Part One: “Rationalist diatribe, with an occasional flash of sound argument”

Last year I visited Archives New Zealand in Wellington with Bronwyn Rideout, the current Chair of the NZ Skeptics. We were there because she had arranged for us to have access to a document that I’d heard about a while ago; a file that the Special Branch of the NZ Police, later the Security Service and then eventually the Security Intelligence Service, kept on the New Zealand Rationalists, tracking and documenting our actions from the 1930s through to the late 1960s. This file was declassified in 2014, and is available for viewing by appointment. We checked out the document and took it to a desk to systematically photograph each of its pages, while also skimming the documents looking for interesting text.

This and subsequent articles about the file are not going to examine the context of the documents in it, or the backgrounds of the people mentioned. This is simply a summary of some of the more interesting documents within the file. If anyone would like to write a more thorough article about the politics of the time, and the Rationalists’ position within that context, please contact the NZARH office at office@rationalists.nz and we can arrange online access.

NZSIS File 26/8/68: Rationalist Association N.Z.

The front page of the file details its opening (on the 29th of August 1934), as well as having a large CLOSED sticker and File No. (26/8/68), denoting that the file was closed on the 26th of August 1968. There is also a list of subsequent movements of the file between departments (although the destinations have been redacted, and only the dates remain), and a date of the file’s eventual release for public access – the 1st of October 2014. At the bottom of the file, a SECRET stamp has been crossed out, indicating that the information in the file is no longer considered secret.

The first page inside the file was a “File Release Statement”, which declared the declassification of its contents under the NZSIS Act 1969. Below this, under a Comments heading, there is a short summary of the Rationalist movement:

“The Rationalist Association, formed in the UK in 1885, was originally named the Rationalist Press Association and was dedicated to publishing secularist literature – thus the promotion of free speech by the NZ Rationalists. The Special Branch was interested in the Rationalists because of the participation of members of the N.Z. Communist Party (NZCP) in their activities (cf Police report 4.Aug.1941)”

Then under a further section headed “Of interest on this file”, the report lays out a brief list of what are considered some of the key documents inside:

1. Under the Police report of 4 March 1940 is a record of a speech by Mr Scott Bennett “After the War – What?” (presupposing the Nazis would be defeated).
2. Extract from report about Rationalist group meeting on 12 Feb 1941:Communist Dick Griffin stated that Dr Sutch had great influence over Rev. Scrimgear, who ‘had agreed to all the demands of the Party’
3. Extract from a report dated 3 Nov 1941 surmises that the CPNZ had complete control of the Rationalists.
4. Police report of 15 Oct 1946 on “Freedom of the Air” meeting organised by Rationalists, Auckland Trades Council & CPNZ.
5. Complete issue of intellectual journal “Polemic” for July – Aug 1961
6. Letter of Rationalist Assoc. Of 6 Dec 1961: side panel has list of illustrious UK members. Inside cover of issue of Jan-Feb 1969 lists objects.
7. NZ Rationalist newsletter of 12 Feb 1962 gives recent history.

Inside the file were 250 or so pages of reports, communications, newspaper clippings, AGM minutes and more, all related to the Rationalist Society and their connection to Communism. The file started with the most recent reports, but I will start by looking at the earliest documents and work my way forwards from 1934.

Wellington, 1934

In the very first report on the Rationalists, from the 29th of August 1934, we can see that one of the major concerns of the New Zealand Police was not with our links to communism, but a lack of availability of support staff who could write in shorthand.

Police-station: Detective Office, Auckland

Date: 29th August, 1934
Report of: Detective E.A. Stevenson, No: 2627
relative to: Free Speech meeting to be held at the Strand Theatre on Sunday Night, the 2/9/34

I respectfully report that on the 22nd inst. I reported that a Free Speech meeting, allegedly under the auspices of the Rationalists’ Assn. was to be held at the Strand Theatre on the night of the 26th inst.

I was instructed by the Sub Inspector, Detective Branch to obtain the services of a shorthand reporter to report the speeches.. This instruction was later countermanded.
  
This meeting was postponed but it will be held in the Strand Theatre on Sunday night, the 2/9/34.
  
I respectfully ask if it is desired that shorthand notes of the speeches be secured..
  
The Chairman of the meeting will be Professor Belshaw and the speakers Mr T.B. Slipper and Professor Sewell.
  
The “Herald” (and possibly the “Star”) reporters will be almost certain to be covering the meeting for the papers.
  
This report is followed by newspaper clippings from the New Zealand Herald of articles written about the meeting, and also a two page typed report by Detective T.W. Allsopp. The report begins:
  
I beg to report that in company with Constable McEachern I attended the above meeting, which commenced at 7-30pm and concluded at 9-30pm.

What follows in the report is a description of several concerns the speakers at the Rationalist meeting had with New Zealand’s laws, including the “Right to Strike”, the Child Welfare Act and free speech. The reason for the free speech concerns at the time appeared to be topical, and revolved around custodial sentences given to participants in a recent Beresford Street meeting/protest. At the end of the Rationalist meeting discussing those who had been found guilty, a collection was taken to help those who were still in prison. The newspaper articles included in the file don’t really expand on the reasons for the original protest, as there seems to be an unspoken assumption that people would already know what it was about. However the report does briefly mention communism:

[Professor Sewell’s] reference to the hope that some form of Soviet system would be established in New Zealand was warmly applauded.

Auckland, 1940

Next up in the file is a copy of the “Objects and Rules” of the Wellington Rationalist Association, which makes for interesting reading. Back in 1940, the Society’s aims were:

1. To print, publish and disseminate literature in accordance with its principles
2. To conduct lectures and debates on Rationalism
3. To establish a social club to promote the social intercourse and recreation of members, also to arrange entertainments, more particularly on Sundays at the discretion of the Executive Council.
4. To establish a publicity committee to deal with correspondence and arrange publicity in the Press.
5. To oppose the introduction of any form of religion or religious exercises in State Schools or other institutions supported by the State and to oppose State support of any educational institution at which religious instruction is given in any form.
6. To promote a system of education which will imply a recognition of:-
   1. The claims of historical and scientific truth.
   2. The claims of human reason and freedom of thought.
   3. Moral and civic ideals.
7. To generally uphold principles of secularism, and in particular the abrogation of all laws interfering with the free use of Sunday for the purpose of culture and recreation, and the opening on Sunday of public parks for games and recreation.
8. To secure the abolition of the blasphemy laws.
9. To secure the rating and taxation of Church property on an equal basis with secular property.
10. To foster the formation of District Branches throughout New Zealand and the assistance of such branches in their work by means of lecturers, literature and such other aids as can be arranged.
11. To do all such lawful things as are incidental or conducive to the attainment of the above objects or any or either of them.

This document was obtained by the Police at a “public meeting of the Wellington Rationalist Association, held in the Swords Club Room, Waring Taylor Street, on the evening of the 3-3-40”, and filed along with a report written by Detective T. W. Allsopp – 6 years after the first report on the Auckland Rationalists. Presumably there were no other reports in the interim, as the cover document for the file claims that Separation Sheets are used wherever documents that remain classified, either local or foreign-source, have been “removed to a Restricted Access parallel file” that is kept in the SIS Archives, and there were no separation sheets between the 1934 and 1940 reports.

The 1940 report concludes that the meeting “was conducted in a most orderly manner, with no interjections whatever”. Additionally, a subsequent note added to this report states “There is nothing subversive in this, Mr McLean attended and took notes. He is at present busy with the Appeal Board and will not transcribe them unless requested”.

Christchurch, 1940

Next up in the file is a report from Detective R. H. Watt, reporting on a “Meeting held by N. Z. Rationalist Association, Liberty Theatre, on 12-5-40” in Christchurch. This is the “After the War – What?” address mentioned in the “of interest” list, and a lengthy transcription of the evening’s speech is included. The report mentions that the topic for the evening was the growth of “Hitlerism” and the potential rise around the world of Fascism, followed by the showing of two films – “Swordfishing in New Zealand”, and “The Temporary Widow”. Again, there were no concerns raised by the detective: “I did not consider that there was anything seditious in the address”.

Wellington, 1941

Come 1941 and there are more concerns about communism infecting the Rationalists in Wellington. Firstly in reports on a couple of meetings on the 16th and 23rd of February:

“Reports were heard from Fraction leaders for the Rationalists Association and the Watersiders Debating Club and the Modern Bookshop… As the Party has the majority on the Selection Committee the result of the election seems a foregone conclusion, and then the Part will have pretty well complete control of the Bookship, with its library of over 300 books and its projected expansion into the publishing business”

“Jackson Thomas will be in charge of Agitation and Propaganda and Chapman Taylor is to be in charge of the Fractions i.e. the activities in the Co-operative Bookshop, the Rationalists and the Watersiders Debating Club. L.H. Johns will be the delegate of the group to the next higher body. The Bureau will consist of Hall, Jackson Thomas and Chapman Taylor. Griffin may be added to the Bureau later.”

A further note claims:

“The [Communist] Party seems to have complete control of the Rationalists through Chapman-Taylor, Winchester, Griffin, Jackson-Thomas and Mitchell Major.”

Then there are several reports of the Rationalists’ public meetings in Wellington in 1942, with each report listing the known Communist Party members who were present, and the level of USSR sentiment voiced at the meetings. Some of the talk titles look to be as relevant today as they were back then for Rationalists, although others seemed potentially a little more political than we would be happy with today:

• Education and Birth Control
• Education and Social Realities
• Christianity as a Part of the Law of the Land
• The Influence of the Church on the History of Europe during the Last Century
• Democracy and Adult Education
• The Problem of the Borderlines of Life
• Power and Pelf – The Problem of Incentive in Post-War Reconstruction
• The Life of Nicolai Lenin
• Morale of the Red Army
• Work and Play in the Soviet Union

The reports on these meetings contained many mentions of the Rationalists sympathising with communist ideas:

“Combs spoke on the Educational system of today, saying that the present system was obsolete and most inadequate; in fact all learning, to-day, was imposed upon the pupils, both child and adult, alike, whereas on the Marx and Engels lines, as in the USSR, the learning is absorbed most interestedly by pupils both young and old. He condemned the Bible in schools and the teaching of French, saying that the teaching of an international language, or perhaps esperanto, would be much more useful and beneficial.”

“Two old acquaintances, and incidently Communist Party members, were present; these being a man named Hogan and W.G. Harding who was openly wearing his C.P. badge.”

“Those mentioned above were the only C.P. members present and this may be due to the fact that the Communist Party, themselves, held a public meeting, also, this evening in the Trades Hall”

“Griffin concluded his remarks by advising the audience to read and study Karl Marx”

“The [Communist] Party seems to have complete control of the Rationalists”

“There was a young man named Nathan, who was in military uniform, present in the audience and during discussion he spoke and said we only had to look to the USSR for any lessons in reconstruction and political education and that the results of the action by the Red Army during the past few weeks proved that we could well learn from them and follow the lead of the soviets”

“he pointed out the difference between conditions in the USSR and N.Z., where everything was under the Capitalist system”

All of this and more appears to have been sent to the Prime Minister, accompanied by a note that has a distinct cloak and dagger feeling to it:

COMMUNIST PARTY, WELLINGTON – Activities of.

The Right Hon. Prime Minister, WELLINGTON.

= Forwarded herewith for your information is a copy of a report received from a secret source relating to the activities of the Communist Party at Wellington.

(Sgd.) D. J. CUMMINGS

Commissioner of Police.

19.2.42

Auckland, 1945

Meanwhile in Auckland in 1945 there was a report of anti-capitalist and anti-religious messages at a Secular Society meeting. It is interesting to note that the reason given in the report for the formation of this new Secularist group is that its members, previously members of the Rationalists, were frustrated by the Rationalists’ rule about being apolitical:

“I gather from some inquiries that I have made that the Secular (or Secularist) Society is an organisation that is just in process of formation, much along the same lines as the Rationalist Association and that its prime movers are a few disgruntled members of the latter movement who have formed a breakaway group because the articles of the Rationalists do not permit of political interest or action.”

The report had some lively sections:

“Skelton spoke… Attack on the capitalist system and its supporters – those who wax and grow fat on it.. If there is any shooting to be done those are the men who should be shot first (applause)”

“Skelton then launched out in sarcastic scorn of organised religion along orthodox Rationalist lines”

“Skelton condemned war as the inevitable product of the capitalist system”

“Mrs Anne Lapthorne… secretary of the Rationalist Association… said that it was a waste of time broadcasting religious services, that the time could be used to much better advantage towards child education on sex and other matters than parsonical dronings over the air”

Despite these notes there were no concerns raised in Detective-Sergeant E.A. Stevenson’s snark-filled report summary:

“No subversive statements were made at the meeting. No literature was distributed or was on sale. The main address was a typical Hall Skelton – Rationalist diatribe, with an occasional flash of sound argument but mostly cheap and superficial emotional play of words, obviously very acceptable to most of the audience.”

There was however concern in the report about a lack of shorthand proficient staff, a problem that appears to have spanned the decades within the New Zealand Police:

“I had previously been instructed to take with me either T/Const. Weavers or T/Const. Sim, W.D. for the purpose of taking shorthand notes, but I was unable to locate either of the constables despite efforts on Saturday night and during my day off on Sunday. I understand that Const. Weavers cannot take shorthand and that Const. Sim is not sufficiently practiced to take down a lengthy speech at a public meeting”

And this concern was echoed in the Superintendent of Police’s notes:

“I am very disturbed about the first paragraph of the report of Detective Sergeant Stevenson of the 19th March with reference to the apparent blundering which took place concerning the taking of the shorthand notes at this meeting… I trust that there is not a similar occurrence in future, especially in connection with a file that has to go to the Right Hon. Prime Minister.”

What followed this was a memo from the Superintendent that attempted to remedy the situation, by approving the use of Mr J.P.F. Cahill (who had been identified as a skilled shorthand transcriber), while also suggesting that “There may be instances, however, when a member of the Women Police who is a shorthand writer could be of assistance in taking shorthand notes sufficient for police purposes”, and then finishing by going on a witch hunt, saying “I would like to know who was responsible for the apparent blundering which took place concerning the taking for shorthand notes at the meeting in question”.

The response, from Detective Sergeant Stevenson, points out that a) Mr Cahill hadn’t been called upon over the preceding two years, because it had not been anticipated that anything said at Rationalist meetings might result in court proceedings, and b) T/Const Sim was the only member of the Women Police capable of taking shorthand notes, and her proficiency was limited.

This entire exchange about the lack of shorthand capable staff is revealing – showing that, on the one hand, the Rationalists were not seen to be enough of a concern that they might be taken to court, while on the other hand revealing that these reports into the Rationalists were serious enough to once again be presented to the Prime Minister.

Auckland, 1946

Fast forward to 1946 and the Auckland Rationalists, along with the Unitarian Church, Family Planning, the Auckland Trades Council, Social Credit, the Society for Closer Relations with Russia and the Communist Party, held a public meeting at the Town Hall Concert Chamber titled “Freedom of the Air!”, where arguments were made that the granting of broadcast rights only to certain privileged groups, such as the religious community, was undemocratic, and that the government needed to make good on its promise of a “free and open radio”.

The Auckland Detective Office penned a report of this event, written up by Detective Sergeant R. Jones (No. 3272). Jones reported that the Rationalists had convened the meeting, and that concerns were raised that the government’s policy restricting access to radio slots was aimed to avoid controversial topics that might stimulate thought. Francis Price, speaking on behalf of the Rationalists, stretched beyond what could be considered rational by claiming that the policy would “result in our minds being clogged” with the consequence that “we would become a race of morons”.

The speech most critical of religion came not from the Rationalists, but from John Machie of the Engineers’ Union, speaking on behalf of the Auckland Trades Council. He said that:

“Religious propaganda was allowed to go unanswered. Religion was a most controversial subject. It was dished up every day of the week and all day on Sunday for good measure. The majority of the people did not actively support the churches if the attendances at the churches were any criterion and the speaker considered that it would be in order if some of the radio time granted to the churches was given to other organisations.”

Mr Alfred Preston-Boorman, who said that he was speaking on behalf of not just the NZ Social and Health Reform Movement, but also the Anti-Vivisection League, the NZ Housewives Association, Crusade for Social Justice, the Old Age Pensioners’ Association, and the British Israel Association, said that there wouldn’t have been a Second World War if Germany had had “freedom of the radio”.

The last speaker of the evening was Mr Stephenson Craig, secretary of the Rationalists, who summed up the meeting by saying that the resolutions from the Auckland meeting would be “sent to Wellington” (I’m not sure if this means the Wellington Rationalists, or the government), and that people should go home and talk to others about the issue, so that the “movement for freedom of the air would spread through the country” and be a step “for greater freedom of the people of New Zealand”.

Detective Jones closed his report by stating that, although there were an estimated 300 attendees, only two Communists were spotted in the crowd – George Maitland, a member of the Dunedin Communist Party, and Joseph Alach, a member of the Croatian Cultural and Benevolent Society.

In the next issue of our Journal I hope to continue poring over the NZSIS file, taking us into the 1950s and early 60s, where things start to get more intriguing – including some fun tid-bits of information about the purchase and opening of Rationalist House.