NAVAL RESERVE BAND.

Wairarapa Age, 20 December 1932, Page 6

NAVAL RESERVE BAND.

HAPPENINGS AT MAST ER TON CONTEST. (To the Editor.) Sir, —I feel that an explanation is due to the public of Masterton in regard to happenings at and after the recent Masterton band contest. At the outset, it should be stated that when deciding that the band should enter, the rules and regulations were most ■carefully studied and discussed by our committee, and it was emphatically agreed that, win or lose, nothing would be done of an unsportsmanlike nature, and that no attempt whatsoever would 1)e made to ring in players not properly qualified or permitted to play in the band. Now, we had no A grade players, but we did have a player and above our professional, as usually allowed. Regarding this man, it should be noted that in part 2, rule 1 the following occurs: —“The question of a band requiring more than one engaged player through sickness or other legitimate causes to be left entirely in the hands of the executive.” We wrote to the members of the Ma st er ton Execuinforming them that we intended to apply for permission to use an extra man. We have in our possession a letter stating that it would be necessary to make our application when the bands met to draw for places prior to the quickstep contest. When the drawing for places took place I put in my application to the meeting of representatives from each band (members of the New Zealand Executive were also present), and permission was given for this extra player to take part. The rule does not state that application is necessary a second time, and it certainly never occurred to us that such would be required. At night, when the draw was made, the question of A grade players was discussed, but as we were not concerned in this matter, I took no part in the meeting. An announcement was made by the secretary that any band or bands using other than players qualified would lay themselves open to disqualification. It would have been a simple matter for us to make a second application in the evening, but as we had never heard of such a thing f being done we considered and still consider that no infringement of any rule was made by us. The wording of the rule may be weak, and is so regarded by members of the executive. For this weakness it appears our band (has been reprimanded. As already stated, fcve had no intention of doing anything unfair; everything was done in the open, and in no way did we act in an unsportsmanlike manner to our fellowbandsmen.—l am, etc., H. BAKER, Bandmaster, Naval Reserve Band.