THE PROSPECTS OF NEW ZEALAND LITERATURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2369, 27 July 1899, Page 10

THE PROSPECTS OF NEW ZEALAND LITERATURE.

A lecture in connection with St. Andrew's ' Literary Institute was given at the St. An- ' djew's Church Hall on the 17th by Rev. Dr ; Rutherford Waddell on " The Prospects and Possibilities of New Zealand Literature," there being a largo at- ( tendance upon the occasion. The lecturer began by drawing attention to M. Taine's statement that he reduced the condition of forecasting the future of a people to their race, epoch, arid surroundings, and that if these primordial forces could be measured and computed one might deduce from them as from a formula ,the- specialities of a future civilisation. He then pointed out that J , Tame built up his " History of English Lite- : rature" on an analysis and application of these, conditions, and went on to take that writer's statement as a working hypothesis of his lecture. Beginning with the surroundings he dealt with these under the heads of soil, scenery, sea, and climate, and he entered into a somewhat minute analysis of the influences of these upon the literature of other countries, and pointed out the promise for literature that layjn them for. New Zealand. Referring to our scenery, he said the great lack was memories ; it had no human background. , But, perhaps, the absence of memories and human background from our scenery might have its compensations. It might help to lead us to concentrate our thought more and more on what was, after, all, the real subject and inspiration of all great literature — viz., the plain "you and me," who were living to-day. The surroundings of man — soil, climate, sea, air. Nature, — they were great, but they were not supreme. It was man himself who was supreme. It was man himself who used these as the artist used colours; and, therefore, it was man himself who must ever be the great subject of the greatest literature. And so it was good in forecasting the possibilities of New Zealand literature to remember that man was the constant factor and that the genius of the future would be the writer that could paint "you and me" on the background of our surroundings in lines of truth and power. Proceeding to refer to the character of our education, and tho bearing of that on the prospects of literature, the lecturer said he was not one of those who thought our educational system perfect. From tliG standpoint of his lecture, he had two criticisms to offer upoit its- methods. The first was that it left no room for specialisation. It proceeded on the assumption that children were like rows of empty buckets of equal sizes, and that they were capable of . being filled with an. equal amount of ologies ; and that it was the business of the teacher . to perform this office for theni. That, 'of'course, was absurd. Nevertheless, that was one of the absurdities that presumably wise men insisted onr^perpetrating. It was, perhaps, worth while to say in passing that we had reached an age of specialisation. The ideal education should therefore make provision for the developing of specialisation in the schools of the colony. It was impossible under the present system under which the teacher was " a mere machine set to work out a certain aggregate result in a given time." He was glad to see that an agitation was now beginning which it was to be devoutly hoped would do away with tho mechanical uniformity that was throttling the. best hopes of our education. But whatever excuse there might be to retain it in schools, there waa absolutely none to perpetuate it in our university. Yet we did it! He-con-sidered the present arrangement, both in our schools and -university, inimical to the best interests of scholarship and the future prospects of literature in, the colony. The second point on which "he offered criticism of our education system' from tho standpoint of tho lecture was that k wa-s ruinous to the faculty of observation. It withdrew the pupil far too much from direct contact with Nature. The principle of the kindergarten was the true principle on which — not the infant class, but all cla&ses, should be based. He was as sure as possible that our educational methods were destroying in our children their observing powers. The loss was immense. And -it most seriously affected the future of literature in this colony. Observation was- the raw material on which Nature worked ; and if- -it was spoiled the faculty of imagination was also destroyed. This observing power was the characteristic mark of all our great writers; and it was impossible to over-rate its value. Coming now to his last point, he said the prospects and possibilities of literature here, or anywhere else, depended in the last resort upon life-. We had seen reason, he hoped, to conclude that New Zealand in all that pertained to the body of literature — soil, climate, scenery, seas, — occupied a quit'unique position. But these were only t'.=s raw materials. They were the coloiir and paints of the artist. But everything depended on the life that used them. And so the future .of literature in this colony depended finally

on the character of those who were to be its colonists; and in. the character the highest elements were the moral and spiritual. Given that, then, the prospects and possibilities of literature in this land were of the most brilliant kind. What was needed was the mornlisation of the material and secular concerns of b'fe; and if we were only true to our destiny no country of the world-«« certainly none in this Southern Hemisphere— offered more brilliant literary prospects and possibilities than this colony, in which a beneficent Providence had cast our lot. The lecture, which occupied about an hour and a-half Jn delivery, appeared to be much enjoyed by the audience, who frequently applauded the remarks of the lecturer with great heartiness.