.jpg)
Salient. The Newspaper of Victoria University College. Vol. 20, No. 4. May 3, 1956
Move to abolish Drinking Horn
Move to abolish Drinking Horn
First official move to ban the Drinking Horn contest held in conjunction with New Zealand University tournaments was checked temporarily by a procedural motion at a meeting of the Resident Executive of NZUSA on April 23.
The meeting discussed at length a motion of NZUSA vice-president, Mr. T. O. Fitzgibbon that the Resident Executive recommend to the August council meeting of NZUSA that the Drinking Horn be abolished.
On the motion of Mr. B. V. Galvin (VUC), however, it was not voted on, and the matter will be referred to college executives for their consideration before further action is taken.
Mr. Fitzgibbon supported his motion by pointing out that recent publicity given in the commercial press to the Drinking Horn had caused NZUSA and the University itself a measure of public disfavour.
It was also mentioned that at many of these contests a large number of students were present illegally, i.e., they were under 21 and therefore not allowed on licensed premises. The national student body should in no way support a function which caused students to break the law.
The motion was seconded by Mr. K. B. O'Brien (CAC), and a number of those present expressed their disapproval of the continuance of the contest. It was, however, considered desirable that colleges should be able to express their opinions before a definite move towards banning the Drinking Horn was made.
The motion was therefore not put. Mr. Galvin then moved that the colleges be asked for their views on continuance of the contest "with particular reference to recent publicity."
The editorial in the last issue of Salient condemning the manner in which the contest is conducted was substantially quoted in the "Evening Post" of Saturday, April 14. Similar editorials to the one in Salient were published in Canta the CUC paper, and Critic (OU).
Resident Executive also discussed the behaviour of the person or persons responsible for damage to the door of the Horticultural Hall, Lower Hull, which resulted in a tournament dance there being stopped only a few minutes after it had commenced on Easter Monday night.
It is now believed known who caused the damage, and the Executive of VUCSA recently decided to ask the Otago University Students' Association to pay compensation on behalf of one or more of its members in connection with the matter.
Resident Executive did not pass any motion concerning the Horticultural Hall incident, but expressed the opinion that disciplinary action should be taken against persons responsible for misbehaviour at tournaments.
Students may be debarred from tournament participation for any length of time or even permanently on grounds of misbehaviour, and a number of students from another college were so debarred only a few years ago.
[Resident Executive is a committee which administers the affairs of NZ USA betwen council meetings of the association held at Easter and Winter tournaments. It comprises officers of NZUSA and a representative of each college students' association living in Wellington.
It can forward remits to council meetings and its members have power of speech at those meetings but have no vote. Within Resident Executive, major college representatives have two votes each and Agricultural college representatives have one each. VUC representative is Mr. B. V. Galvin, immediate past president of VUCSA.]