SEAMEN AND BILLIARDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14225, 23 November 1909, Page 7

SEAMEN AND BILLIARDS.

ACTION OF THE SAILORS'

HOME COUNCIL.

A CLERICAL CRITICISM.

The Rev. W. Gray Dixon writes to us as follows:—It is duo.to the public, many of whom, of divers creeds, have subscribed most, generously and graciously to the funds of the local branch of the British and Foreign Sailors' Society of London, located in the Mission Hall attached to the Auckland Sailors' Home, that they should understand the true nature of the situation created by the refusal of the council of tho homo to allow the billiard-tablo recently installed in the hall for the use of sailors to remain as one of the appliances of the mission. The reports in the newspapers have unavoidably omitted a few facts, which must bo clearly known to make the situation intelligible.

It. will clear the ground, first of all, to note that the Mission Hall is the only hall devoted to the mission. Tho social hall referred to 'has no conneeetion with the mission. We who arc specially concerned with the mission have no objection . whatever—quite the contraryto the council of the home putting a billiard-table in the social hall; but, if there is to he a billiardtable in connection with the mission, thero is only the one place in which to put it, namely the Mission Hall, where it has been put. Like, a number of sailors' missions, we have but. the one hall, which has to bo used for all mission purposes. Hitherto, I gladly and gratefully remember, the council of the home has treated the mission most reasonably and generously. The representatives of th© British and l'oreign Sailors' Society have every reason to Ix) thankful to the council for placing such a fine and convenient hall at their disposal, and making such liberal grants from time to time for social functions. That the present divergence of opinion should have arisen is all the more regrottablo that those of us who are more immediately,, interested in tho mission are utterly at a loss to account for it on rational principles. The installation of the billiardtablo is simply a. natural, and to those conversant with the methods most approved in sailors' missions very obvious, stop in the development of the mission. We have simply done what they are doing in every up-to-date sailors' mission iVi the world. Two years ago, at the hoadquarter,s of the great mission wo represent, Jack's Palace," as it is . called, in Commercial Road, London. England, I took note of the number of billiard-tables. Of course, there are some i good • Christian people, whose conscientious scruples one would respect, who object to ; anything in the nature of what thev call worldly amusements in connection with a mission, but such persons are few in number, and it cannot be said that it is of this type that the most robust and progressive philanthropists aro made. v *Assuredly I did not expect to bo confronted with this variety of religionist in the council of the Auckland Sailors' Home. Little wonder that an observer of the attitude of certain gentlemen solemnly rebuking ministers of religion for their worldliness, one who had no association with either side, but was quite neutral, should turn to m© and rubbing, as it were, his eyes, ask: "Is the world turned upside down?" The remark exactly chimed with my feelings. There is a topsyturvydom about the situation which affords first-rato copy for a comic paper. Even we who feel keenly tho seriousness of the situation cannot help being tickled by its absurdity. . The situation is serious, not only for tho mission, but for the Sailors' Home. A severe blow has been struck at both institutions by the strangely ill-advised action of the council. If anyone doubts this statement, let him tako a walk round the ships in the harbour. He will hear enough hind language to do him for some time to come A member of the council who ought to have a judicial mind flings at me a shallow taunt about a billiard-table being necessary for the success of the mission. That gentleman must know that I anticipated such a superficial criticism in my remarks before the council. I said that it would be absurd to think that a piece of furniture was essential to the success of the mission mission could go on without it—but that it was certainly the case that a billiard-table was . necessary to the full success of the mission. Is it not strange, sir, that we ministers of religion, whose business it is to look at everything from- a lofty, all-com-prehensive spiritual standpoint, and who on that account are liable to be eriticisod as unpractical,' should, when we do concern ourselves with practical details, find ourselves , as exposed to criticism as before? Every man who thinks below the surface can see that the presence of a billiard-table as an innocent social attraction in the hall will bring to tho mission scores of sailors who would otherwise never think of darkening the door. Nor is this any now secular departure in the conduct of tho mission. The hall has always been used quite as much for social gatherings as for preaching. When I left the council room last Friday I passed through the Mission Hall. I found a splendid gathering of sailors, although it was a wet night, and on the platform was a man with false whiskers and a tall hat rakishly poised on his head singing a comic song. But certain pious gentlemen on the council cannot tolerate the . billiard-table because it would desecrate this house of God! The fact is, sir, that tho hall is for the well-being of the sailor in a way that is broadly human, whether the method of the moment bo innocent merriment or honest preaching, and has always been so regarded and treated. The billiard-tablo would but help to perfect this policy. The constituency of sailors for which wo cater is a large one, as is shown by the petition of 400 in favour of the billiardtable, not a few of whom contributed liberally to its cost. One member of the council declared that not one of these 400 belonged to the. home. If so ; does not that show how many, in addition to those connected with the home, are willing to take advantage of the mission? But, as a matter of fact, I have the belt authority for declaring that at least 50 of the 400 were in the habit of putting up at, tho home. This shows what laxity there has been in getting at tho real facts. this matter. •

Well, this letter is already somewhat long, and I must close. Obedience to the powers that be is a Christian duty, so the billiardtable will be removed from the Mission Hall and stored somewhere until a day of more enlightened government dawns for the Auckland Sailors' Homo, either through the higher illumination of the present members of council or their succession by men who are really up-to-date in their philanthropic ideas and methods. The pity is that, while we wait, many a good-hearted but easilytemptcd Jack will fall under tho spoil of the public-house, who would otherwise have been brought under tho wholesome social and religious influences of tho Mission Hall.