PRESENTING THE COLOURS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2232, 19 August 1914, Page 7

PRESENTING THE COLOURS

> TO MR. FREQNIBtO; CEREMONY AT THE OPERA HOUSE. The last evening of the Niblo Comedy Company was made" memorable'.-;' by a hapj>y little ceremony reflecting -the gratitude of the citizens of Wellington for-the 'good work done on ■ Saturday last ;by Mr. : Jfed.-NiWo' in particular; and the members of his company, 1 with valued assistance of 'other'member's of the'theatrical profession'then in town;. . After the curtain , had descended-on the second act of "Officer 666,"'it was raised once more, when the entire com-, pany wore : ''discov,ered'''*J in 56ne form of a semi-circle,- tyifch' Mrl'.'an'dMrs!' Niblo in the centre. The ; Hoii: A; L. Herdman; /who received an ovation, came forward, and said/.that he had'been , -singled, out to i perform ; what was-to' him a very, pleasurable duty.' T In'-', these . times ofystress and; anxiety," many valuable gifts /had been given to the country, but on Saturday last in this" oity great service, had been rendered by one who did not, belong to pur nation, : and jvho was a " stranger within our gate's;, He referred to Mr.' Niblo. '; (Loud applause.).'. Mr.;| Niblo had come to.Weihngtpn as an exponent of the dramatio art, but his instincts of sympathy and .benevolence had prompted, him to render eignal service to the city and the country.. Not only Mr. Niblo, however, but the mem- .- bers of his company, and also the members of the Brennan-Fuller . Company, : and'the Smart Set/ Hβ"also wished to ■ Teturn thanks to the .band of the New , Zealand Natives' .Association, the .lenders of motor-cars and lorriesj the'young ladies who sold the sweets "and flowers,: the orchestra,, and to the! stage, staff. To one and all they owed, a deep debt of gratitude, .As a result? of this,fine effort the magnificent sum of £861' Bs. . 6d. had been collected .on Saturday afternoon. (Applause.) In saying farer well to Mr. Niblo', Mr. Herdman said ho would like to present him,- on behalf, of. the Natives' Association and citizens, with a small memento> At this-juncture'the audience' burst . into a roar of cheers as Mr/ Herdman handed to the actor a flag comprised of the New; Zealand 'ensign and the Stars and Stripes, sewn back to baok. and hung gracefully on a, staff that was bedecKed with the colours' of New Zealand, and the black and gold of Wellington, in dainty festoons, of silk rib- . bons. Not to be behind, the orchestra struck: up "The Star-Spangled Banner," honoured spontaneously by an ■upstanding audience. ,-' . When the" musiO" ceased, Mr. Herdrnan said it was just a small appreciation of the valnablo services rendered to tho city. He had observed that the flags were closely tied together, which ho hoped was emblematic that the two countries, they represented.'. would long bo banded together. (Applause.) In these days events happened quickly, and it was not possible to anticipate what, would take place in .fifty Spars. The _ United' States had her interests in. the ~ Pacific, and wo were wholly.and solely in the Pacific. No child could cast a stone into the sea without that sea being the Pacific; Ocean; and it was his hope,that it might be.the lot of the great country to which Mr. Niblo belonged to be joined > ttigether for the purpose of . protection, preservation, and perpetuation'of the best of the national, ideals and- aspirations l of both countries. (Applause.) • The Mayor (Mr. J. P. Lnke) expressed, the thanks of the citizens for the good work done by Mr. Niblo and his associates' on Saturday: last, and to Mr. Bert Eoyle, who, as far as he had been able to gather,- had been tho first to concoivo the idea of giving a patriotic demonstration for the raising of funds to send men to the Old World to ■nprk shoulder to shbulder with 1, tho people of the Old Country. He could endorse everything Mr. Herdman had said, and intimated that the money collected would be handed over to Her Excellency's Fund. Mr. Luke personally thanked the members of the comgany and Mr. Grieg, and wished them Uodapeed and happiness on their journeys. (Applause.) Mrs., Luke then came forward, and presented Mrs. , Niblo with a charming basket of flowers. ,: ._, ■ Mr. Niblo, in returning thanks, said he regarded that evening as one of the big bright spots in his career. To recaive a presentation from tho citizens of Wellington, through Mr. Herdman, of such a significant collection of colours, made it almost impossible to find words >to express shis feelings. Ho knew .that Saturday's effort was not worth such magnificent appreciation, and his thanks were sincere and and the flag was one that he would treasure all:.his life, ; .In.- conclusion, Mr. Niblo thankod all concerned from

j the bottom of his heart) and said that it would be his pleasure to treasure the -colours so easily won, and his boy would treasure them after him. (Loud applause, and, in ensemble, "For He's A Jolly Good Fellow," and curtain.) AN ALLEGED AIRSHIP 5 WHAT WAIRARAPA SETTLERS SAW ON SUNDAY NIGHT. <Bx Teleeraph.—Hnecla) ODrreasnndent.) Masterton, August 19. A number of settlers in the Matahiwi and Mikimiki districts, to the west of Masterton, allege that, between 10 and 11 o'clook on.-Sunday night an..airship, displaying' three lights,' one of which appeared! .fa be 'a searchlight, passed-ovor the district in the direction of Palmerston North. Nobody in Masterton appears to have . 'seen it, though it is stated that an officer in tho Danneyirke.bamp had asserted that lie had soen an airship. TRADE AND INDUSTRY PRIME -MINISTER CONFIDENT. Confidence in tho. ability of the Dominion and ( its. poople ,to weather the present crisis in good, shape is steadily growing. When the Prime Minister was asked last evening whether lie thought ; there jvas likely; to be much unemployment, lie replied in the negative. "I don't think there is going to bo much unemployment," he remarked; f'l think matters are getting back to normal and that the trade routes will be open as usual in a very short time, and that the business and industry of the country ivill go on." •- . A number of men vrho came to Mastertori from Hawke's Bay to be medically examined and sworn in were, says our correspondent, rejected because they had not previous military experience. Soine'of the young fellc-ws had sacrificed all their worldly possessions that they v might go to the front. . They are .now being put through a course of drill, and. should they become conversant -with elomentary methods in a few days they will probably bo accepted. A\publio moeting is to, be held in Oarterton to-morrow .evening for the purpose of considerhg the practicability of forming a corps; of the Legion of Frontiersmen.—rSpecial correspondent;