"ILL CHOSEN."

Sun (Christchurch), Volume IV, Issue 1066, 12 July 1917, Page 2

"ILL CHOSEN."

THE SWIMMING SQUABBLE. MR KNOX EXPRESSES REGRET. At last night's meeting of tlie Canterbury Head Centre of the Royal Life-saving Society the chairman (Mr W. H. Benson) said they considered that the indignity done to the society at the last meeting of the Canterbury I Centre of the N.Z.A.S.A. (when Mill). S. Knox was refused as a delegate) I was a bit hard and rather unfortunate. i Mr Knox, in explaining what occurred, said that he did not "butt j in" at the meeting, but attended in , pursuance to a notice received from 'the secretary. As soon as the Head Centre's letter was read, appointing| him.their delegate, one of the gentlemen present immediately rose and j moved a resolution to the effect that he he not accepted as a delegate until jhe bad withdrawn certain statements! [made bv him at the previous meeting of the Head Centre. i After referring lo a renort of the; meeting, Mr Knox said: "I expressed! ; then, at that meeting, my sincere re-, igret, and I express it here, now, j iafnin, that I should have said any-, thing which should have caused friction between the two bodies, knowing, as 1 do. that there has been j trouble in the past—and we thought I we had passed over the difficulties—;l very much regret indeed that any i words of mine should have caused iany friction or reopening of the old j wounds. It was a matter that rested i entirely with myself, and I take the full responsibility. It was simplv i some ill-chosen words. . . . What was said, I am sure, none of you j accepted in the way that the Canterbury Centre lias taken it up, and if. I have hurt their feelings in any way ! at all I can only express my deepest I regret and my wish that what was jsaid was unsaid. I do not think I • can say anything fairer than that." Mr Knox said that when he had I made his explanation he withdrew i from the room. The resolution was : carried, but he was not sent for t" [have the centre's decision conveyed | to him and to be given an opportunity to withdraw (Which he was quite [prepared to do) and take his seat. The meeting had gone on to discuss ; some important matters in which Ihe I society was interested, and he, as their delegate, was left outside. What was said bv Mr W. E. D. Bishop in respect to the Sir John Hall Shield ! competition left the society in rather a bad light with the public, inasmuch as it pave the impression that having got the conduct of the competition, thev ran riot and did what thev ; liked. Mr Bishop had staled that Ihe ■ competition was not conducted in i accordance with Ihe rules. In that | connection he would like to put their (side of the case. The matter of the

competition for the Sir John Flail Shield was very fully gone into by their ex-secretary, Mr G. E. Billson, who had fixed up an arrangement with the Canterbury Centre (before 'the society held the competition the | first time) which practically raised : the conditions of the competition to | the proficiency lest standard, and J those were the conditions under I which Use competition was conducted the first time they ran it. At his j memorable interview with Hie Canterbury Centre Executive they j staled, in effect, "Do as you did last time," and the society did it. Mr I Bishop was probably not aware at the time of the existence of the society Y letter of explanation, or he iwas sure to have put it side by side, with the other statement. Mr Knox was confident that Mr Bishop would not have put the matter unfairly be- : I fore the centre if he had known there was a letter from the society. Mr Knox reiterated his regret at • having been the cause of friction or , of reopening old wounds between the two swimming bodies. The chairman saul that Mr Knox had dealt with the matter in an impersonal way and he thought that, under Ihe circumstances, they could do no more than confirm the attitude adopted by him. What had arisen, he thought, was really caused through a certain amount of misunderstanding in connection with the running of the Sir John Hall Shield competition. He hoped that after Mr Knox's explanation matters would be more amicable, and he hoped that in future no further matters of this description would arise.