ROTARY CLUB.

Wairarapa Age, 9 October 1936, Page 4

ROTARY CLUB.

ADDRESS BY DR. SCHOLEFIIfLD.

There was a very large attendance at yesterday’s luncheon of the Masterton Rotary Club when the speaker was Dr. Guy H. Scholefield, Parliamentary Librarian and a foundation member of the elwb. Dr. Scholefield held the close interest of members throughout an excellent address on his impfessions of America and Americans gained during a recent visit te the United States. The president, Rotarian E. J. Rich, presided and. extended a very warm welcome to Dr. Scholefield.

Former members of the club present included Messrs J. Caselberg, W. L. Free, E. Sortoin Smith and D. Caselberg. Visitors present were Messrs H. H. Mawley, N. G. F. Whiteman and J, W. A. Powell. Arrangements were made for the accommodation, by members of the club, of nine members of the Blind Institute Band, which is to visit Masterton on October 21.

After referring to his impressions of the American people, who were, he said, most charming to meet, Dr. Scholefield said he was surprised to find an almost total absence of anti-British feeling. You had to M tread on their toes/* to get them to talk about Britain’s failure to meet her war debt obligations and he found that there was more criticism of Britain in Canada than in the United States. The Americans were much impressed with the way in which Britain had climbed out of her economio troubles in 1931 and that feeling had done much to soften criticism of the non-payment of war debts. They also probably realised, as some other nations did, that the debts were of more value to them unpaid than if they were paid. After touching on American politics, Dr. Scholefield went on to ►refer to aspects of the National Recovery administration, which; could be seen all over th«L country. Discussing crime in the United States, Dr. Scholefield said citizens were very keenly alive to the problem of the administration of justice. While he was in Chicago half a dozen people were shot in the streets practically every day. One of the difficulties of coping with crime in the past had been that warrants were not effective outside of individual States. Federal officertj, however, now had jurisdiction over the whole of the country and were achieving excellent results. American opinion was friendly to the League of Nations ajid at present a sort of league of nations was being formed in America with the idea of co-operating with the League. The United States, however, would not accept any responsibility and insisted that it would not be tied up with European affairs. Americans were quite impatient of European squabbles and they believed sincerely that they had been dragged? into the Great War by a quibble. Dr. Scholefield had much more that was of interest to say concerning American! “f e , . and opinion and at the conclusion of his address he was accorded a hearty, vote of thanks by acclamation on the motion of Rotarian G W. Sellar.