EN VOYAGE TO LONDON

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 272, 6 August 1918, Page 7

EN VOYAGE TO LONDON

ACCOUNT OF NEW ZEALAND MINISTERS' JOURNEY •

JIR. MASSEY EXCELS AT DECK •TENNIS

(From a Speoial Correspondent.) London, June 13, 1018. Now that tho official representatives of New Zealand to this year's sittings of the Imperial War Cabinet and the Imperial Conference (the liight Hon.iW. 1\ Massey and the Bight Hon, Sir Joseph "Ward) have safely arrived in England the silence imposed by the censorship regulations can bo broken, and some account of their journey to 'lie United Kingdom will not bo without interest to ,ilu> people of tho Dominion. Tho party left Now Zealand early in the month of .May,, and travelled via Canada'and New York.' A They had as travelling companions on the same ship n largo official party from Australia, including tho Prime Minister of tho Commonwealth (tho ltight Hon. W. M. ilfughes) and the Eight Hon. J. Cook (Minister of tho Navy), together with their stiffs and certain other responsible (iovernrncnt officers. This provided an admirable opportunity for .tho Australian and Now Zealand'- Ministers to disouss freely many of tho more important Imperial and colonial questions, such as the policy respecting tho Grennan colonies, the Pacific, reciprocity, naturalisation, and many other matters in which the. overseas Dominions in the South Pacific fira vitally interested. Suva, was reached lata on a Sunday ®voning, and consequently the Mayor and local residents, who had been eager to tender tha visitors an official reoeption, had to lie'content with welcoming the party informally on board. Beautiful weather was experienced during tho voyage to Honolulu, and the _ various rr.embers of tho Ministerial parties showed themselves no mean exponents of the .various deck games played on shipboard. Mr. Massey particularly displayed great skill at deck tennis,, and succeeded' in carrying off the final of tho doubles. Not the least interesting of tho contests on board "was a match 1 at deck quoits between Australia and New Zealand for the championship of. the Pacific. The .Commonwealth was represented by' Messrs. Hughes and Cook, while Mr. Massey and Sir Joseph Ward <lid battle in defence of, Now Zealand. In the presence of a largo number of. spectators, and : amid much excitement, Nonr triumphed,' and thus .was tho question of the supremacy of the Pacific-determined. ■ • . Honolulu was also reached on a Sabbath, and tho day, was spent quietly on shore..'"This placo is.a. veritablo garden of Eden, and the tropical flowers and palm trees were gorgeous' in their early summer profusion. Here were se.en tho first evidenoes of America's activo participation in the war. In addition to being an important American naval base, there is a large military! force. stationed at Honolulu, and the wharves and shipping are closely guarded. A large number of men'have already been recruited from the Hawaiian Islands for the American Army, and both naval and military preparations are proceeding apace. Canada's Welcome, The remaining portion of the voyage to Vancouver was Uneventful, and on arrival warm messages of welcome were vaiting New Zealand's representatives from the Governor-General and. the Prime Minister and members of the Canadian Government. The , first break in the long train journey was made at Othwa, where the. party, were welcomed by the Prime Minister, and at his invitation both Mr. Massey and Sir Joseph Ward attended a meeting of the sisterDominion's Cabinet. They also had an opportunity of seeing the new Perliannntary edifioe, which is being erected on the site of the buildings destroyed by fire some two years ago, and which i's Jiov nearing completion. When finished, it is claimed that the new Houses of Parliament in the Canadian capital will rank among the finest and most piotaresque in the. world.-•• It was satisfactory' to note in Canada that the Military Service Act was working smoothly, and . that there was no ground for anticipating any serious difficulties in its administration. £ solid spirit of Imperial loyalty pervades by far the . greater portion of - this vast Dominion, whilst the National Government apparently is firmly established and com- . minds the confidence of the great bulk of the Canadian people. Jn doference to tho explicit request of the authorities, considerable secrecy was observed in regard to the presence of the Ministerial visitors during .. their journey through tho American continent, and- public receptions/ speeohmaking, and interviews were studiously avoided. For "the snmq reason ho details can be 'given of the final stage of the journey to England. Suffice it to say that tho iraisAtlantic voyage was happily uneventful, though full of interest and naturally attended with somo anxiety. It can bo said, however, thai our Ministers had opportunities of seeing and learning at first hand something of the real'earnestness with which tho great American nation is now prosecuting her part in the war. There is not the slightest doubt that President Wilson and bis Cabinet are heart and soul in this titanic world struggle for freedom, and in due season

will the Ilun to his cost bo made to feol tho Btfoiigth of tho Stara ami Stripes. Arrival in London, On arrival in London at one of tho largest of tho metropolitan railway stations a great crowd- had assembled to givo tho distinguished visitors a royal welcome. A large force of New Zealanders in khaki, with tho fa,miliar red pugareo round their broad-brimiued hats, and. headed by a military band, formed a guard of honour, while the New /.oiuapd Sag and tho Union Jack added prominently to the colour of the scene. Tho High Commissioner for New Zealand (Sir Thomas Mackenaie) wastlio first to welcome the New Zealand Ministers, and he was acooinpanied by official representatives from the Colonial Office and many prominent Dominion oitizeus now rem,dent in tho United'Kingdoni. Both Mr. Massey and Sir Joseph Ward heartily pleased with tho warmth of tho welcotno extended to them on their arrival, and after having inspected the troops and run tho gauntlet of tho inevitable photographer and kinema machine they were taken to their hotol by un escort of Now Zcala-nd mounted troDps. . It was characteristic that the nrst visit made by Mr. Massey and his colleague the day after their arrival should have been to tho New Zoaland Military Hospital at Brockenhurst. They spent much time yoing, round tho wards and chatting to the men. The next visit is. to be paid to our hospital at li\ alton-on-Thames next Sunday. Both Ministers have been inundated with callers since their arrival iii London, and are workin" at high pressure. Tho sittings of the Imperial War Cabinet and the Imperial Canferenco have commenced, and they will bo held continuously lor tho next four or five weeks. It can be taken for granted that the New Zealand representatives will a good, healthy vigour into the discussions of tho many important subjects which will come up for coasideratiou by both Cabinet and Conference. '