To the Editor of the "NortH-Cnina Dairy News"
Sin—Your leaderette this morning about the action of the Rotary Convention at San Francisco is the most refreshing that I have read in a long while, You consider that Rotary International should have been unhesitating in their condemnation of war as barbarous and that their failure in this respect for fear of upsetting the Japanese members is evidence of being mealie—(you probably mean mealy) mouthed.
Then what is your opinion of the powers that be in Shanghai who permit (without any protest that we know of) the Japanese to override the traffic rules and regulations of this Settlement while our neighbours to the south take a firm stand? What about a little firm-handed action on the part of the Council and the Consuls? A barrier at the foot of the Garden Bridge, for instance, with international representatives denying passage to any and every vehicle not complying with. Settlement regulations, What is being done about it? As far as the mam in the street can see, nothing. We are continually exposed to dreadful risks from untraceable hell drivers. Are we in Shanghai also afraid of embarrassing the Japanese But to revert to the Rotary Convention, One of the four main objects of Rotary is worded as follows:
The advancement of international understanding, goodwill and peace through a world fellowship of busi-hess and professional men united in the ideal of service.
This being as it is, any further resolution about the barbarity of war is really not needed, Rotary Inter-notional can only hope to achieve something in the promotion of world peace by continuing to be international, Jeopardizing the Japanese membership would not help in this Object. The movement has already sufferred a severe blow by the summary abolition of all clubs in Germany and Austria, but this was due to a government order. Deliberate antagonization of one group, the Japanese, or any other, could only result in further reducing the strength of the movement and its international aspect, The Shanghai Rotary Club has retained its Japanese members, who attend meetings and work with their fellow members of all nationalities.
This in itself is a great deal in times like this, I personally know one Rotarian, he is a very forthright individual and never hesitated to express his opitions in public. They were frequently anti-war and betimes anti-Japan He left Shanghai on furlough but will not return, he is not mealy-mouthed enough.
Let us condemn the weak-kneed people, but still let us be practical. There were once some mice who disapproved of a cat, but it was difficult to find a mouse who would take the risk of hanging a bell om pussy's neck, As long as we continue to live in Shanghai in the position of the mice perhaps we should be lenient in our critici:
Rotary Convention not to say
SMC.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.