JUSTIFIABLE PRIDE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 94, 7 May 1937, Page 40 (Supplement)

JUSTIFIABLE PRIDE

GEORGE A.

MADDTSOX,

The Borough's Recor d of Achievement ;JMR. MADDISON'S MESSAGE. It is surely witli fullness of justifiable pride that we may lookfhaekward along tlie 50 years of progress that have Lrought as to tlie present days of celebration; and the remarkable development of the borough in siich a short space of time likewise * gives ample justification for the highest hopes as to the future. - When Hastings achieved the dignity of Borough statils in 1888, it had been a town district for only three years, and it ' is a matter of the greatest satisfaction to all that the rapid progress characteristic of those early days has been consistently . maintained. Those who remember the institiition . of the borough have but to look around to-day to find the monuments to civic enterprise that abound on every han'd. The Hastings of to-day crystallises the oiforts and aspira- - tion of the far-seeing citizens of a wide and wealthy area, lavishly endowned by nature with the means for the realisation of a full and happy life. •• ♦ The eommunity has been fortunate in the pnblic spiritedness of the men and women who have given their services to it, and I Would be failing in my duty as Mayor were I t'o refrain from making full acknowledgment of the work of those who have passed by. Others.have labotired, and we have entercd into their labours. • From the pinnacle of 50 years of advance we can see in our survey that we have climbed far. We can see that Hastings to-day stands at tlie centre of what is in many ways the most prolifie and important agrieultural and pastoral area in the Dominion. Its reeord for stock saies, for example, cannot be equalled anywhere else in New Zealand* Our kmdly climate and fcrtile lands are responsible for the wonderful quality and quantity ofour primary products of all kinds, and experieneed experts from other parts of the country as well as from overseas have many times given us cause to be confirmed in the belief that Hastings and its eontiguous distriets are in the*forefront of the Dominion 's prosperous enterprises. * V ,cIt must be added that .th'ei'e has been, during the 50 years of growth and expansion, no undue emphasis upon purely material progress to the neglect of cultural interests. The amenities of the borougli to-day — theprovisiion of.facilities for sport, the existenee of beautiful parks and other open spaces, provision of full edueational serviees and many other features in our civic life that make for the comf ort and happiness of the citizens- — will compare more than favourably with those of any other borough of the same size in tlie Dominion. . In common witli other communities, Hastings has had its share of the diffieuities caused by tlie recurrence of dull times/ - bnt it is cause for satisfaction that fmaneially and civiely we have "weatheredthe storm, '' and can now look forward to still greater progress in the years' that lie ahead. - m '* * 4 . Hastings-, situated as it is,' is undoubtedly destined to become; one of the most important jeentres of primary production and commereial activity in Ncw Zealand, and it is my earnest desire that here shall alwavs be the fullest co-operation and understanding among all sections of^our eommunity— town with country; town with town— so that we shall go forward unitedly and wisely in building up not only a well-planned Hastings and a prosperous eommunity, but, more important "still,. a greater - Hawke's Bay. . I send .iny very warrn and sinecre greetings to all my fellow citizens, with thanks for their co-operation in many good works, and with the expression of the hope tliat when the centenary of Hastings arrives the reeord of this generation's work will be found true to the best of our traditions during tlie past 50 years, — Yours sincerely.

Mavor.