COMPARISON OF METHODS

Southland Times, Issue 21000, 5 February 1930, Page 11

COMPARISON OF METHODS

BRITISH AND DOMINION. AN ENGLISHSIAN’S COMPARISON. London, December 12. In a letter to his father (Mr C. Canham, Kimpton) Mr Harold Canham, writing from Enfield, near Oamaru, gives some interesting details of his life in the Dominion. He says that by the standards set up in New Zealand they do not require a “gentleman,” but a man of muscle, courage, nerve, and independence. “If you are ‘game’ to try a thing you will readily be forgiven the inability to do it, but the unforgivable sin is the lack of courage to, as we say, “Give it a go—practically every New Zealander, and for that matter every Colonial is a leader in the sense that he will not follow blindly, but has his own opinions and is not afraid to air them. We Anzacs, and I am proud to be ‘we,’ are a very self-confident nation, and it is my opinion that there lies the fault of the English people; there is too much of the ‘herd instinct’ about them. Perhaps you will be surprised at all this ‘philosophy’ coming from me, whose life consists of more muscle than brain work, but it is surprising to hear some of the subjects wc get on when we are in our blankets with only the stars for a roof.” He goes on to relate an amusing experience he had at a sale of horses which he attended. He remarked to a friend that a certain animal, which had started at twelve guineas and was likely to reach twenty-five, was “a sleepy-looking brute that,” and was promptly met by the owner, who stood near, with a “Bet you a quid you can’t ride him.” “Of course,” he writes, “I closed with the offer, and the auctioneer, well knowing he had no hope of proceeding with the sale until the bet was settled, started a bookie’s business. To cut the tale short, I did ride him, but the amusing part is that, after watching the exhibition of vice that the horse gave, nobody would bid for him, and I had difficulty in extracting the ‘quid’ from the owner, who was greatly annoyed at the turn of events. The money, however did me no good, because the boys hauled me down town to an ice-cream bar, and I discovered that it takes more than a pound to supply nine stockriders with a sufficiency of icecream. (Thank Heaven there are no ‘pubs' in Oamaru).”