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Story: Manners and social behaviour

Don't spit!

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Don't spit!

In the 1940s the Health Department ran a campaign against spitting in the streets and produced this poster. One of the concerns was that tuberculosis might be spread by spitting. In addition, it was seen as an offence against good manners, and that view prevails in the 2000s.

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Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: AAFB W2555 24223 Box 33 33b A22

Permission of Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga must be obtained before any re-use of this material.

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How to cite this page

Nancy Swarbrick, Manners and social behaviour – A guide to modern New Zealand manners, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/ephemera/39860/dont-spit (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Nancy Swarbrick, published 3 December 2012.