PEACE CELEBRATIONS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 241, 5 July 1919, Page 8

PEACE CELEBRATIONS

STATEMENT BY THE MAYOR

DEMONSTRATION ON JULY 19

At a special nieeting of the City Council yesterday afternoon tho Mayor made reference to the latest. proposal's, for tho peace celebrations in Wellington. Mr. Luke said that he favoured the holding of thanksgiving services hi the rhiirclics this nejt' Sunday; and lie hoped that the councillors would agree tho I. Ilicj should attend (he. services with hiiii. Ho suggested that in (he inoriiin;; the council should attend divine servico aI. the 'pro-Cathedral; in the afternoon a. united service of the citizens in the. Town Ifall; and, in the everting, a service at St.' .Iphit's.

Councillor I'. I'Vaser, M.P.. said t)ial he wished not to oppose the Mayor's proposal, but lo make his own position clw. "As I belong lo no religions noriy," he said, "and as my opinions on these matter;- are nol the orthodox opinions. T shall not be present."

The 'Mayor then spoke of the celebrations t<> be held on July 1!) and succeeding days. The Citizens' Peace Celebrations Committee had inquired what the intentions of the council were. He had informed them that on the 19th (a. Sata. general demonstration would take place, and that there would be a, fireworks display in' the evening. On the Sunday afternoon there would be areluious service, chiefly choraj.

The oueslinn remaining _wns: What more, was to be done? Perhaps Councillor Forsyth, as chairman of the Educa-. tion Board, could say whether a chil-' dren's demonstration might be held. Councillor Forsyth replipd that the bsard had unanimously favoured the proposal to hold a children's demonstration.

The Mayor said, that he had invited the citizens to observe a holiday on Monday as well as mi the Saturday.' Tt would lie impossible to hold the children's demonstration on the Saturday.

The. council endorsed the Mayor's proposals.

At the thanksgiving service to be held in the Town Hall at 3 p.m. to-morrow (he Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) will preside, whilg the service will be conducted by the Rev. J. G. Chapman. Chaplain'T. S. Taylor, Rev. S. Ileckingham, anil StaffCaptain Burton (Salvation Army). The Peace Choir of three hundred voices, conducted bv Messrs. R. Parker and' T. White.' will sing Handel's "Hallelujah" and '"Ike Gloria," from Mozart's Twelfth Mass.

THE GOVERNMENT SUBSIDY.

.An announcement was made by the Minister of Internal Affaire'(the Hon. G. \V. Kussell) regarding'tho ..ecce celebrations yesterday. The ioverunient had announced that there would bo subsidies provided by the State on .moneys collected or voted by local authorities (or the celebration of peace. T|ie amount was at tho rote of pound -for pound in the case of. those places whore the amount was smaM, ranging down to ten shillings in the pound for those .larger'communities in which the amount would he considerable. Mr. Eussejl said that the decision of tho Government was that subsidies would be paid only on those moneys expended for celebrations on the ofticial day, July 1!) Three districts which chose to hold celebrations on other days would havp to bear the whole cqst. without, subsidy from the Government. The Minister «i]rt aljo that railway services for the occasion would bo provided only for July 19, and these services would have lo be kept, down to a minimum owing to the shortage of coal.

MESSAGE TO PBESBYTERIANS. iiy Telegraph-Press Apsociatlpu.

Napier, July i. The following message to tno Presbyterian Church has been issued by the. Moderator:—"ln accordance with the gracious advice and exhortation of His Majesty the King, I hereby call upon the ministers, missionaries, and .people of the Presbyterjah Church of New Zealand, to. obsorve next Lord's Day, July 6, as a day of solemn national thanksgiving for peace, by participating in their several places of worship, in the.great act of common adoration and praise appoint? Ed for all parts of the Empire—W. Gray Dixon, Moderator."

THE CELEBRATIONS IN AUSTRALIA POSTPONEMENT IN .NEW SOUTH WALES URGED. Sydney, July 4. . The Peace Committee is urging t|io State Government to postpone the peaco celebrations until August, in view of tlie prevalence of influenza— Press Assn.