HIS EXCELLENCY'S REPLY.

North Otago Times, Volume CVII, Issue 17170, 29 March 1927, Page 2

HIS EXCELLENCY'S REPLY.

Replying to the address of welcome, the Governor-GenQral said: — "Mr Mayor, I thank you warmly for the address you have present- * ed and I regret greatly that her Excellency is unable, through illhealth, to be present to-day to share in the welcome which, on behalf of the people of Oamaru, you so kindly extend. This is not actually my fir.st visit to your town and it is a pleasure to have an opportunity of further acquainting m^sSelf with the iudus-

tries and conditions of so thriving a districtj" and with its residents of whose previous kindness and hospitality I have most pleasant recollections. Of your warmhearted loyalty and attaichment to the Throne and Empire, there is no question, and I am happy to think that you have had recently an opportunity of giving expression to those feelings to His Royal Highness the Duke of York, who will be ahle personally to represent them ta his Majesty." Continuing, Sir Charles said he wanted to say how much he regretted that her Excellency was unable to be present. She was with him last time and had hoped to he present that day, but unfortunately she , had overtired herself and liad to keep ahsolutely quiet for the next few weeks. She had sent her love and hoped soon to come to" Oamaru of Avhi.ch she had many happy recollectipns. He would like to make liis visit not altogether formal but to give it a touch of practical usefulness. It v/as a great opportunity to take stock and think of the real meaning' of GovernorGeneral and the people of the Dominion. He took it that on such occasions .one should sum up his feelings of attachment t£> -the Throne and Empire. The visit of the Duke of York had given the people of New Zealand an opportunity of expressing their feelings of loyalty, and he could assure them that no one could more appreciate the warmth and sincerity of those feelings than their Royal Highnesses. Before leaving the Duke had said that wherever he went he was consciOus of such an atmosphere of friendship and goodwill that it took away his natural nervousness in public speaking and he had been able to make that admirable speech at Dunedin without preparation i and from the bottom of his heart. Sir Charles said he had just toured • Cenlral Otago and that was one of , the last of a series of tours made. during the past two and a half i years, and it would be a very un- ; imaginative man who di'd not rea- ' lise the marvellous work that had ; been. accomplished in. the past Referring to the early pi.one.ers, his ; Excellency saiil they had come out | to do something and wherever they j had gone they had maintained a ' goiden thread which united them to : the Old Country. That was why they laid emphasis on the fact that to the people of New Zealand Great Britain was Home. It was just in that expression "Home" that gave glory and strength to the Empire, with each Dominion a daughter of her Mother's ' house, but complete mistress in her own. It was to maintain that link that visits of Governors-General were paid to the people of the Dominion. He reminded them of the time when the Dominion rallied to the call of the Mother Country and said now they had to repair the ravages of war. "This is no time to ignore, not oniy the sentimental part of the Empire, but also the material part," said Sir Charles, "and in New Zealand, with its vast tracts of country and productive icapacity, we must do our share to help the Old Country, just as the Old Country must attend to the wants of tht Do_ minions." It was ny co-operation that the real fabric of the Empire was welded and maintained. They must keep their house in order and make progress which was not a tnatter of Government alone. Democracy could j rise to very great heights and c:ould sink to a very great depth, and in e'ducating the younger people they could avoid the depths and achieve the heights. It was nonsensc for individuals to , be always asserting their rights. The only way thaC could be done was by everyone recognising his rc-sponsibilities and doing his share 'to the best of his ability. (Applaue.) They .could share the respons|bilities by faith, hope, love and work. They should have faith in each other, hope for the future, while their love could be translated as the greiatest of all. They should reconcile the interests of indus*ry with the interests of humanity, as goodwill and sympathy were essentials to progress. "Work, work, and again work," proceeded the Governor-General, "whether you have a ,conspicuous job or a dull and common-place one. In that way not only will you make New Zealand great, bijt you will make her people happy, prosperous and contented." That was his conception of Empire and he hoped such visits as he was paying would serve to stir up a sense of responsibility and urge them to do their utmost to hand something down to the young people. (Appause.) Turning to the children, Sir Charles congratulated the cadets on their smart appearance. The Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, he said, had begun the right way to build up the Empire, beeause their promises were the bedrock of service and the foundation of Empire. The Scouts and Guides could be prqud that they were setting out to jserve their God, King and Country., (Applause.) Sir Charles said theyi were assembled in one of the most jheautiful Gardens ' in New Zealand." (Applause.) "I would

like to say the most beautiful, but I might get into trouble elsewhere," he added amidst laughter. His Excellency quoted Kipling's description of a garden and said they were a little apt to forget the people who made the beauty and glory of a garden. Kipling had said that the Empire was a garden but it had not been made by merely saying, "Oh! How beautiful," and then sitting in the shade. "Stick to your job with cheerfulness and work till further orders, if it is only netting strawberries or killing slugs and you will fmd yourselves a partner in the garden. (Applause.) Whatever your joh is do it to the best of your ability and then you will be as much a partner in the Empire as the greatest statesman j that ever lived. There is just one j more thing," said Sir Charles. "I : would like the children to be given , a holiday in honour of my visit." (Loud applause.) PRESENT ATION OF BADGES. A pleasant little function took place when his Excellency presented three members of the St. oJhn Ambulance Brigade with long service badges. The recipients were: District Superintendent H. Grenfell (22 years), Divisional Superintendent W. J| Davies (17 years) and Sergeant R. Rusbatch (17 years). The Governor-General warmly congratulated each member and asked those present to realise that they had given 22 years and 17 years respeictively to voluntary work in aid of sick and suffering humanity. There were not many who could claim such records, .he said. He was sure all present would congratulate them on their selfsacrifice and wish them long life to wear the honours conferred upon them by the head of the movement in Great Britain. A TREE PLANTED. The Mayor reminded the gathering that when he was a boy a tree had been planted in the Gardens by Sir Arthur GorcTos, who was Gov- : ernor at tbfe time, and a happy ; thought had prompted them to ask j Sir Charles to do the same. ) His Excellency readily assented j to ,plant the tree and moving to the i i south-west corner of the lawn, he s ■ took a spade and toiled with evident j I enjoyment until a goiden ash was j i iirmly embedded in the soil. j AMONG THE CHILDREN. i In their coneern for the welfare ; of the children their Excellencies, Sir Charles and Lady Alice Fergusson, are genuinely sinfcelre and nothing pleases them more than to be among the happy, healthy youngsters of this virile Dominion. Yesterday Sir Charles appeared very much in his element when walking between the rows of children dravyn up in the Gardens and it was obvious that he was drawing great pleasure from his close association with the younger generation. He was highly pleased • to see seven companies of Girl Guides on parade, as the movement had not started when he was in Oamaru previusly. He said it was a splendid record and m'entioned how the move- | ment had spread with amazing ra- j pidity throughout New Zealand. Sir Charles was presented' to members of the Borough Council and their wives and also met and conversed with several other citizens. and members of local bodies. AT THE HOSPITAL. On leaving the Gardens, his Excellency was shown the handsome "Peter Pan" statuary presented by Mr Milligan and was very much interested in the work. He then passed on to the Public Hospital, where he met members of the Board and staff who entertained him to afternoon tea. An inspection of the institution was made, his Excellency shaking hands with every patient. His genial disposition made an instant appeal and he left ^ehind a very happy memory.