Page 8 Advertisements Column 2

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18612, 21 July 1922, Page 8

THE JI.S.A. AND SPOHT. TO THE EDITOR. Sib,—l am departing from my usual practice of ignoring letters directed against myself when written over a nom de plume, in the case of “Scot.” not because of the importance of any argument lie employs, but because of his flagrant misrepresentation of the conscientious objectors’ position. If, ns he seems to think, there were some who hid behind their consciences and left no postal address, I am quite satisfied to leave the judgment of their actions to their own consciences. My reference was to the hundreds of men who suffered in our gaols, and to the 14 who were deported to France. If “Scot” is really ignorant of the persecution of conscientious objectors hero and in other parts of the British Empire, I would advise him to procure Principal John Graham's great work, “Conscription and Conscience,” in which ho will find startling facts, and will also discover the parallel between the conscientious objectors and tho Covenanters, tour correspondent was evidently so engrossed in helping to win the war that he had no time to study the conscientious objectors’ movement, and got ft info his head that a few fellows escaped into tho wilds to avoid conscription! There was a great principle lying" behind the action of conscientious objectors— the came principle that lay at the bade of (ho Covenanter movement—viz., the struggle for freedom of conscience, the single difference being that our men passively resisted whilst the Covenanters resisted under ■ arms. All alike, were prepared to abide, by tlie consequences of their actions, and many, in each instance, suffered similarly. The significant thing is that tho Covenanters are extolled, whilst the conscientious objectors aro derided! Wherein lies the explanation? lu nothing but perspective.—l am. etc., C. B. X. Maceie. A wedding in Afghanistan is followed bv much noise and merrymaking, the idea being that tho 'more noise that is made the more (successful tho marriage will be.