MOVING ON TO CANADA

Taranaki Daily News, 19 August 1929, Page 11

MOVING ON TO CANADA

COMMISSIONER HAY TRANSFERRED

LAST ADDRESS IN NEW PLYMOUTH

One of the first official acts of Com-* missioner Hay after arriving in Nejv Zealand to take charge of the work of the Salvation Army was to open the present citadel in New Plymouth. Last night, three years later, he was again in the building, this time to say farowell before 'going to Canada as commissioner there. Accompanying him were Mrs. Hay, Brigadier and Mrs. MacAuley, Lt.-Colonel Carmichael, Staff-Captain Mahaffie and Staff-Captain Brown. Thera . was a largo congregation. In expressing his regret at leaving New Zealand so soon, especially after making so many friends, the commissioner said that unhappily one of tho things the leaders had to be prepared for in the Army was the possibility that at any time they might be asked to move on to some fresh field. Sometimes they were stationed in one plac® hardly long enough to discover the imperfections of the people, though they certainly did have time to learn the perfections. In November he would complete M 3 47th year of officership, 20 years of which had been spent south of th® equator. He had the distinction of having served three times as long in the Southern Hemisphere as any other commissioner. Now he and Mrs. Hay were going to a country where the climatic conditions would be reversed and wherethey would experience the rigours of winter at Christinas time. He had been moved many times from place to place, but he could say he had never had a grouse. In this connection he believed ' the commissioners were as obedient as any other members of the Army. After all, it did not suit one’s personal convenience to be moved about too muchj it did not suit one for family reasons, or, sometimes, for climatic reasons, Every officer of the Army would appreciate what lie meant and, no doubt, soma who were not officers would do so tob. Still the officers had to remember they were in the service of God and that when they were moved it was so that they might have greater opportunities of bringing others to Him. Referring to the progress of the Army in New Zealand during the past Hire® years, Commissioner Hay said that the Girl Guards had increased in numbers by 60 per cent, and the Homo League by 250 per cent. There were many more soldiers, 16 new corps and 16 new halls had been opened. At a recent Army gathering a Methodist minister had suggested members were not as enthusiastic as formerly. Perhaps the minister was not in a position to judge, but the commissioner said that though many great things had occurred in his experience th® Army was after all only young. Ho wondered whether the young people of to-day could not do even better than ; the older people had. It was for th® comrades to see that they grew in faith, love and zeal. He was sorry to say that he thought the realisation of the presence of sin in the people was dying in New Zealand. It was not present as it was 20 years ago. The trouble was spreading through the world and New Zealand had been caught. He blamed the lack of moral' and religious training and the lack of God in the lives of the people. There were young girls in New Zealand that night who were moving away from God to dancing and drink, who were losing their moral sense. “I tell you, there are cesspools in this country,” continued the commissioner. ; He referred appreciatively to the valuable work being done by the city hostel for girls in Wellington. It provided a wholesome place for girls to stay at and he would like to see more of such institutions established, especially in the cities. Many of the girls who stayed at the Wellington hostel did not belong >■ to the Army, but they were urged to attend their own churches. He was afraid Christ had reached a .? stage where He was unpopular with a large proportion of white people, Twenty-flvo years ago a very large part of the human race was wobbling as to which course should be pursued, but today many of the people had taken to the open heath and to the mountains of sin. On the other hand during recent years the Army had records of men and women coming to take a stand for God. A large number of people had a distorted vision, a religious astigmatism that prevented them seeing Christ among men. The commissioner said h® lived, at Island Bay where out of 5000 people probably 4000 never went t® church. Ho defied anyone to show him a town or a nation that had prospered morally after the people had turned away from God. . Mrs. Hay also spoke.