VARSITY DEBATE HELD BY RADIO.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19134, 29 July 1930, Page 15

VARSITY DEBATE HELD BY RADIO.

SPEECHES DELIVERED AT 3YA AND DUNEDIN. A novel experiment was conducted last evening, when a wireless debate between Canterbury College and Otago University was broadcast. The Canterbury team spoke in the 3YA studio and the Otago team in the 4YA studio. The judge’s verdict was in favour of Canterburv College. Mr P. 11. W. Ney ill, the first Otago speaker, in supporting the contention that "Modern industrialism is detrimental to culture”, dealt cynically with the rapid decline of culture from the upper classes downwards. Miss M. Iv. Stevens advanced further arguments for Otago and bewailed the crushing effect of mass production and the abandonment of culture in the search for excitement. Also speaking for Otago, Mr J. G. Warrington held tip the United States as a country where culture was pushed aside in the pursuit of the “almighty dollar”. As a country as yet untouched by industrialism, he quoted Bulgaria. Mr C. vS. Perry opened for the Canterbury College,, taking the negative. He maintained that culture and intellectual effort were two separate things, and said that by giving the working man more leisure industrialism was paving the way for greater culture. Mr C. E. Purchase stated that culture followed in the wake of industrialism, and he quoted the bequests of Andrew Carnegie, himself *an outstanding industrialist, which made possible the founding of hundreds of libraries throughout the world. Miss C. West-Watson claimed an intimate knowledge of Bulgaria and refuted the statement that Bulgaria was an earthly paradise. The living and working conditions of students there were nothing less than atrocious. The culture of the past was based on slavery, she said, and was restricted to a favoured few. The judge, Mr J. B. Callan, said that he gave his decision in favour of Canterbury College because the northern speakers preserved the debating manner. The arguments of the Otago men were sound, but their speeches were more in the nature of essays than impromptu efforts. “ Too Cynical.” In criticising the speakers he referred to the cynical manner of Mr Nevill. It was, he said, too cynical for a young man. Ife was impressed by the mature voice of Mr Perry, and commended him for introducing the debating manner by taking the opposition speeches and dissecting them. The arguments of Mr Purchase were sound, and Mr Warrington had a cultured style of speaking, though he spoke as if he was reading or giving a perfectly memorised speech. The voice of Miss Stevens, said Mr Callan, was inexpressibly sad, the voice of one bewailing the, utter hopelessness of a world without culture. It was the voice of one who had seen the last vestiges of culture depart and was the only survivor of a lost age. The voice of Miss West-Watson was rather on the sad side, said the judge, but whereas as a speaker for the affirmative Miss Stevens was entitled to a mournful tone it was not so with Miss West-Watson. Her references to Bulgaria were skilfully brought in, but he found it hard to follow some of her remarks about China and Japan. She had made a very daring statement that he could not accept, namely, that the skyscrapers of New York were among the most beautiful sights in the world. After the debate Dr A. G. Fisher, president of the Otago Debating Society, and Professor L. G. Pocock, of Canterbury College, expressed appreciation of the arrangements made by the Broadcasting Company.