MR A. W. RODGER

Southland Times, Issue 18843, 8 June 1920, Page 5

MR A. W. RODGER

PUBLIC SERVICE RECOGNISED. A HANDSOME TESTIMONIAL. A dozen or so of the business men of Invercargill-invaded the offices of the Southland Electric Power Board yesterday morning and demanded the attention of the chairman, Mr A. W. Rodger, for a few minutes - . His Worship the Mayor (Mr John Sie.ad) in a few words explained to Mr Rodger that the magnificent work he had done for Southland, at the cost of much time, labour and money, during the last four or five years had not passed unnoticed, and some of the business men of the town had made up their minds that they must assert their right to bear at least part of the financial sacrifices involved. The Mayor eulogised Mr Rodger’s public work generally, but particularly his crowning achievement in initiating anti carrying through the electrification scheme. In bringing that great movement to success Mr Rodger had done a service of incalculable value for Southland and its people. In addition he had attracted the attention of the rest of the dominion to this province, making the people further north, who were sometimes inclined to be critical in their attitude towards Southland, realise that it was not always at the tail end of things but could load a national movement. Mr Rodger’s work had had an influence through the whole dominion, for Southland’s lead had been followed in other districts. The business men who had subscribed to the testi monial did not ask to recompense Mr Rodger for Ins services or to make good his sacrifices, and he would emphasise the fact that the presentation was in no sense a payment but only an acknowledgment. It was in that spirit that they offered the gift and because of the spirit which prompted it they hoped that Mr Rodger would see his way to accept it. Never had he taken [tart in any function that gave him greater personal satisfaction, and as for the people of Invercargill and Southland, Mr Stead said, he thought he could assure Mr Rodger that they were proud of the work he had done and of the results he had achieved. (Applause). His Worship then read the following letter addressed to Mr Rodger and signed by the subscribers to the presentation;—-

“Dear Mr Rodger,— “As chairman of the Southland League and tlie Southland Electrification Committee you have for several years and with unexampled generosity, been spending your time and your money in strenuous and untiring endeavour to advance the interests of Southland. Your activities have, we are sure, been prompted by patriotic and unselfish motives and have been carried on without fee or reward. Your successful work in connection with the scheme for the electrification of Southland will, we are convinced, result in enormous benefit to the people of the district. Wo as business men have interests in the district which will, we believe, be greatly enhanced by the promotion of your great scheme, and we feel that the least we can do is to see to it that you are not permitted to continue your selfsacrificing efforts without an attempt on our part to make you some return if only by way of acknowledging a past debt which the people of Southland can have little hope of ever being able to repay. With this object in view' we gladly and respectfully rusk you to accept, as such acknowledgment, the attached bank draft for £2OOO, accompanied by our best wishes for your own prosperity and for the success of the great undertaking with which you are so closely identified.” (Loud applause). The Mayor then handed the letter and bank draft for £2OOO to Mr Rodger and repeated that the present was only an acknowledgment, or part acknowledgment, of valuable public services rendered, and public work achieved, at great personal sacrifice. (Applause ). On rising to respond, Mr Rodger received a very cordial expression of the goodwill and esteem of the gathering. Speaking under the stress of emotion obviously sincere and profound, Mr Rodger said that he had j never been placed in a position in which he had found it so difficult to say what he I would like to say. He appreciated very highly their friendship and goodwill and he intended to accept their splendid gift, but he would tell them that it was the first time in his life that he had accepted money from anybody. As for his work, he had done it for the pleasure of doing it, and so long as his services were acceptable to the Board and the people of the district he would keep on tit it till the electrification scheme was in operation and a complete success. (Applause). He might say that when he retired from active connection with patriotic war work on the formation of the Southland War Funds Association he felt it necessary, when everybody else was doing something, to lake up public work in some form, and his mind turned to something that would help flic province to maintain its position in the struggle after the war and help it to deal with the problems that would come in the train of the war. That was the real genesis of the electrification scheme. He could not adequately thank them for their gift but with their permis sion he proposed to do one thing. The real sacrifice had fallen upon Mrs Rodger; and if they would allow him to hand on the cheque to his wife he would be able to do what would give him greater pleasure than anything else. He could only thank them again very sincerely for their generous and handsome gift. (Applause). The Mayor said that the presentation had been subscribed by a comparatively small group of business men but he fell sure that public feeling would lie unanimously in sympathy. W'hcn the people read in the press what, had been done they would say to a man that the recognition of Mr Rodger’s services shown lhat day \va*t richly merited Cheers were given heartily for Mr and Mrs Rodger.