Free Discussions Club

The final meeting for 1922 was held in the midst of the Near East Crisis, and the subject under discussion was, "My country, right or wrong." The leaders were Mr. W. Nash and the Rev. Dr. Gibb. The number of students present must constitute a record in the annals of the Club. Mr. Nash opened the subject, and in a very able address pointed out the absurdities to which adherence to the maxim necessarily led. Unfortunately, the speaker, although a visitor to the College, was subjected to considerable interruption by a number of students whose better judgment, it is charitable to assume, "had been superseded by a strange amalgam of race feeling, animal pugnacity, and sporting zest dignified by the name of patriotism." Dr. Gibb urged University students, above all others, to keep themselves informed on international questions; he was amazed to find that the myth of "one-guilty-nation" in regard to the late war, though utterly discredited by intelligent and honest men of every nation, still seemed to find acceptance by a few students.

At the opening meeting for 1923, after the election of officers, Professor Hunter opened a discussion on "Freedom of Thought." He showed that, while the principle was not objected to in the abstract, it was by no means respected in practice. It was a mistake to regard as already won the battle for freedon of thought; it was true that it was generally conceded in the field of religion, but religion was no longer the dominant interest in the community. At the present time the economic issues were vital, and in these we were not more free than was religious thought in the Middle Ages. Freedom of thought and its expression, he urged, was the best guarantee not only of progress, but of order also; it was attempted suppression of that freedom that led to violence. An interesting discussion followed Professor Hunter's introduction of the subject.

The regular night for the meetings of the Club has this year been changed to Thursday.