The Editor, "Smad." V.U.C.

Dear Sir,

Acting on instructions from my Executive, I am forwarding herewith copies of correspondence arising out of the resolutions carried at the Special General Meeting of the Students' Association held on the 12th October last.

Dear Sir,

I am instructed to advise you that the following motions were carried at a Special General Meeting of the V.U.C. Students' Association, held on the 12th instant.

1. — "That this Special General Meeting of the V.U.C. Students" Association strongly opposes the action of those in authority in suppressing the article 'Untwisted Teaching' in 'Spike,' and asks for the immediate withdrawal of this prohibition."

2. — "That this Special General Meeting of the V.U.C. Students' Association views with concern the encroachment on student opinion, and points out that their past conduct has not justified this."

It was the opinion of the meeting that the 1933 "Spike" was in many respects the best that had been published for some years, and that the Editor had succeeded in his endeavour not only to present impartially both sides of the questions dealt with, but also to allow free expression to all forms of opinion within the College. It was further considered that if the College Council had not drawn attention to the two offending paragraphs it was unlikely that any exception would have been taken to them by other readers. It is against the attitude of the College Council in this matter particularly that the second motion is directed.

A copy of this letter is being forwarded to the Chairman of the College Council.

Dear Sir.

Your letter of 16th. October, addressed to the Chairman of the Professorial Board, in which you conveyed two resolutions passed at the Special General Meeting of the Association on the 12th. instant with regard to the suppression of the article "Untwisted Teaching" in the "Spike," was considered by the Professorial Board at its meeting yesterday.

I am directed to advise you that the board passed the following resolution and directed me to convey it to your Association:—

"That the Board directs the attention of the Students' Association to the fact that the article on "Untwisted Teaching" in the last "Spike" was not suppresesd by the Board; t tie "Spikt" was banned because it was held to contain matter deemed seditious.

The writer of the article "Untwisted Teaching" informed the Board that he regretted that the article appeared in a form that was interpreted as an attack on the members of the Law Staff, and this expression of regret was accepted by the Board."

Dear Sir,

Your letter of 16th October, conveying resolutions of a Special General Meeting of your Association held on 12th. instant, was considered at the meeting of the Victoria University College Council on Thursday evening.

I am directed to reply that with regard to the first resolution the Council endorses the answer already sent you by the Professorial Board.

I am further directed to say that both the tone and substance of the letter are. in the opinion of the Council, such as to show that supervision and control of the student activities are required.

(The Editor, "Smad.")

Dear Sir,

Up till now. we at Victoria have preserve some semblance of University training, for the legal page 9 course is the only purely vocational course; and even here there are cultural subjects. Jurisprudencc is essentially philosophic; Latin, philosophy and English will not extort exorbitant fees from cringing and suspicious clients. But with the institution of accountancy subjects the way is laid open for the vocation crammer pure, who does nothing to further the pursuit of learning but feeds on what can be given him to secure the necessary qualifications for a profession. The student, on the other hand, is not limited by fixed courses; but sets out to gain as much knowledge as possible, for its intrinsic interest. He will try to collect and build up new information and advance the total sum of human experience and knowledge. This does not decry the social value of the vocation crammer, but his sphere is not that of progress and advance through the growth of knowledge.

Now, obviously, these types must be fed by very different institutions, for the one we have the vocational training school, where courses will be fixed with rigidity and confined within their respective spheres of utility. For the other there Is the University, where there will be greater freedom of research, and where the main aim will be to educate a student for his own sake, and not for the direct social utility of definite services, such as professions.

Victoria College is indeed far below the ideal University, but we have preserved some semblance of a University, and New Zealand has reaped manifold benefits from that measure of University training we have maintained. We must foster this— the moving spirit of all progress—and not pander to the insipidities and dull formalities that mark the highest ambition of many professionals. We are a danger to the country if we lure students here under the pretence of being a University and then destroy their interest, crush their original thought and frustrate their intellectual pursuits by surrounding them with an environment indirectly opposed to originality and hostile to all the features of education. We have many institutions for vocational crammers who cannot or will not follow the higher line of advance; but the University should be preserved for students. The accountancy course has no redeeming features of non-utilitarian subjects. The extra crowds will burst already overtaxed utilities; the greater proportion of vocation crammers will mean the total disregard of real students in such matters as the drawing up of syllabuses and the buying of books for the library. To introduce such lectures is indeed a triumph for the business point of view, the industrialisation of education.

Surely some protest must be made against the utter degradation of one of the few ennobling and enlightening influences in our present mode of life. Once such brazenly utilitarian subjects as bookkeeping are admitted there is no logical reason why University facilities should not be extended to any activity of an economic nature, to sweeping, typing, digging. Special diplomas could be founded and exams, instituted. The ludicrous nature of such an undertaking is obvious. But lectures in accountancy subjects are just as ridiculous.

University with a Capital "U."

(The Editor, "Smad.")

Dear Sir,

I thank you forgiving me the opportunity of deriding "Studentissimus." Victoria is no place for that superlative individual. Our student of of students should be cloistered in a university where he may imbibe deep draughts of the true university spirit. Victoria is no such place.

I fear that there are very few universities if his definition be the criterion. There are, of course, many institutions of higher learning where professional, vocational, courses, such as engineering, medicine, architecture, law and even accountancy, are available, but where are the universities? Apparently they are in those places where knowledge is pursued for her own sake, where that sublime pastime is not degraded by the contact of Philistines who aspire to sell their knowledge for pence. Your arts student or your science student has no place there if he ever hopes to set himself to toil and claim a salary on the strength of his qualification.

This disposes of quite a number of people, including some Professors. There are very few people left. They—and they alone—are students of a university.

Sir, I would suggest that "Studentissimus" is a romantic dreamer. The glamorous tales of old world universities have set him to construct an ideal place where students, becomingly begowned, move with solemn dignity in a cathedral-like edifice discussing the more abstruse metaphysic—aloof from everything mundane.

Now, my university isn't so. It is an institution in Society. It is built in the world of fact, not in dreamland, and its function is to serve the community by leading it. In its economic life society sorely needs trained, intelligent leadess—men with breadth of view and depth of vision, and that impartial judgment which the university life can give.

This is why the New Zealand Society of Accountants is anxious that its members should not be content with passing the Accountancy Professional Examination only, but should proceed with the B.Com. degree course, and, indeed, go further than that, by taking their whole course at the university college.

It is a fetish with some people to exclude vocational courses and part-time students from the uni- page 10 versity colleges. Their university is a myth. They draw a ring round themselves and proceed to elevate themselves in their own esteem by saving to those outside it, "We only are students. You have no place with us." Precisely the same mental process which actuates the social climber in fostering and aggravating class distinctions in order to hoist herself up by the shoe-laces on a ladder of her own making.

I'll leave it at that.

—Portior.

Dear "Smad,"

The following Executive activities are reported for the information of your readers:—

(1) Acting on a recommendation from the Annual General Meeting of the Association last year, the Students' Building Committee has been reappointed and has resumed its work. The members of the Committee are Professor G. H. Gould (representing the Professorial Board), Messrs S. Eichelbaum (College Council), W. P. Rollings, G. F. Dixon, and W. Perry (representing past students), R. J. Nankervis (Students' Association), C. S. Plank, and S. H. Perry (present students).

(2) Mr. R. J. Larkin has been appointed Editor of "Smad."

(3) The Students' Association has been granted permission to continue their management of the Cafeteria during the coming session. The Cafeteria Committer has made some slight alterations in the Cafeteria, and has further improvements in view.

(4) Three original Capping Revues have been received and a fourth is expected shortly. A committee is being appointed to select Revues for production, and rehearsals will commence immediately after the Easter vacation.

(5) A new supply of College Ties has been ordered. These are being specially manufactured in England, and delivery is expected sometime this month. It is hoped that they will arrive in time for Tournament.

(6) A fairly large sum of money has been spent recently on repairs to the Gymnasium building. The work done has included replacement of broken windows, covering windows with heavy wire netting, improvements in the kitchen and repairs to roof, etc.

(7) A further grant of £20 has been allotted to the Cricket Club to cover certain unavoidable expenditure not allowed for in their original estimates.

(8) Miss Julia M. Dunn and Messrs R. J. Larkin and R. M. Barrer have been appointed delegates to the Annual Meeting of the N.U.S. at Christchurch at Easter.

(9) A grant of 12/6 is being made to the expenses of Tournament representatives travelling to Christchurch at Easter.

(10) Mr. C.N. Watson has been appointed Capping Book Editor for 1934. Students are urged to submit articles and sketches immediately to the Editor so that our Capping Book may be even better than those of recent years.