News From the Exec.

Public Relations Officer

The Exec has on the books a tentative motion—"that the Public Relations Officer and the Public Relations Committee be authorised to make public statements on behalf of the association on factual matters"—fair enough but here is the catch, or if you prefer it, the restraining part of the motion. On matters of opinion or of principle Mr. Dalgety cannot make a statement to the Press without first consulting either the president or one of the vice-presidents. The Exec. does not want the P.R.O. to place them in such a position by an ill-advised statement on a controversial matter as to get the Exec, out on a limb, not able to back the officer up. And I presume that the Exec. are looking after their own interests too, for if the P.R.O. does get in bad odour with opinion in the City it will reflect on the confidence the association has in the Exec. as the P.R.O. is responsible to the Exec. and not to the association directly. So if such a thing happens (and it easily could) the Exec., being the middlemen, might suffer. Mr. Dalgety at the Exec, meeting on the night of July 26 mentioned that he might make his article to be submitted to the Press one on the Socialist Club. He thought, quite rightly, that various activities by the Soc. Club have been considered in the City to have been the work of a rowdy few acting without the advantage of mature deliberation and that, as a result, the City as a whole has arrived at a wrong idea of the Socialist Club and of the College. He thought that an article on the Soc. Club will clear up some misapprehensions and bad feeling in the City, and so leave the way open for him to start on a freshened (as far as politics in College go) City. Certainly an article on the College politics would be an excellent thing, but to give it this undue prominence by putting politics in the limelight as the first article of (I hope) what is to be a series is unwise. It implies that we are really so worried that the City considers us as irrational hotheads running around with banners that we consider that the first thing we have to do is to excuse ourselves for past (highly controversial) sins. Let us start off by telling the people what we are and are doing, rather than what we were and have done. The logical thing to do is to give the City a general idea of the workings of the Students' Association and the Executive. There will appear soon in Salient an article by Mr. Horsley giving his views on the duties of the Exec. to the association, and its work. Something of this nature is far more preferable than an article on College politics which, however reasonable and rational in tone would convey to the general City reader a spirit of "we didn't mean to!" Mr. M. J. O'Brien gave perhaps the most reasoned course of action for the P.R.O. when he said that Soc. Club publicity problems should be left unsaid until such time as they arise.

The rest of the meeting was particular and the only question of any importance that arose was when the monetary grants to Cappicade contributors were approved. Who is S.A.B.? Whoever he is he is going to miss out on some money if he doesn't hurry up and see Paul Cotton about his real name in [unclear: clfe] you do not remember, S.A.B., you wrote an article entitled "Advice"—there's 10/- waiting for you, so hurry up.

Mr. Dalgety, talking to the motion mentioned elsewhere, above, had a bit of trouble in pronouncing "commitcommittee" and said—"I would not like to be in such a position when I and the Kitty are in such a position as not to be responsible. . . ."

T.H.H.