MASSEY MEMORIAL

Hokitika Guardian, 20 September 1930, Page 5

MASSEY MEMORIAL

i OPENING CEREMONY

ELOQUENT TRIBUTES,

\By Telegraph—Press Association).

WELLINGTON, Sept. 10. The memorial at Point ’Malswell tc

j,the late W. F. Massey, former Prime Minister, was the object of a large v this afternoon when the' ; official unveiling ceremony was per- •' formed by the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe. The.-•• Actin- Prime Minister, Hon. E. A. Ransom, said it was regretted that i ■ the Prime Minister, n who was abroad, could not' be present, also Dame Christina Massey, who was indisposed. The fact that the

ijPrinie Minister was on lip way to the Imperial Conference recalled the

deot ot gratitude that the country owed to the late Mr Massey, who had .rendered valuable services not only to

/New Zealand, but to the Empire on . .those occasions when he -attended similar confereuces, His utterances at

-these conferences and the part he j .took in them were regarded as being of great value to New Zealand and the Empire. During the war, Mr Massey rendered valuable service to New Zealand, and during the postwar period he was willing to set aside anything in the nature-of party politics, being prepared .to associate himself with other parties of the House in the restoration of this country to prosperity. United sympathy went out •to i Dame ,-Massey . and’the rela-* tives. The memorial ' was the result Of Contributions from private sources, and from ‘ the Government, said Mr Ransom.- It was situated on the site of. the old military fort erected in the earlier -days for the protection of the city, and surely no more fitting resting’;place .than /.that could be found. The situation overlooked not

iohly the city but the harbour, and it- was, one of., the first points of interest that 1 struck by water.

The memorial was composed of New Zealand marble,' mostly from Takaka. The, speaker paid tribute to those wlio had been concerned iii construction.-.;-. , ‘

’Beneath our feet on this lonely pormintory, in ‘the sight of ships arriving from the Homeland, as well ae Of'. the ,capital of the Dominion, which lie served with unswerving fidelity unflagging zeal, rest the human remains of a great practical imperialistt,: William Ferguson Massey,” said the Governor-Genera.!. “It lis not, perhaps, inappropriate, .that the space where once there stood a battery to defend Wellington's beautiful harbour should now contain the body of a fetateman who, with a view to world Wftberty and the honour of the Empire, took so prominent a part in the efficient prosecution of the war and the attainment of the blessings ofpeace. William Massey, like so many men sprung from the soil, and normally employed in winning a living from it. in all conditions of weather arid fluctuating fortune, was a man of 'simplicity of life arid faith, of robust . courage and unquenchable hopefulness. He was a shrewd and J formidable fighter, but his force of j' character, coupled, with his sincerity and honesty of purpose, impelled a measure of confidence and respect puch as surely few Parliamentary protangonists have enjoyed. From a life such as his we learn the value of subordination of self to service, the linking,of personal ambitions and interests in a zeal for the public weal. These are attributes of all statesmen who have left tlieir mark on history and without them no man can live permanently in the memory of his fellow countrymen. It is my pleasure and pride now to declare this memorial open and, at the same time, to express a sincere hope that many will arise in all clauses and parties in this Dominion and help in the shaping of its destinies who will seek to emulate the robust simplicity, piety and honesty of him whom it so fitly commemorates.” “We can truly'say that the passing j away of Mr Massey marked the loss / of. a statesman and a true son of the British Empire,” said the Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, Leader of the Qpposi--1 tion. "We call speak of., him, as friend, ais colleague, and as a mar. In whom each and every one of us had implicit faith and confidence, a man who carried the mistakes of others, who never whimpered, nor did lie ever complain. He was a rock and anchor, and it is these characteristics that his colleagues to-day call to • mind. We remember him, and I think the country will remember him, as a straigthforward and unselfish man. He saw his duty and did it. It was that faith which I think radiated out to the people of this country in the very darkest hours of our ( w trial.” This memorial was not too " beautiful for the man. It was possibly the finest tribute to any single individual in the' world. His example would be a guide'and a lesson to men and women in the 5 future. The speaker believed that in the heart of people that day, whether they supported Mr Massey’s particular form of polities or not, there was no man held in deeper respect than tbe memory of ft.*, utn \fr M°«sev. Mr -Coates wished. £o thank the Government for the a*i..iige»ueius it had made in connection with the ceremony. “I would like to reecho the sentiexpressed by each of the previous speakers,’’ said Mr H. E. Holland, the Leader of the Labour Party. • “As yon know, Parliament is a battle

ground of ideas, and on the floor of Parliament Buildings, especially in the Chamber of the House, men come into... conflict with one another, and I, think those of us who figured as opponents of Air Massey knew one side of him probably better even than those who were : his close colleagues, and : ..were in line with the policy that he advocated. We got to know the human side of him. For somewhere in the vicinity of seven years, I was associated with him as an opponent in the Howe of Representatives, and as the Leader of a Party always in conflict with the policy laid down by him. My experience was that, whatever arrangements we had to make with him, once his word was given, ,we-.never had any need to worry about what followed. It is fitting that he who gave the better part of his 'life to tbe turbulent fighting in the realm of politics should sleep his last long sleep here tsurrouiided by the magnificence of the lulls, in view of the harbour, where the sea will betimes murmur its lullabien, where all God’s wildest storms will reach.” Rt. Rev. Dr Sprott, Bishop of Wellington, led the gathering in prayer at "the opening of the ceremony and gave the benediction. Rev. George Rudd, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand, conducted the dedication service.