TAPANUI YOUNG MAN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 1506, 25 September 1880, Page 14

TAPANUI YOUNG MAN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, — I think you will agree with me in my opinion, on perusing the following remarks, that if our local journal ever hopes to reach a position of colonial repute as a news authority, its editor will have to observe more discrimination iv the selection of hia literary staff. Commenting on an entertainment given by our Association lately in Tapanui, "White Hazard," a gossiping contributor of the abovementioned paper, in this day's issue has the following tasteful remarks :—" The enlightened inhabitants of this remote cornor of the globe (or most of them) would rather listen to a dissertation of fire and brimstone than a good song. They would rather hear a Christian young man abuse and villify bis neighbours than patronise a concert got up to further the interests of the manly game of cricket. . . It must be more edifjing to hear an up country dominee read selections from the Saturday Advertiser than listen to a musical selection it has, perhaps, taken the vocalist a week to prepare. . . I remember it was in the same place that Mr Pedagogue railed against the people of Lawrence after they had supported him for yeirs. Tapanui folk have a weakness for backbiting one another, although they did not show any great appreciation of the slanderous oration that was poured forth by a speaker, who, according to his own words, was defining the aim and object of the V.M.C.A." Your readers will observe from the cutting epithets of "Pedagogue" and " up-country dominee " how high the writer of this tasteful address considers himself intellectually and morally I above the object of his animadversions, a gentleman who merely occupies class D. in the educational scale. Bat softly, my friend. Christian young men are not in the habit of vilifying their neighbours : they merely take the liberty of scouting as nuisances a certain class of scribblers, whose only talent for writing is one that to the tastes of the better class of readers ia simply obnoxious. And it was irv drawing attention to such a writer as this— in which, not contenting himself with some sneering remarks regarding the new building of the V.M.C.A., that writer had the audacity to make reflections derogatory to the respectability of the Tapanui ladies— that our worthy vice-president, Mr It. B. Heriot, proceeded to remark on the facility that the impecuniosity of Colonial papers in general admitted for the employment cf inferior writers, of whom " White Hazard " ia a fair representative. Of that gentleman's claims to this distinction, let the following citation from his last week's utterances prove The Keko settlers, ifc appears, had a rather stormy ducusaion. in reference to the proposed fifce for a pablic school. This ia how " Whifco Hazard" makes capi;al for his wit oufc of the scene: — "Another meleo was about to start, bufc was quelkd by a. very burly io dividual, who leads the religious section of ' Mud Town,' Re held up both hands in a most threatening

manner, and said that ' if it had been six years ago (this was before the happy change iv his ideas of morality) he would have pitched every "T"","— of them in the lagoon." (Observe the dashes ) As I took the trouble to inquire of some who were there of the truth of such a statement as this, the facts are as follow ;— There were at that meeting:, among the settlers two who are known as religious men. One, a small sized man, who, although considerably animated by the question pending, made use of no such language as recorded above. There was another, burly enough iv all conscience to pitch " White HszardV representatives head foremost into the first convenient ditch, if he felt inolined to resent his impudent detractions ; bufc who uttered nob one angry word during the oonfanoance of the whole affair.

By this, the {'readers of the Witness will observe that this gentleman who so freely advances a charge of slander against a Christian young man, has not the slightest scruple of slandering the reputation of an esteemed elder of the Presbyterian Church, and that from no other motive than from desire to write something funny, Nor ia this the only instance wherein this talented contributor has sharpened his wit at the expense of tiuth — as to my knowledge a former (aggrieved) party visited the Courier office to discover the identity of this nbiquitiens personage, for .the sole purpose of having the gratification of giving him the lie to his teeth. And ifc is by such garbage that the readers of the Courier are weekly entertained by way of desert to relieve the mental pabulum after discussing the other heavy matter of the paper.

In venturing to take up your time with these particulars, ifc is for the sole object of exposing the spirit of a writer, who, sheltered under his norn de plume, seems to consider that he has liberty to exercise hia wife — or what passes for sueh — on such aubjeefcs as he electa, entirely independent of motives of reason or truth. This I can do more effectually than by writing to the local journal, for a writer who ia so assured of the support of the editor of a paper by the liberal patronage awarded to his weekly lucubrations ia not likely to feel niuoh discon. certed by the displeasure of any of its readers And yet I believe were the votes of the readers of the Courier to be taken regarding the general voice in favour of the continuance of his contributions, "White Hazard's" demise would be no more natural than instantaneous.

With reference to his charge of Mr Heriot being guilty of slandering or railing against the people of Lawrence, I puppoee it i* scarcely worth tha labour of refuting. As a piece with what has been quoted of his remarks re tha Kelao meeting, ie may be set down as being equal in worth. From what I have said ifc will be Been that " White Hazard," in electing to discourse upon men and manners, has clearly mistaken his mission. But if he has i-ti'l „» idea of ventilating his opinions in public, I would recom mend him to try his discursive pan on subjects more congenial to the natural scope of his mind. Monkeys, for instance. — I am, &c , One of the Members.