DR. KOO, OF CHINA

Taranaki Daily News, 29 April 1931, Page 12

DR. KOO, OF CHINA

VISIT TO STUDENT MOVEMENT. INTERPRETER OF THE EAST. Dr. T. Z. Koo, of China, who will arrive in Auckland on May 4, is one of the really interesting- personalities of this generation. His visit is made at the invitation of the New Zealand 'Student Christian Movement, an affiliated body of the World Student Christian Federation, of which he is the vice-chairman. A previous visit, planned for 1927, had to be cancelled because owing to straightened relations between China and. the United States of America, Dr. Koo was commissioned by some 50 Chinese banking and commercial guilds to visit the United State of America to promote a better understanding of Chinese affairs —a mission which he successfully accomplished. Dr. Koo is at present in Australia, and comes to New Zealand direct fromthere.

Dr. Koo has had a remarkably diverse university experience. He graduated ter of arte at St. John’s University, 'Shanghai, and within the last few years he has done post-graduate work at Oxford and at Oberlin, U.S.A. While at Oxford, Dr. Koo read philosophy under Dr. Lindsay, the master of Baliol, and theology with Canon Streeter. He is an honorary doctor of laws at Oxford.

For nine years Dr. Koo was in the administrative department of the Chinese railway service. In 1918 he joined the staff of the national committee of the Y.M.C.A. of China, of which he is now the associate general secretary, with special responsibilities for the student department. Dr. Koo is known in many countries By his contributions to various recent symposia on political and social movements in China, which are regarded by editors of student and other journals as a unique source of reliable information.

Four things impress those who are fortunate enough to hear Dr. Koo speak; his faultiest English, his acute, analytical thinking 8 , the practical nature of his religion with full social, national and internation implications, and his passion for the higher education of his own people. Dr. Koo is coming to New Zealand primarily to visit the New Zealand capacity as vice-chairman of the World ■Student Christian Federation. He also Student Christian movement in his comes as the interpreter of China to the people of New Zealand. He comes with experience and appreciation of New Zealand problems from his association with the New Zealand delegation at two conferences of the Institute of Pacific Relations at Honolulu and Tokyo-