The Debating Society

The third meeting, on Thursday, 14th November, at 12-30, consisted of an illustrated talk by J. G. Slater, with musical illustrations, on "The piano concerto—an introduction". Illustrations were taken from Beethoven's "Emperor Concerto".

An open meeting was held on Saturday, 23rd November, at 6-30, in the Gym. This took the form of a concert given by Mr. Waine (piano) with Mr. Jorysz (violin) and Mrs. Anderson ('cello). Their programme ended with Schubert's famous piano trio in B flat. The programme was very enjoyable, although the acoustics of the Gym. left much to be desired.

The final meeting of the term, the fifth, on 28th November, was the "Secretary's day" when Jenkinson introduced and played on records Rachmaninoff's 1st Piano Concerto in F sharp minor. This was a sequel to the third meeting.

Three Committee meetings were held during the term. It has been noticed that the attendance at the closed meetings of over 30 a time has far exceeded the average attendances in previous years. We look forward hopefully to the future.

We are indebted to Mrs. Rochfort-Hyde for the generous gift of the following bound volumes of pianoforte music which have been added to the Music Library :-

Chopin: 24 Etudes.

Nocturnes.

Valses.

Ballades.

Impromptus et Fantaisies.

Rondos et Scherzos.

Preludes. Debussy:

Preludes. and miscellaneous piano pieces by Schumann and Macdowell.

T.M.J.

This has been our first term under the Chairmanship of Mr. Hart, Mr. Le Tocq having retired at the end of the last season.

Unfortunately it cannot be said that debating got off to a bright start; as there were few healthy speakers for the first meeting on 5th October. The motion before an open house, at this meeting, was "This House believes there is a place for racial segregation". This was proposed by Mr. L. C. Le Tocq, who considered that political segregation was necessary, as the blacks have no sentiments for politics. Opposing was Mr. P. L. Bellwood, who believed the black to be a perfectly normal person that ought to be given a chance to 34

prove himself. The seconders were Mr. F. C. Beaumont and Mr. D. J. Cook respectively. The motion was lost by 35 votes to 39, with 2 abstentions.

The following three meetings also found themselves afflicted, this time by the play. However, we managed to find sufficient people willing to be in two places at once.

The second meeting was held on 26th October in the Lecture Theatre. The motion, "This House deplores colonialism", was proposed by Mr. D. B. Irvin and opposed by Mr. K. H. Rhodes. The former considered that it tried to impinge on native ways and was bad; the latter considered that it stood for freedom and was good. The principals were seconded by Mr. S. B. Robinson and Mr. D. L. Brown. The motion was defeated by 11 votes to 29, with 10 abstentions.

The third meeting was held on 1st November when Mr. T. D. J. Layfield rose to propose "This House considers that the Public School is not an essential part of the national educational system". He did not approve of the extravagance in the Public School education, whereas Mr. P. A. Crossley considered that Public Schools had stood the test of time and were still essential. Seconders were Mr. H. R. L. Purse (proposition) and Mr. N. R. Barton (opposition). Not believing in self-annihilation the House returned the figures of 16 for and 26 against, with 2 abstentions.

The fourth and last meeting of the term was held on 30th November. At this meeting Mr. A. H. Crowther proposed "This House considers that advertising has deteriorated to such an extent that it ought to be abolished". He, Mr. Crowther said, stood for people who desired to retain their free will. Mr. R. L. Evans, opposing, tried to persuade the House that advertising was both an art and a necessity. Mr. D. N. L. Beresford seconded the proposition and Mr. C. J. Partridge the opposition. The House was unconvinced by the proposition's case, to whom it allotted no votes. The House thus divided 31 votes against with 12 abstentions. Mr. D. B. Irvin was in the Chair.

Twenty-eight members have been elected for this season, many of which are promising speakers. It is interesting to note that of 14 platform speeches from the Society members, six were maiden.

During the term a meeting for non-members, which hides under the name of the Junior Debating Society, was held. These meetings enable young persons to gain the experience of speaking, without facing an audience of critical, experienced speakers. They seem to be successful and are invaluable to the main Society.