BACK FROM ENGLAND

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2663, 7 January 1916, Page 6

BACK FROM ENGLAND

' BORE RETURNED SOLDIERS ; ■ A PUBLIC RECEPTION I SPEECH BY DEFENCE MINISTER S' Soma eighty soldiers who returned to New Zealand from England by the s;s. Iluahino arrived from Auckland by the Main Trunk train: yesterday afternoon. These men comprise the Wellington and r tkmth Island sections of the party I- which reaohed Auckland by the direct . steamer on Wednesday. They had all been sent back from the front, and ■ from base hospitals in' Egypt and Malta for treatment in England. On arrival In. Wellington they were mot at the . ■ station by their friends and by other citizens, and conveyed to tho Town : Hall, where it was arranged that a more formal welcome should be ac- ! . . .corded','them. They were served with '{) light, refreshments, and thev had ample opportunity for a satisfying chat with ■; relatives before being asked to listen to ■ speeches, and when.the speeches came r they were commendably short. Along . "with the Ituahine men. were a smaller number of tho Maheno contingent, who 1 haff come by train from Auckland. • A Happy Voyage. ' The men, who were under the command of Lieutenant Myers, of ' the Otago .Infantry, were all well and cheeri \ ful. They were convalescent before leaving England, and the voyage out in ?;• the. ship has restored most of them to : normal'hculth and strength again. They j;■ are all highly pleased with their treati ment on shipboard,' both by the pasI ; sengers and by the ship's company. Especially did they have a merry timo at f;'. Christmas, : which. is always celebrated, > joyfully, on a passenger liner. On tho ; Test, of ithe .voyago.,they took part in ; the usual deck sports, which included snflh organised affairs as cricket matches and dances. "We should never : have had half such a good time oil a i trooper,one of the men remarked. About Artificial Limbs. Two men in the party have lost a leg, and they have been fitted' with •.. artificial limbs, of which; by tho way, • -v ibey are,- mightily proud. They walk ; w»|k only a very slight limp, not nearly . so obvious as that of some other men who still have their own legs, albeit somewhat damaged. The fitting of arti- . ficial legs'and arms in these days is a wonderful business, and results are . achieved which are" amazing, these sol- : diers say. Men apparently hopelessly i mutilated are fitted with legs and arms which - render them very far from' ,■ helpless. A considerable. number of' . New Zealanders who have lost limbs are. at present in England, and they , bad expected to come but with the Rua- ! hine men, but the, authorities decided /.that as tliey'could not be so well fitted .' with limbs in New Zealand as was possible in England, tliey must be held back to go' to a special hospital where ! this work is done. These men, of whom 1 -. there is a considerable .number, will ' shortly bo coming out here. ;

< The City's welcome. j Some hundreds of. citizens were pre- ■ sent in the Town Hall to welcome and • to, cheer the returned soldiers. The Mayor (Mr. J. P. I<uke) on be- ; half of the citizens of Wellington, ex--1 tended to the men a 1 very hearty welcomo home. The soldiers had been through tho stress and trial of battle, !. he said, and now they'were 'ntitled to . a, respite. "We in New Zealand were profiting day by day by tlie sacrifices i our 6ons had made, and we honoured j... the memory of the brave mon who had [: fallen in Gallipoli and in Flanders: and f:■: on; the' other fronts, fighting battles not ' for themselves or even for their own j : families, but for the' wellbeing of the wprld at, large. (Applause.) The New Zealahd:\people might have taken a selj,i, fish, ■ estimate, of our ' responsibilities. Wo might have, said that this war was- ■ ; not our affair, but tho boys of New Zea- ! land had proved that they were worthy sons of Britain. (Applause.) The idea :, .of every father and mother in this' land, and the idea, he believed, of every young !: man throughout the. Dominion,, was I that the war was as much, tli9 burden of our people as of the people in the Old Land, and every other part cf tl!» Empire. (Applause.) And in the future Now Zealand would be a better and a ■ happier country' for the. deeds done by her young men in this great war. Those who stayed' at 'home" were uiider an un- -. dying debt of gratitude to the men of r ' Now Zealand who had fought. (Ap- : . plause.) "We are going to succeed," 1: said the Mayor in conclusion. "It may : bo that wo are going through fire, and . that, we shall suffer reverses, but there . is "only one conclusion possible, .and 1 . that is success to the Allies." (Applause.). - , At the Mayor's call cheers were given i for the returned soldiers, and for the : ■ men at the. front;

. .Defeno; Minister Speaks. ■Tlio Hon. Colonel Allen (Minister of Defence) was the only otlier speaker, and ho renewed the welcome lie had already extended to the men in Auckland. "So far as I know these returned" soldiers, and I-have met theni already," lie. said, "you mil find, them reticent about what they have done. I think all people in New Zealand ought to respect,that reticence, because it is evidence of courageous and bold hearts. (Applause.) They probably will not talk inuoh about what they havo seen and done, but I know that those men havo riot only been brave in the trenches alone. I know that they have been brave in the hospital and upon the sick liedj and it is these tilings—this bravery iii the trenclios and bravery in wounds and sickness—that makes them what they are. They come back to us ; men tried in the battlefield and tried in the sick room, and we look to tlieso men to be those who will in future do other service in our own country, for we shall lieiid this type of service in New Zealand in the future.

i , A Tribute to Kind Women. .. "Ladies and gentlemen, Iknow those who are parents among you are welcoming your men back, and are glad to see them, and it is well that you should flo so. I want here to ask the soldiers to realise how much has been dona for them in their absence by the women of this country. (Applause.) They may know from what they have received at the front that fond hearts have been thinking of them, and willing hands working for them, and I wish to express my great gratification of the work done by," the ladies, and especially by tho ■' Lady Mayoress of this City. (Applause.) Perhaps so.rno of you got to know Mrs. Luke beforo you went away. Perhaps j ' you know from your experience in the : trenches of wliat you received there • what her heart and her energy Is like. At any rate I am sure you will , join with me iu very hearty thanks to Mrs. Luke and her ladies for what they have ■ doiie for those soldiers wlio. have been away, and for what they, will do for (Stlier soldiers still to go. (Applause.) ' Praise for All Sarvices. • "It would not be fitting were I to let this occasion pass.without saying a word ' to the public—and I know tlie soldiers would join' me in these words —without making referenoa to tho splendid work done by the meflical staff, and by the nurses at tho front. (Applause.) From what I hear the New Zealand medical officer is sought for and there can bo no shadow ■ of doubt , that the Now Zealand nurs& ia Bought for ift_

every hospital in Egypt. Indeed, they would be mighty glad to have them in every hospital in England if they could get them. We owe a great debt of gratitude of the medical staff and the nurses. "I am afraid that sometimes the public forget that there are others besides the infantry and mounted infantry serving at the front. Tho artillery have not had their fair meed of praise, and I want to say a word for the Field Artillery. I take off my hat to every Now Zealand Field Artillery man. I don't think the Army Service Corps have had their iluo meed of praise. I don't think the Ambulance men havo had their duo meed of praise. (Applause from the soldiers.) I think that tlie work of tending the wounded in positions of danger, right up to tho trenches, is work that deserves recognition, and I am sure every soldier will agree with me in that. Serious Work Still to Do. "I welcome you mea back, and \ hope that you will be speedily returned to health. From my point of view as Minister of Defence, the sooner as m/ny as possible of you are fit to go back the better, for there is serious ■work, still to do. i The ' people of this country will not fail to replace the men returning sick and wounded, and will send such a number of men that there can be no doubt about the final issue. That final issue must bo an honourable and a. lasting peace. That is the peace our men have been fighting for at the front, the peace our women have been fightjng for at home, tho peace that' the Empire and this country are fighting for, and the peace we mean to obtain." '(Applause.) . The Mayor apologised for the absence of the Prime Minister and the Hon. A. L. Herdman. The proceedings •were concluded with the singing of the National AntJiem. j