The Exhibition Closes.

Te Aroha News, Volume XXVI, Issue 43082, 16 April 1907, Page 2

The Exhibition Closes.

THE GOVERNOR’S SPEECH

(13y Telegraph—Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. The Exhibition closed at midnight. Among those present were the Governor, Ministers, and Admiral Fawkes. The scene was a brilliant one. At a ceremony earlier in the evening the commissioners of the Exhibition presented an address to the Governor traversing the work done and claiming that the Exhibition was the most successful ever held in the Australasian colonies. The attendance had been 1,970,000, The commissioners pay a high tribute to Mr Munro, general manager, and highly appreciate the services of all those who assisted to make the Exhibition the success it was. The Governor, replying, after referring to the work of the Commissioners and staff and the success of the exhibition, said it had first and foremost strengthened the links which bind New Zealand to her neighbouring sister States. Your visitors from the Commonwealth, from the islands and pacific, and from the Great Dominion will go hack with an accurate knowledge of your rapid progress, and I am confident, with a belief in your great future: The New Zealander in his turn has learnt through the exhibits of Australian firms and of Canada, and the courteous and able gentlemen in charge of them, more of the circumstances and importance of his neighbours than he could have grasped otherwise. Indeed, I believe that the wave of feeling which recently traversed this country in favour of a first-class service between New Zealand and Canada owes its strength as much to the colonial exhibits in this building as to the vagaries of the San Francisco steamers and if the Exhibition , served the noble purpose of bringing New Zealand into a closer and more sympathetic bond with other portions of our Empire, it has served a similar purpose by drawing together people of this colony, or, in the words of your address, “ fostering a national spirit among our people.” In concluding the Governor said “ Truly such a result is one which confers honour upon the name of the originator and upon those who have so admirably carried out, despite many difficulties, his imperialminded scheme.” The Governor cabled to King Edward intimating I the success of the Exhibition, and concludes “My Government will j feel assured that not only will the j Exhibition prove of permanent ad-j vantage to New Zealand, but will ! also have aided in strengthening the . ties which bind the colonies to each other —the Throne and the Mother Country.”