The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, June 22, 1911. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 1008, 22 June 1911, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. Thursday, June 22, 1911. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

Almighty God, who rulest over all the kingdoms of the world, and disposest of them according to Thy good pleasure; we yield Thee unfeigned thanks, for that Thou hast been pleased to place Thy Servant our Sovereign Lord, King George, upon the Throne of this Realm. Let Thy wisdom be his guide, and let Thine arm strengthen him ; let justice, truth and holiness, let peace and love, and all those virtues that adorn the Christian Profession, flourish in his days; direct all his counsels and endeavours to Thy glory, and the welfare of his people ; and give us grace to obey him cheerfully and willingly for conscience sake; that neither our sinful passions, nor our private interests, may disappoint his cares for the publick good; let him always possess the hearts of the people, that they may never be wanting in honour of his Person, and dutiful submission to his authority ; let his Reign be long and prosperous, and crown him with immortality in the life to come ; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. —Prayer for His Majesty the King ordered by the Privy Council.

To-day Foxton, in common with other centres throughout the Dominion and the British Empire, will celebrate the Coronation of King George V. The great ceremony will be accompanied with an elaborateness worthy of our great and glorious Empire. To-day the eyes of the nations of the world are centred upon the event its moral effect is awe-inspiring. The King’s loyal subjects, from the centre to the uttermost parts of the earth, unite

to-day in one great chorus : “Long live the King.” Nearly every hamlet and village will, in some wav, set up a memorial in honour of the event and otherwise make merry. Foxton’s celebrations will consist of a procession, combined religious service, saluting the flag, and laying the foundation stone of the Town Hall, We understand that should the weather not be propitious, the procession will be abandoned and the religious ceremony will take place in the quadrangle at the State School instead of at the Triangle, and the ceremony at the Town Hall will follow. Owing to the boisterous weather, local decorations have been curtailed. The weather conditions will spoil the outdoor celebrations in other parts of the Dominion, but it will not damper our loyalty to the King and Empire.

Speaking at the luncheon to overseas Prime Ministers at the Constitutional Club, London, Sir J. G. Ward said that when he left New Zealand, though he belonged to a particular party, he represented every party in the Dominion, and while in London he and his colleagues at the Imperial Conference were non-party politicians. He, too, cherished Mr Balfour’s dream with regard to the Empire of the future. He recognised that in peace time the Motherland did not require the assistance of the overseas Dominions, but in time of trouble they must stand together. The Dominions were less dependent than formerly on the material assistance of the Motherland, but at the same time there was a possibility of great danger in years to come, unless they had some system of giving the Dominions a more direct voice in the direction of Imperial concerns. As the outcome of the interchange of views at the Imperial Conference, however, some good ought to be achieved. He heartily agreed with Mr Balfour’s statement that there ought, in great over-riding Imperial affairs, to be no such thing as party interests: the responsibilities were too big. If they expected to do something for the general good, they must educate their people imperially, and get them to act imperially. From that standpoint he believed that the visit of men from overseas Dominions to the Motherland could not fail to make lor the advantage of the common Empire.