am s> steni promised great thing.''. • should he well educated. and all should have equal oppm - umitv; this young land was to he kep. free "form the bitterness of sectarian controversy : and the, implant mg ol « u p'rcat truths of religion should ho ten entirely in the hands of the parents ol each child. We arc almost more_ fortunate than we deserve; the high tone n our school teachers and the imlt reel influence of ihe intellectnal training have together tended to save the position Fur a time all went well, lor the patents of the dav had been educated mvlor rinnUjor svsloin. tsut vh* -j' ( nmv in the second generalion under ..in- secular system, and the parents ol u, dav have ' been educated under it. To-dav. so far as tin* religions ediua iion "of their children is concerned, 100 many parents arc either incompetent or indifferent - Dr. 0. K. Maguire, medical superintendent of ihe Auckland Hospital, who wirli Mr (Aitton. S.M., and, others is louring New Zealand lor the pntpose of forming branches of ihe league, said at Dunedin the other day that he had a great opportunity of seeing what an extraordinary amount of wastage then' was in the ehild health in Dm community. This vuif partly at I filmi-able in the moral slide ihey had heard of in Die community, due to the wan! of home lik U:ll!t ~f interest- l.y parents. This was evidenced by the fact Dmi in Die Anek--I:,rut Hospital I hey had over odf) patients. and (hey had 'mver less than DM children, and very fa neb Die same comparison eonkl be made in Die bospitals in Lbe other centres. And there was no doubt,, about it- Dud the great majority of the diseases were prevent--,b!e diseases, they being due tc neglect, improper food, and apathy m Ihe part of Die parents. There warn. doubt Dmf in Auckland .key were not,dm at lbe parents Dmmgh the children, and they were thus able j. ioar-h them Dieir responsibilntes u , heir children, and hun* to 'Are to. 1.1,mn. Tho league was likewise doing ;, 0 „d work by health propaganda u . Us paper. The children were als. , f .n«h. fir..- nul and other simple les sons, in hygiene, and health talk, WP ,-e given to their parents. I hev also held classes in physical enllure He'considered that a league like the Voting Cii-izen-’ J.eagne had a wonderful field ami a wonderiul scope, am 1,0 therefore recommended it m then svmpathv and snppoit. ’Mr C Thirdie, secretary o, Hn Auckland Board of Kdneation. win j, also one of the party, said he w.v convinced that at the present run. there was a lm-k of reverence au|on, voung (tenple. It might to be then earnest purpose to restore the spin of reverence. There was also a hud () f parental responsibility, as measurer Ht), t h:,t obtaining only a generation .’ (rn He thought that the league n '■Auckland could el«im to have endeavoured to inculcate amongst, young arnl old as well, a high sp.nl o reverenc-. I'nless the race was res met ,o a seme of parental responsdmitq and a spirit of reverence, then the race- was 'loomed. Ik was sat.sf.ed iliai the longue had met these v.enk to some extent. I!.ov had the opportunity the leadem of the league weye «m to promote bettor citizenship. 1 School masters had told him that- since Die league hac. ! , n)1 work the discipline m then schools had show., a marked improve-,lm-onMrnir™.o S l.asa,«.nm> i„ A.k1.1,-,1.4 » l-l-o 1 > I.:ul ’l'li.-Li- i.mvi-n.i-nl ' an,l il „aa nvolvinii -'1 - .■'.nsi.l.'.-.-.l On'- '1 ... lit ..mow' ll "' C'g 11 ’ ” Hovel that very many more Mmui. Hwlav w,-.-.- UIW *HI. -I- ',nn- m .am,',- f" 1 ' snii-it. in l heir younfi ,ia-vs-•;L.ki.. *" a- “"'V.IIn ,1,0 loa.-l.n.K P-l-gm ' , ~ lf ,, t j jn,,- heller ami lieDda<' " a m " - said that thev Cont inuing, Die sp< , (ni] „ j ,- v hi find sonic met hod ‘V'd* v hi'-h i lie crip on a child-lid m-rcease l “’L. will !»' visilo.l 'lm-Uy --I will .10-UI-s 1.0 - lo* "*»*** ),v Die people generally.