ST. PATRICK’S BANQUET.

Gisborne Times, Volume IX, Issue 843, 18 March 1903, Page 2

ST. PATRICK’S BANQUET.

SPEECH BY SIR JOSEPH WARD

By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyrighi Received 11.37 p.m., March 17. Sydney, Mar. 17.

St. Patrick’s Day was celebrated in fine weather. Despite the non-proclamation of a holiday the usual sports iu the Agricultural Grounds and banquet were largely attended. The guests included Dr. Verdon, Bishop of Dunedin, and Sir Joseph Ward. At the banquet Sir E. Barton, responding to the toast of the Commonwealth, said that if he might be allowed to touch lightly upon something which had happened, he did not believe there had been, nor was now in contemplation, any sacerdotal interference with voting. Cardinal Moran was a wise man, and would not be so foolhardy as to rush into such a course that might procure for him the resentment of a tree people. Ho believed they would find, as they had on many other occasions, that suspicions of interference by those who ruled their church with voting at elections wore unfounded.

Sir Joseph Ward proposed the toast, ‘‘The day we celebrate.” It was, he said, but natural that tho Irish should, in a calm, rational spirit, commemorato in a soitablo way the anniversary of St. Patrick. This commemoration should be raised above uud entirely detached from anything in the shape of politics or creed distinction. It was a subject of natural pride to Englishmen to review the history of England’s patron saint St. George, and equally a matter that appealed to the hearts of the Scotch tohouor the memory of St. Andrew. He referred to the virile fighting power of the Irish race in the dogged struggle for supremacy in South Africa, which brightened their shield of glory, aud was a subject of pride, not only to Irishmen, but also to English and Scotch comrades, just as the long list of deeds of the English aud Scottish fellow subjects received thecommeudatiou of generous Irishmen in all parts of the world. He hoped the entwining of the rose, thistle, and shumrock would go on in harmony, and the result would be that a staunch and indestructible tree of Empire may grow, aud that the well-directed efforts of the leaders of public opinion would enable us to build a vast and powerful nation.