"SALUTE THE FLAG!"

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 284, 27 August 1919, Page 8

"SALUTE THE FLAG!"

FUNCTION AT CLYDE QUAY SCHOOL : NAVY LEAGUE PRESENTS AN ENSIGN ! ■ SPEECH BY FLAG-COMMANDER RAMSAY, R.N. . [ There was quite a large gathering of , school children, teachers, parents, and • friends in the lower playground of the ! Clyde Quay School yesterday afternoon, ; when Flag-Commander B. K. Eanisay, of , Admiral Jellicoe's staif, on be-half of the ■ Wellington brunch of the Navy League, • presented the school with a New Zealand i Ensign.. Mr. Kob'ert Scott, chairman of ' the committee, who occupied '.he chair, called on Mr. C. R. Smith to elucidate I the position. Air. Smith said that he was there on ; behalf of the Navy League to congratu- ' late the school on having enrolled upwards of a hundred members of the . league, it being the intention of the league to present a special flag to all schools who achieved a like record. It '. was fortunate that they had with them J Flag-Commander Ramsay, who had been Kood enough to honour them with his , presence, and • to present the flag. He ; told tho children that they should be . croud to be British, for British men and ' women were honoured in all countries, An Englishman's word was his bond. He was vert - much surprised when on a \ trio round the world to find/that ehop- ' keepers in Colombo were prepared to 1 trust him with their goods. They would allow them to be taken to Lon- | don and there tested, without any de- ' posit being paid on them—so much were the British trusted. They were not so " accommodating with people of other na- ' tionalities. Another illustration was 1 ■ through the Customs. Ho had , to pass ' through seven countries, and never once had. he- to open his boxes for the Cus- ' toms officers. They took it for granted 1 that all was right because he was ft 1 Britisher. He aslced the children to do 1 their share in preserving the British codo ■ of honour established by their fathers and to live.up to all that the flag represented. l (Applause.) i Flag-Commander Ramsay said that Mr. > Smith had remarked that his presence E relieved him (Mr. Smith) from making a l speech, but they would all be disa^-.ojnt- ■ ed. as sailors were no good at speaking. > They did their best always,' but did not • care to say anything nbout it. . He was ) there representing the Admiral of tho Vleot, Viscount Jellicoo, who had requested him to present the Navy Leaguo's flag on his behalf and that ofi tho Royal j Navy. The flag wns being presented to t the Clydo Quay boys and girls for hav- . ing gono over the hundred, mark in ! Navy League membership. It was p. . Dominion flag, and in the corner of it . was the Union Jack, which was symbolic j of the unity of tho Empire. (Applause.) The Commander then told how befpro tho union of England and Scotland, Eng- , lish ships used to fly' the Cross of St. , George, and Scottish ships the Cross of St. Andrew, but when in 1707 England 1 and Scotland joined up, the two crosses ". wero united in the one flag, and again in 1801, when Ireland came into the [ union, tho Cross of St. Patrick was added, and the (lag of the Empire had remained Urn same from that day to this—a ' symbol of the unity of the Empire. (Applause^ [ The Germans' Mistake. l ' At tho outset of tho late war tho Germans had concluded that tho tie between England and her oversea Dominions was j » very loose one, and that at tho first .' sign of trouble they would cut loose, but i in so concluding Gormauy had made the ( greatest mistake—and it was not the only 3 mistake she made. On the declaration T of war spontaneous offers of assistance 3 came from all parts of tho Empire, t Where Germany had hoped to. find Aur -ord thoro was complete harmony, which continued for over tour years at the cost s of a great loss in men, money, and material. There was then found to exist a I bond of Empire that not even the wailed I fist of Germany was able to shake. ■(Apphuise.) Euch now terrorism, intended ; to weaken 'them, only drew thorn closer , together. Their integrity and steadiness of purpose had made good their titlo to j be the universal champions of freedom, 3 ' R-v'-Coiumander Ramsay said that ho !, mid his brother officers had been <lMißut - ' cd to see so many children on Ji.il.b. " New Zealand the (lay Wore, and they ' wore only disappointed that, owing to ', the difficulties , of travel, more children were not able to come. They had been struck by two facts-first, the happy exf wression on the faces of the children, and, secondly, their behaviour and dis- ' upline, which were excellent. Many ' people looked upon discipline as degrocl- ' ing and resented it. There Could not be a greater mistake. Discipline meant ' strength, safety, and efficiency. Soma 5 people went as far as to regard a strict : disciplinarian as a bully, when ho ' was perhaps subordinating his own ' wishes in the carrying out of orders. He ' wou'l'd give an instance of what discipline " meant in the Navy during the late war. ; It was tho story of the boy Cornwall-. 1 (Applause.) Admiral Beatty's dispatch ■ had mentioned the story of Travers Corn- " wall,' of ■H.M.S. Chester, who, \ though ! mortally wounded early in the engage- ' ment, had remained at his post with ' the gun crejw lying dead around him. Cornwall was under 151 years of age. : He advanced his claims for special recog- ' nition in justice to his unswerving cour- • age and the high example set by him. (Applause.) "On you boy.-; and girls depends the future prosperity and happiness" of the .Dominion," said the Flag-Commander. "See to it that you become worthy of the great heritage entrusted to you. On New Zealand's coat-of-arms appears the word 'Onward.' I leave it with you to press onward in tho attainment of tho worthy objects you liavo in view—not. 1 I;) gain fcho prize, but to overcome the • obstacle?." (Applause.) The liev. Robertson Orr said that no nnn of the service loved the flag better I than the Navy. In olden days it was cus- ' tonmry for regiments to go into action | • with tlwir, colours flying before them, • but modern land warfare did not permit i • it. When the Navy went into action, I however, the flag was there. He appealed to the children to base their opinions on a strong Navy. It wns not to exist for any wrong purpose, but to protect the weaker nations and to defend their own homes. He wanted them to bo proud of tho flag and what it stood for. Take its colours—red stood for sac- , rifice, white for truth, nonesily, and j , purity, and blue for loyalty—all tilings > i for which the great British Empire stood. 1 (Applause.) Good Citizenship. i I''la»-CommaiHli?r B.invay then hnmlrd • the flag to Ifr. YV. Foster, who said lin i [ was very promt to receive it, and giiai , - | ■ .nnteed that it would Ix> prized in the j i school as lons as a shred of it renuiiued. I i (Applause) Ono of the reasons for which I the Hag ■ would • be treasured was ■ that outsido the ordinary curriculum they did try to make the boys and girls under their care, decent citizens of the Empire; secondly, because it would typify, through ! the visit of the Now Zealand, the Nav.v whoso watchfulness and steadfastness thsy had.so much to bo thankful for; ami ■ again hecauso the New Zealand carried : the flag of the greatest eaiior of modern ' times. (Applause.) They did endeavour ' to teach citizenship and claimed that J they had done their little we in train- ; ing the men of the New 'feiiand Expeditionary Force Who had played so cralitnblo a part in the war. He did not wish the Flag-Commander to believe that I. they wero under the imprcfsion Hint New I Zi'aland had won the war. (Laughter.) ' They remembered the wonderful work of 1 Hie li'Jth Division at Gallipoli, and gloried ! in the epic retreat of tho old Army from Minis. There was no man who had ) fought in France who did not praise tho ; work of British, Scottish, and Welsh regiments. (Applause.) The Hag would , servo for many a lesson nn citizenship iu tho school. There was never such [ a. need for sauo citizenship as at tho j present time. There was growing up a • feeling of resentment against discipline, whon it was in tho interests of everyone to exeroiso- it. He noticed an example of it when on tho wharf tho day before. A bugle sounded (It was sundown), and , immediately every sailor, no matter

where he was or what ho was doing, otnod to attention and saluted tho flag as it fluttered down, and not a sailor moved until tile bugle- blast had finished. There wure'some sailors in-II filled who could not Sim the Hag, but they, too, saluted it, as the buglo called. Every child in tho Umpire should be trained to caluto the flag which meant so much to them. All the teachers of all tha children were prepared to endeavour to make decent, loyal, honest citizens of the Empire out of their charges. There had been faults in the past, but when ono made a mistake one looked for someone to help one out. So they all wished to help the Empire, not rend her apart. He would have every boy and girl as they grew up to know that the flag etood for, England— "England, my country, ' England, right or wrong My country!" The function concluded with tho singing of the National Anthem, with cheers for tferiH'.vy and Lord Jellicoe (and his deputy), the King, and the Empire. . The grounds were specially decorated for the occasion with bunting, and proeeuted.a pleasant sight.