MR R. DICK AND THE CITY COUNCIL.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 6741, 22 September 1883, Page 3

MR R. DICK AND THE CITY COUNCIL.

TO THE EDITOB.

Sib, —I am one of the unfortunate councillors who were returned unopposed at the last electiona. 1 have to thank you for having so far modified your opinion concerning us as to give us crodit for being "fairly educated." JFor my own part, I do not claim to be well educated, and, moreover, I should have my doubts about any man who did. There aro not many who can make such a claim in even a solitary bianch of any one of the multifarious subjects which occupy the attention of those whose aim ia culture. Considering the vaatness of thp area in these daya covered by the sciences, by literature, and ly the arts, I must humbly acknowledge that a very small portion has been traversed by at least one of the newlyelected councillors. You bemoan the fact that the leading- citizens do not take sufficient interest in municipal matters. This vague and hackneyed phrase "leading citizen," I must contesa, is puzzling. It you could strictly or even approximately define what ia meant by it, many would be relieved. Your original opinion was, evidently, that to be a leading citizen a man must take a prominent position in the Chamber of Commerce—must, in "fact, be able to talk learnedly about Harbour Board matters, and wildly on the present state of the bankruptcy laws; must be well versed in the cuejtpiriß tariff, and be abo to raise a cry of indignation at the exorbitant charge for the telephone. But you are debarred from taking all thi3 as your standard, inasmuch as in a previous article you insinuated that the Mayor and councillors do not occupy the enviable position of "leading citizens," because they are not, in your opinion, educated. Were some of the. prominent fnembers of the Chamber of Commeico subjected to an examination in subjects apart from their ordinary avocations they would bring tears to the oyos of tho examiners. It must be admitted, therefore,' that to be a prominent member of the Chamber of Commerce is a mere accident of Reading citizenship, or else that education is not the essence. What, peculiar quality, or what combination of qualities must we look for, then, before we can dub a man ■* leading citizen ,'! Shall we Eay the possession of wealth —to live sumptuously, and entertain elegantly ? Then your pet education is again excluded, because it is no extraordinary thing to see men of wealth not oven " fairly educated." Is it success in the particular line of life which a man may have adopted ? The same answer will apply, and, moreover, thi3 will admit into the select company the Mayor and some of the councillors. Shall we adhere, then, to your education test? It would be interesting to know on what subjects you would insist upon a pass, and after you had named your leading citizens, to subject them to the test. On iirst thought, tho fact that a man occupies a position on a representative body elected by the citizens should bo sufficient to constitute him a leading citizon; but you, in your wisdom, have excluded the members of the Town Council from the Mayor downward, although many of tho councillors hold seats in other elective bodies. It is evident, then, that no peculiar quality can be found which is characteristic of loading citizenship. The possession of wealth is not enough; the advantages of education will not do alone; success in business is by yourself excluded; the occupation of seats in elective assemblies is inadequate. What, then, is this subtle thing which makes a man a leading citizen ? Is it a combination: must he ba wealthy and educated and occupy representative positions of every description? How hardly, then, shall they who aspire to it enter into this kingdom ! —lam,&c., Robert Dick. Dunedin, September 20. ■ [Mr Dick wastes a good deal of stationery and no little ingenuity over a quibble. If he does not yet know what is meant by occupying a leading position in 'the community, we fear that no amount of explanation will make him understand.