THE PAPAL DELEGATE.

Taranaki Daily News, 25 November 1921, Page 6

THE PAPAL DELEGATE.

WELCOMED AT HAWERA. . ENTHUSIASTIC GATHERING. Great enthusiasm prevailed yesterday amongst the Catholic community of ,Hawera on the occasion of the visit to the town of Archbishop Cattaneb, Papal representative for Australasia. The visitor, accompanied by Archbishop O’Shea, arrived at Hawera just after twelve o’clock. He was met at Tongahoe Hill by about one hundred motor cars decorated with flags and streamers of yellow and white, the Papal colors, which formed up behind his car, and on the way to the Catholic Church in Victoria Street, a bodyguard was provided by members of the Hibernian Society, and the procession was headed by the Hawera Municipal Band. There was a large crowd waiting in Victoria Street, where a triumphal arch of greenery had been erected. All the Catholic clergy of South Taranaki and the Convent school children of Manaia and Hawera were present. School children with flags lined each side of the street, th© girls dressed in white dresses with yellow sashes, and the boys wore yel-

low and white rosettes, and the cars passed down an avenue of wildly waved flags. The church was generously bedecked with many flags, and in the grounds a platform was erected for the official welcome.

A line of little girls was formed up in front of the speakers’ platform, each bearing a letter of welcome in the Italian language. When His Excellency appeared an enthusiastic cheer arose, and those present sang a “Song of Welcome.” SPEECHES OF WELCOME. z Dean Power, in his own name as parish priest of Hawera, and in the name of the clergy of South Taranaki, welcomed His Excellency to their midst. His visit was an act of gracious courtesy, and because he came from the very source of pastoral power, from the side of the Pope, they felt that they were in the presence of the Holy Father himself, and their hearts overflowed with the deepest reverence for his august person, and with unbounded loyalty to his ecclesiastical throne. Henceforth they would prize more highly those gifts which the Pope had created, preserved and handed down. They would prize, above all, the freedom of the church, and by their enlightened zeal become ramparts of that freedom. The church must be free in teaching truth if the lives of men would be ennobled; her voice must n‘ot he silenced, nor her words bound. She must be free in dispensing grace; it would be to them a sacred duty to repel every attack upon her sacraments and to ’stanc, in particular. in defence of the marriage bond around whose sanctity war against Christianity was being waged to-day. She must be free in inculcating virtue, and they would, therefore, uphold thc-ir natural and Divine right to build their schools and safely lead their little ones to the feet of 'Christ. It was with; feelings of thankfulness far beyond his power of expression that they seized this opportunity of declaring their loyaf love for him who was now gloriously reigning. This declaration they laid st His Excellency’s feet as his representative.

Mr. E. as a member of one of the oldest Catholic families in the district, welcomed the visitor on behalf of the people. They regretted that his stay was necessarily so short, but it was an honor they would never forget. They trusted that his visit would give him pleasant recollections and manifest evidence of the. growth of this holy faith in the Dominion. This district had been endowed with many mutual advantages, particularly in climate and quality of soil, and the fortunate dwellers had made great and rapid strides in material progress, with which the growth of their holy religion had kept pace. His Excellency would be delighted to see the fifty consecrated churches and schools established in the district. They were grateful to him for his kindness* in coming amongst them, and asked his bfessing that they might become more and more worthy children of the glorious Pontiff, Pope Benedict the Fifteenth.

Little Miss Louise Brady, in a pretty speech, welcomed the visitor on behalf of the children, who had heard with delight that His Excellency had expressed a particular wish to see them, and they would gratify his paternal nearu by promising to be forthwith more worthy children of the Holy Father who had sent him to them. They would pray God to see His Excellency back soon to see the grand church that they and their parents were going to build with their savings in honor of Our Lord in the blessed sacrament. They asked His Excellency to 1 less them that they might be good children and a credit to their parents, their teachers and the church. - Those present then sang “Long Live the Pope” before His Excellency replied. HIS EXCELLENCY’S REPLY.

His Excellency, in reply, said that if he was glad to be present to receive demonstrations o-f loyalty to the Pope at various parishes, he was more giaci to be at Hawera, because he could say without discrediting other places that this demonstration had outbidden all. If he had to reply to all the compliments he could not do so in a worthy manner, because the sentiments were expressed in such a beautiful way, and the demonstration they gave him, and through him the Supreme Pontiff, was so great and glorious that he could not find any words to express his great joy at being present. He might say only this, that the joy was so great that he thought he would be incapable of expressing to the Supreme Pontiff what he had seen when he made his report on his trip through Australia and New Zealand. He could not find even sufficient phrases even in his own Italian language to express the sincerity of admiration which had been given by the people of the beautiful parish of Hawera and of the adjoining parishes. Some of them had come long distances, and they had prepared many beautiful things, even a welcome in trie Italian language, and he could not, even if he had time to present them with an address in answer, find sufficient words to express his feelings. The demonstration was a sincere proof o-f their sentiments. It was not an external demonstration and display of flags, or of external compliments, but it came from the very core of their hearts, and he was sure that the sentiments which had been expressed for the children made them more forcible. He. complimented the parish priest for his inspired words, and thanked them all very much for the manner in which they had received him. He would never forget the demonstration, and his memory of his visit to Hawera would always remain in his heart. He would like to shake hands with them all, but they were too num*

erou's. (Laughter.) They had asked for his blessing. He blessed them in the name of the Supreme Pontiff, and he intended the blessing also for all wno were unable to be present. He would like to say a special word to the children, and to tell them how very mucn impressed he was by the very nice words they had told him, and especially I the promises they had made him co i be better children and to be more pious in their prayers. These were not simply words, but promises whibh must be kept. In conclusion, His Excellency said: “How about a holiday? (Laughter.). Not to-day; you have had a hard day preparing to-day. To-morrow and Saturday, and Sunday. Are the examinations all over?” He was assured that this was so, and caused much amusement by continuing, “Well, then, Monday and also Tuesday. You come to school on Wednesday, and during these days remember to say a short prayer for me.” Mr. Hooker called for cheers for His Excellency, for Archbishop O’Shea, and for the Dean, and there was a hearty response. After the reception His. Excellency was .entertained to lunch by Dean Power, and then left by ear for New Plymouth. The ears which had met the party followed his ear to Norm an by. Short stops were made at El th am and Stratford oh the way to New Plymouth. a