HIS EXCELLENCY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4032, 8 February 1892, Page 2

HIS EXCELLENCY.

Fwoweil Banquet at Dunedln, Duhedin, February 7. The farewell banquet to the Governor was held in the Garrison Hall last night, and was attended by about 200 gentlemen, The-Mayor presided and was supported at the head of the tables by the guest of the evening, the Postmaster-general, the Hon W. H, Reynolds, Hon G. McLean, Hon B. Oliver, Hon W. D. Stewart, M's.LC, the Hon T. Fergus, Messrs H. S. Fish, D. Pmkerton, M 's.H.E., and Major-General Sir A. C. Stepney, Among the others, present were Messrs Soobie Mackenzie, T, M'Kenzie, J, Mills, W. W, Earnshaw, M's.H.R. The loyafi toasts and that • of the Army™ Navy, and Volunteers having been disposed of, Mr E, B, Oargill, vieechairman, proposed the toast of "The Governor," His Excellenoy, in.replying,..returned thanks for the manner in which tbo toast had been proposed and received, He felt he was' addressing a sympathetic audience inolined to be "To his faults a little blind, And to his virtues ever kind," If he had learnt nothing else, he hai learnt iu the Colony that there was no party, no sootion v/hioh sought to criticise in a hostile manner the aotions of the Governor, All men; prepared to look on him as an honest man endeavoring to do his duty. He I believed it was because all looked on : the Governor as the visible link between the.colony and the grand country whioh all called Home b> 1 cause the Governor represented, hoW--1 ever unworthily, that blameless YiljL that sympathetic nature, and that which had been so fertile in blessings \ to the whole human race, Her i Majesty Queen Victoria. He referred ■ to the many bereavements which Her . Majesty had suffered, the last, being j that of her grandson. Loyalty had 3 been called sentiment, but sentiment » was a powerful factor in every dsy r life. ' I believe,' he went on to Bay, I ' none of us have seen, none: of us , have conceived a cause of quarrel, or difference of opinion whioh shall be ■' strong enough to burst asunder ' those bands which for so many years [ have bound together the interests of s England aud of Australasia,' (Loud " and continued applause,) Later on. His Excellenoysaid; 'Let us see i for a moment what is the meaning of f the British Empire. Doos it not !! mean, gentlemen, that the Anglo--Saxon race has got hold of the fairest portion of the world's surface, and means to keep it? (Loud applause.) The problem before us is how to keep it. He ventured to think that lojaltv to the Empire consisted, in cqnaidef itj|| how we'oopjd best seoure that the whale of England andher dependencies s shall be free from danger from a foreign foe. England should never lose the great advantage whioh was given to her by Drake, by Blake, by Frqbjsher, and by Nelson,—the glori- ■ otis title of 'I Mutres,3 q( the Seas," <• (Loud applause), had done muoh to seeijre 'this by'thejr gontrr ? buttons towards the Auxiliary Squadi ; ron, He did not look bo muoh to an Imperial federation as to the idea of [ an Imperial alliance; to an Empire in which the grand motto of Scotland, ', "Nemo melrnpuneLacessit," should ' liespoken as muoh by every 'bran ' [ of the Impei ial tree was by the trunk , itself. Lord Onslow aid he had seen sweet girl but had not seen [ pretty misses going to the poll. After I referring to what he had not seen, he l went on to Bay, "I have seen the i solidarity of labour; I havo soen the I working men exhibit their loyalty to j each other, tried by the truest test i trials—the pinch of hunger. I h 5» seen men stick 1 to each other even' when they had a bad ' %' sajfj sir, that that was worthy of a 'bettor |. cause, (Applause,) I hare seen the . determination on the part of the $-. dustrial classes to be represented by ' some p( thejr own mates' jq the jjajf j liam'ent of t||o cqloi}y, and \ t noted' the dijjerencp between tbesi , true representatives of the people and. the would-be champions of the work- ' ing men, [Loud and continued applause,] I have found the former to be conscientious, honest men with a graro sense of the responsibility that J rested upon them, and a sincere desire to do their best for their con' , stituents, and have found the others tp ■ be men who regarded working men ! only as men with shoulders broad , enough for them to climb up upon • them, if not to gain fame, it least ip ' notoriety. [Loud and prolonged ap'| ; , plause.J Gentlemen, the next Ear? , liaraent in Epgjapt} wilj. most ce.pi tainly contain a large nuqiber kk J labour representatives. [Hear, heartr , I have not the slightest' fear for the , failure of the Empire, because these • men will take a share in the shaping of it. [Applause.] 1 am one of'those [ who have no fear of the democracy, but , I confess that I havo some dread of [ the smooth tongues of the plausible > demagogue. [Applause,] Since the i great dock strike irr London, since | the Aiißtr l aliahs l^afeel '{or*ard With _ their sympathy end their purses,' It | had been abundantly, clear that the , influence of labour is one part of the | world was keenly felt in other parts of the world, especially of the English i speaking world, 1 And they, had not muoh to fear frpm slstesmen'i The responsibility of sMtestneaqf;: those : days did' ooi'-fsvail

themselves of the irretrievable opportunity for promoting Imperial federation at tbo time when self-govern-ment was conferred upon Australasia. Bat the duties of the statesmen of the future weroso interwoven, all so bound together, that they may by no possible change of circumstances bo evor swept asunder and separated, [Applause] His Excellency went on to say that ho would shortly resume his place as a party man in England, He should feel thai he owed to the people of New Zealand a deep debt of gratitude, which ho felt lie could never repay. Ho would always entertain a love and affection for this Colony, which must tinge the whole course of the actions of Iris future life. [Loud and continuous applause,] ' Gentlemen, whatever may bo the futuro of political parties et Home, I shall always ha engaged fighting on the side of those whose cardinil policy, sotting aside all minor considerations, is that of strenglh.ning the Erapiro all over the world, and promoting the social welNbeing of the people at Home,' [Lou>l and enthusiastic applause,]