FAREWELL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1065, 2 March 1911, Page 6

FAREWELL.

THE PREMIER AND DR.. FINDLAY , HONOURED. DINNER AT TOWN HALL. SPEECHES BY GOVERNOR AND ; CHIEF JUSTICE. About HO gentlemen sat down to tho •' tables ia the Municipal Concert Chamber last' night to participate in a farewell ■ banquet to the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) and the Attorney-General (the Hon. Dr. : Tindlay), who aro about to leave for England in order to represent New Zea]and at the Coronation and Imperial Conference. The" Chief Justice (Sir Robert. Stout) presided, and his Excellency the.'Governor (Lord, Islington) was present. Members of the-Ministry present, •in addition to the. two guests, of the evening, were the Hons. J. Carroll, J. A. Millar, G. Fowlds, T. Mackenzie, E. •M'Kenzic, D. Buddo, and' A. T. Ngata. Others sealed on either'side of the chairman werof General Godley, .Messrs. A. L. Herdman and W. Fraser, M.IVs,. R. Fletcher (chairman :of the ■ "Wellington ' Harbour Board), Yung-Liang Hwang (Chinese Consul), D. J. Nathan, J. • D. Dunlop, A. E. Pearce, J. B. Harcourt, an(l. Martin Kennedy. There were also present the Hons. C. if. Luke, C. H. Jlills, W. C. F. Carncross, I\. A. Loughnan, C. • Louisson, and Dr. Collins, M.L.GVs, Sir "William Steward, Messrs. ,T. P. I.uko aud T. Y. Seddon, M.IVs, and a 'number of prominent Wellington citizens, and gentlemen from the country districts and other parts of the Dominion,; civil servants, etc. Apologies for absence were received from the Leader of the Opposition"' (Mr;. W. F. Massey, M.P.), Mr. Justice Cooper, Mr. Justice Chapman, Mr. Justice Sim, the Hon. C. ■J. Johnston, M.LX'., and'many others. HIS EXCELLENCY. In proposing , the > tpast of His Excel\nicy the Governor, Sir Robert Stout said :hat ail would'-recognise that in Lord "Islington they had a Governor, who was caking a gr&it interest in the welfare of the Dominion, and advancing the interjsts.of tho Empire in our. midst. (Applause.) He was also acting, as. all our Governors had acted, impartially, and • .without looking- : at the political differ>nees of tho people. (Hear, hear.) He ■extended hearty-good wishes to his Excellency, and also to Lady Islington. (Loud •applause.) . The toast was enthusiastically honoured. , In risiiig to reply, Lord Islingtor received an ovation. He voiced his cordial thanks for the kindly manner in which the chairman had alluded to Lady Islington and himself, -and for tho feeling way in which this very representative 'gathering had received the toast. : (Loud applause.) .He expressed his .pleasure at the invitation to be present, and tho .opportunity,-it gave , for associating •' liimself '.with' the object for which the : gathering /was organised—(applause)—both .'on-pefsonal grounds and as the representative;, of the King. He-enlarged on tho significance of tho mission of their two ■ guests. They, were -to be tho convcyers to their Majesties at their coronation of ' the good wishes, allegiance, and loyalty of .the Dominion. His Excellency also dwelt ,oii the importance of tho Imperial Conference, emphasising in clever and scholarly...phrases the chief and under- . lying aspects of its'.work'".and objects • in welding together tho Imperial life of the Empire. He also touched upon tho necessity. of having information of what was taking place in tho different parts of the Empire .(applause);. he meant np-to-date and ' accurate 'information of things of interest and benefit to all. (Applause.) . It was also necessary for our national good to'- 1 have knowledge of what was taking place, outside ■ the Empire—of qnes- . tions that might have effect upon the Emi pire as' a whole or its parts. (Loud applause.) Li conclusion, he again expressed his pleasure at being able to associate himself .with . tho .gathering, and in wishnig the guests and Lady Ward and Mrs i lndlay boil voyage and. a happy return. (Loud applause.)

CHIEF: JUSTICE ON FEDERATION, P%U ch i in T\, iu proposing the toast ot , ilic- Guests, said he regarded the occasion as an historic one. He thought it was a good omen that' the two' messengers whom we wero sending Home were both born under, tho Southern Cross. (Hearrhear.) They wero saying" good-bve' to these tuo .messengers without any. touch of political partisanship. In 1887 when the first invitation to an Imperial-' Conference.was received, lie'(the speaker)! was . Premier, and lie urged that tho : i i Jppo f t, T Ol1 ' as well'as the Premier, should go'to Louclon for tho oc-* casion,. feir Harry Atkinson, who then' occupied that position, was not averse to going, but did not do so because, unfortunately, some of his friends obiccted. He (jhe speaker) was sWry. that ne was not able., to couple with the name of SirJoseph. Ward on this occasion the name nf r?- e V*' .PPEosition. Botli' of our . political parties should be represented, at the Conference, so lhat those at Home won d know that they were ' .bearing the voice not of a nartv! but ofli A ew:'Zealand. (Hear, hear.) Our messengers were, however, going with the goodwill of the Opposition. What was necessary to keep 'the Empire together was the principle pf federalism, which was not yet sufficiently understood. I Timtary system could not be lastin" England had. not yet risen to the true understanding .o'f.fthe federal idea, 'any 1»?? e 'nr understood it" in 18/0, or Australia to-day. Not only ,frcedom must bo diffused, but government also, otherwise, freedom would not be lasting. He honed, however, that no hard, and last'lines would be laid down and ■no strict-legal bonds of connection created, but tho federal system should 'be allowed; to grow. The use of Imperial Conferences was to bring the members of the ■ family together po that they would'lovo'•and trust tabh other, and bo ready, to stand together i time of..danger.. ..New..Zealanders wjufd stand % tho Empire in time of danger just as the people at Home would. He believed, however, that whatever might occur in Europe, , a foreign foe would never be allowed to set foot on the sacred soil of Australasia. If we came to the ■ resource we might endeavour to fr?, Ure ( 10 recognition of a Jfonroo Doctrine for the Pacific. We should look Eastwards to our brothers across the »ea and ask them to join in with us. Our steamer connections with America should be maintained to show that, though un' dei diffeient flags, wo wore one in spirit and would not allow the troubles of JMirope to interfere with our libertiesHe believed, however, that the Old Country was not by any means played out, bur would loiitj continue to hreed a rice that would maintain and add to her anr.K'nt glories. In conclusion, Sir Kob«rt Stout said that the people of Now Zealand ,had every confidence that Sir Joseph. Ward and Dr. Findlay would worthily represent the Dominion and'uphold its credit. '(Applause.)

SPEECH BY MR. A. L. HERDMAN. Mr. A. L. Herdman, . M.P., said he gladly rose to support the toast. (Applause.) Before doing so he wished, on behalf of . the Hon. Charles Johnston, to apologise for his absence. Mr. Johnston would have liked to be present, but could "not owing to circumstances over which he had 110 control. Mr. Herdman said that lie saw in the gathering business men, professional men, and 111011 who held different opinions 011 .matters of a public character; and yet they had all assembled together. The gathering, to his mind, illustrated , most forcibly the fact that when .the immediate matter in hand was tho loyalty and devotion of . the country they thought aliko and acted alike. (Applause.) Even the implac-ible views of the legislators in this country had for the time declared a truce, and ihe sword of-the wearer was peaceful in lis scabbard, and tho lance lay lightly upon the wall. Wo were sending from this country as our ambassadors to carry our loyalty and duty to our now King Sir Joseph Ward and Dr. Findlay. The three things of which the Prime Minister could assure himself wore: (1) that every man and woman in the Dominion was agreed that on an occasion of this kind this dependency should ho represented (2), that the one gentleman " \ tho community .who should represent

them was the ■ King's first Minister in tho country; and (3) that ho had behind him the moral support and good wishes of all 111 lii's mission. '"(Applaiise.) Rcfcrenco had been made by (lie Chief Justice to.Mi.. Massey's absence that evening. He would like to assure the Prime Minister- that 110 man w<mli"( liavo been more pleased, had circumstances permitted, tp have been present—and. 110 doubt, to-havo accompanied Sir -Joseph-Ward to the Old Country' (Applause'.) Speakinsr as one who did not think in harmony politically with the Premier, ho wouid like to. say that lie, personally; wished him well on tho great mission ho was undertaking. (Applause.) As our ambassador, hp would realise the great responsibility which rested upon his shoulders, and lie knew from his experience of him that he would do his level best to perform honestly. _and. sincerely tiie. great duties of , V! ISI A' (Applause.) There c-oulil be 110 doubt that the -Coronation of the King struck every loyal subject of tho Sovereign very forcibly. It meant the opening of a new chapter iiv the history of the nation. And when one realised its importance, one thought of the past, present, and future. Of the past -we might well be proud of our career as a nation. (Applause.) ■ Britain had been a civilising factor throughout the world anil had acquired wealth and power; Britons had also spread to every portion of tho earth; wo had turned wildernesses to gardens, and made/rough- places plain, M '' len ' vf,r . tliey had gone they liad taken the traditions of tho race and established the national character. (Applause.) We hart the best system of administering justice the world had ever seen—(applause)—and when we cast our thoughts over the past we might well say: Ood save the King; long may lie reign over us." (Applause.) As to the future: ho had heard with great interest the remarks of the Chief Justice regarding federation. At present he believed that |ve out here couid best serve the Empire by making ourselves as -perfect as possibleand attending, to -our own business. (Hear,j hear.) Wo": might as well look facts m the face, ne believed Great Britain had attained her greatest preeminence about 10 years ago. Tliero was no doubt we had gone back and other -nations forward, but we need fear nothing ■so long as our national character remained as it had been in the past—so long as wo .were.a nation and maintained our standard of honour. (Applause.) Ihe; outstanding characteristics ef tho nation were indomitable courage, enormous industry, a sense of justico and honour. So. long as these characteristics leniainod with us we need not fear about the future.- (Applause.) 111 conclusion, he gave cordial good wishes to - their guests. (Applause.) Ihe toast was an extreinelv ponular one, and was followed with 'tho usual musical honours. . .

SIR JOSEPH WARD. The Prime Minister was applauded for somo minutes. He, referred to the representative character of the gathering, and thanked the speakers for their kindly remarks. He realised the gathering was free from any party feeling; the Governor s presence betokened tint. Referring to-Imperial matters and the Conference, he said,there' must' 116' no proposals /"i compulsion--was suggested. (Applause.) They must, remain a number of-free, nations. Love, and not chains, must bind them together. Certain links of procedure must lie decided on. at the Conference before it could- work effectively. One of the troubles in the past was; that the resolutions remained pigeonholed; no action had been taken afterwards. Therefore, definite organisation was required. As for federation of the. Empire, no system would be accepted that invaded the province of local autonomy. We were bound to protect-our local selfgovernment from the paralysing control ■of Imperial federation. Of ! the subjects at the coming Conference,'.to placed in chiefest importance the : (ui.pstion of defence—(applause)—and in - tills rcsnoct union )vas strength.' (Applause.) What had been the moral effect-on other , nations of the offer of our Dreadnought? It' had shown the outside world that Englnntl did not stand alone. The time had been right for striking home, this truth— for showingthat the portions, of the Empire,.were. willing, to .dp their- part. He; would urge-at the liijijer'jal Defence Conference that the effectiveness of local navies was not to be compared with that of one. powerful, united "British Navy, controlled by the Admiralty in time of peace, and ready to be put into action in time of war. Such a united Navy would be moro likely to deter those'' European Powers which were increasing'their naval and military forces from leaving :peaceful, .regions . for "the"; uncertain ones of fighting on 'the sea. (Applause.) /X'lie distribution of the' btirderi of defence could bo discussed, at the conference, and also the. method , of raising the contributions. Tho British Islands paid last' year <608,303,700 for naval defence, equal to'3os. per head of ..the, population.,, Canada 'spent ,£2,250,000, or Cs.-per head ; Australia <£2,834,000, or 12s. B}d. per, head; and New Zealand -£-177,095, oralis. 0.(1. t per head. The contribution of this -country was twice what it was five; .years ago. The question as to the amount of South Africa's contribution to. the Navy would he considered by the conference. New. Zealand was doing her cart in proportion to her population. We wanted to bear our proper and fair share of the burden, but we did not want to bear more, and the countries to which we were ' attached would not wislnis, under normal circumstances. to do so.

Iho Prime Minister'- then touched on a number of other subjects to come before the Imperial Conference. In regard to an Imperial Court of Appeal, he thought it should include one ju'dgo from each of tile oversea Dominions, and these judges should' remain ifive years in England and should then return to their own countries. That would guaranty their keeping in touch with the laws and social, systems of tho Dominions, and .besides-their judicial work they would •help to make tho ideals and the development of their countries better understood at Home. In connection with the shipping laws, tho problem was to afford proper protection to the subjects of other parts of the Empire, while" allowing for' the undeniable desire of this country and other Dominions to, have white crews on their own ships and on the ships trading on their shores. Ihe need for uniformity (so far as practicable) in naturalisation conditions in patent and copyright laws, and in coinage, mutual arrangements regardin" . destitute persons, completion ol' the All Eed cable lino by means of an Atlantic link, and tho need for an alteration to pravent one person paying income tax in two countries (as iii the case of a New Zealand business man sojourning in England) were also briefly reviewed. Preferential trade might be discussed, but the different countries must not be expected to make undue sacrifices. The Dominions had 110 right to say how the people at Home should settle their own fiscal system. •

He also thought there should bo an Imperial recognition of public debts, and even in some eases, sucli as those connected with defence, an Imperial guarantee. In view ,o£ tlio common dependence upon the Navy, he thought that if the difficulties could bo overcome there should be in certain cases a guarantee not by England, but by all portions of the Empire concerned. In view of tho fact that ships, "repeatedly had to be displaced by . more up-to-date ones, such a guarantee) would be a very great advantage. Co-operation in various reforms might, talso 'be ' discussed; and he wished to again emphasise his opinion ' that the proceedings o£ tlio Conference should bo onen to the press. The present method of conducting the great business between the Old Land and the outlying portions of the Empire was effete and unsatisfactory, and required to be replaced by nito that would not be put in binding form by legislation, but would bo of a characlcr that would enable the whole machine to move at one time, instead of tho circumlocution of the channels through which tho business of the Government now came and went. Some form of council was necessary if one were to have the business carried on in a way that would be satisfactory to the Governments and people of the various countries of the Empire. (Hear, hear.) When Dr. Findlay (whose assistance would be of very greats value) and himself came back to New Zealand, ho hoped the people would at least givo them credit for having discharged their important duties to the very utmost of their ability. (Prolonged applause.)

THE HON. DR. FINDLAY. Tho Hon. Dr. Findlay, .who was cordially received, also spoke at length. Ho contrasted the selfish colonial policy oi England of a hundred years ago with the spirit of to-day, and he avowed that this spirit was not dominated by any hope n£ material or sordid gain. The ties 'that

drew tho representatives of the Empire sprung directly from a growing and vivid sense of kinship. .(Applause.) - He realised with Sir Joseph Ward, that no political federation of the Empire which would seriously impair our local autonomy was desirable. (Applause.) Proceeding, the Attorney-General cited defence as tho chief subject for consideration at the Conference, and the (inestion of sharing the burden of its cost. In emphasising the cardinal necessity of the maintenance of Britain's naval supremacy lis turned to Germany to seek what was transpiring there. It would be entirely overlooking', tho real character and national aims of Ihe German people to assume that their spirit and object were really peaceful and their enormous armaments were- for defence and not 'aggression. A foreign policy was not the creation of the Foreign Minisfer of the day—in the long rim it was the outcome of the desires, the sentiment, and the character of the people. The sea and her navy had kept invaders out of Britain, while the lands of Germany had been mainly the battlegrounds of Europe. War so often at their doors had reduced the Germans to submit to a rigid and universal discipline. The Kaiser'si lesson to the peoplo was that a German must keep "solely and alone before his eyes, the safety and promotion of the Fatherland," England's spirit was reflected in the-title of its last King, "The Peacemaker."- The great impediment: to the German hegemony was British naval supremacy,' and Germany would not rest, until she had put this supremacy to the test. Only one policy was open to the British Empire against this spirit of domination; the argument of blood and iron must be met with blood and iron. Upon our ability to successfully accomplish this "rested • our national independence. We prized our freedom—(applause)—we resented even at this distance the inquisitorial tyranny of the German police and the powers of her bureaucracy, we recoiled from her conscriptive system, we shrunk from exchanging our liberty for such oppression. We too, therefore, must cheerfully shoulder the burdens this must impose. We must "do" not "say." (Applause.) Heroin lav the paramount work of the Imperial Conference. Already New Zealand had shown her readiness to do her share, and our expenditure 011 defence this year had increased to ( Js. Gd. ner head. (Applause.) Tll concluding, Dr. Findlay said he would do his best to justify the confidence placed in him in the mission he was undertaking. (Loud applause.) The gathering concluded with the toast of "The Chairman." proposed by the Prime Minister, and the singing of "Aultl Long Syne."

Mr. D. Kenny, who contributed a comic song, was loudly applauded. Tho banquet was arranged by a committee, of which Mr. D. J. Nathan was chairman, and Mr. J. Dykes secretary. AUCKLAND'S FAREWELL. (Br Tfc^cErapli.—Press Association.) Auckland, March 1. The Executive Committee who have in hand the arrangements for according the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) and the Attorney-General (tho Hon. Dr. Findlay) a fitting farewell on their departure from Auckland 011 Monday en route for England to attend the Coronation, and tho Imperial Conference, met this morning. The draft of tho address to be presented to Sir Joseph Ward was approved. It was also arranged- that the committee should charter the ferry steamer Albatross in which to accompany the Victoria down tho harbour, and the Town Clerk was instructed to draw up an official list of invitations to bo issued. The total number of invitations to be issued is not "to exceed 500.