THE BANQUET

Waikato Times, Volume XI, Issue 898, 26 March 1878, Page 2

THE BANQUET

Was held in the large room eof th Commercial Hotel. About forty gentlemen safe down to dinner at 7 o'clock. The room had been tastefully decorated as on a previous occasion, by Mr Mason, who shows great taste in this very dedicate operation, for it is a somewhat difficult matter, as Mr Mason succeeds in doing, to give richness of ornamentation without overdoing it, and to work art as nearly as possible resemble nature. Now, too, as then, Mr and Mrs Pearce showed themselves well worthy of the confidence reposed in their ability to turn out a dinner irreproachable in the character of its cookery, and, for an upcountry township, such as to surprise the expectation of the most sanguine in its great variety. This time the viands were placed upon the table, making a good and tempting display. The wines were excellent and abundant, and deserved the encomiums which were liberally bestowed upon them His Worship the Mayor occupied the chair, having on his right hand His Excellency the Governor, and on his left Col. Lyon. Tne first toast, as is usual on all' public occasions, was " The Queen,' and was drunk with all die loyalty and respect. The Chairman then proposed, "His Excellency the Governor." He said:—

The toast which I have to propose is one which I am sure will be responded to in a manner that it deserves. I believe this is the first official visit His Excellency the Governor has paid to the Waikato; therefore, it ig the first opportunity we have had of expressng to him the loyalty aud affection we entertain for our Most Gracious S<;v iivign Lady Queen Victoria, sun! we should not allow it to pass without giving Mis Excellency a hearty welcome, which, as the representative of Her Majesty, be so justly deserves,

Hamilton is a very young settlement although it now assumes the importance of a Borough ; therefore, we are unable to give His Excellency such a reception, in point of display, as many older places have done, but we have done our best, aud I feel certain it will be appreciated by him. In conclusion, I have great pleasure in proposing the health of His Excellency the Governor, and I cannot sit down without expressiugimy regret, which lam sure is felt by everyone present, that (he delicate state of Lady Normanby's health prevents her accompanying His Excellency on his tour through the district; but I sincerely hope that the bracing air of the Waikato will be the means of restoring her to health, and that His Excellency and his lady may live long to enjoy it. Gentlemen, I give you the health of His Excellency. In reply, His Excellency said Mr Mayor and Gentlemen, I thank yon for the very kind manner in which you have received the toast, and for the manner in which you have received me in your district. It is a very pleasant feeling to see how cordially Her Majesty's representatives are received in every part of her colonies. I value your reception to-day because it comes from the heart. This feeling in the Colony is most satisfactory. I am not, however, surprised to see it, for the colonies are placed in a very favorable position. You have a Queen who has endeared herself not only to her subjects but to all peoples, and whereever you go you hear her name mentioned with respect. You belong to the freest country in the world, for even in Italy •■- which perhaps comes nearest in freedom—you do not find the same liberty and good Government as in England. If you look to republican Francn you will not find the same freedom. Even in the great republic of America you will find liceuse but not freedom. Within the last year or two we have been shocked by the account of frauds and peccuiations whicb would make Englishmon's hair stand on end. I have said enough to show that England is the freest country in the world. The same free constitutions have been distributed to all her colonies throughout the world. It is as uear an approach as can be secured to the Constitution of Great Britain. You have self-government, you have the management of local resources, and can change and modify your Constitution. It cannot, however, be denied that this constitution, which acts so well iri England docs not always act so well in the colonies. I have had large experience, and I will tell you why this difficulty sometimes arises, You are in our colonies accustomed to see things spring- -apace, to see cities grow up in a day, and you expect to see political matters advance as fast. Even I can remember the first Reform Bill and in latter years there have been various progressive changes but the difference of working the constitution at home and in the colonies is—at Home, we have more patience and more mutual concession. We don't expect sudden changes, but, sooner or later, a popular measure does become law. The Constitution is a delicate machine, which may be regulated by yielding here or there, as tho ease requires. This is what is needed to make the Constitution —what the mother country has given you work smoothly. .Don't be in too great a hurry Have patience and forbearance, and if this were pursued in Viotoria there woald be an end to all clifncnlt}'. Speaking personally of my present visit it is a satisfaction to come among you" on the present occasion. I know the diffi culties you have gone through and I can congratulate you on the advance you have made. I can only hope that advancement will progress year by year till it finds you fhe happy and industrous and prosperous people of a flourishing district.

Mr Cox then proposed the health of the Ministry couplingJJ it with the key... >- •- Jun. Col. Whit-

| more, and paying Col. "Whitraore a | high compliment as a commanding officer, stating, that if he did as good service as a statesman as he had done as a soldier, the I country was to be congratulated on his accession to office. Col. Whitmore said, in kindly I receiving the toast, the company ! were receiving much upon trust. As yet their work had been con- ! fined to promising. Still they had been most favorably received as a Ministry by the Country. The present Ministry was essentially an Auckland Ministry He hoped, therefore, Auckland constituencies would not be impatient if cheir interests seemed neglected. With two such powerful members of the Ministry as Sir G. Grey and Mr Sheehan, there w;is no fear but that Auckland would receive full justice. Much depended on the loau, but in the state of the money market at. home it was not wise to press the raising of money, and thus many works must necessarily stand over. They have credited him with more than he deserved ns a military commander, We all dil our duty ii the field, and in the ye;irs to come the efforts of the colony in the late struggle will be duly appreciated. I may fairly say, continued j Colonel Whitmore, th-a oui- conduct I (from private to com rmwder) com- | parea very favorably with the same i

ranks in the forces of the Imperial ; Government. I shall always feel proud at the way in which the settlers did their duty. Mr Claude then proposed the Army and Navy. Captain Maling, in reply, said it was needless for him to relate the deeds of the Army and Navy. History had put these on record. He was about to leave New Zealand and went with the happy recollection that on every such occasion as this both servces were remembered. Betore sitting down he would propose the health of the Colonial Forces. Col. Lyon returned thanks in a few words, giving credit to the Colonial forces for their readiness and promptitude intimesol exigency. The force which he at present commanded were engaged in the peaceful occupation of road making, but if ever called upon for active service they would. be found ready at the post of danger Col. Whit more proposed "The Borough of Hamilton." He did so with pleasure, as it w-\s the part of the Government to encourage the creation of municipalities as much as possible so as to consolidate local Self-Government into the hands of Borough Corporates. The difficulty was to get young Boroughs to undertake the work. People were afraid of rates. Hamilton had not, done so and for this reason he felt pleasure in proposing the toast, also because it showed what this great district had done, and was an earnest of what it would do. Fourteen years ago he 'rode through the country with another gentlemen who said if the whole was given to him for Is an acre he would not take it. Erom the experience of this gentlemen he had always had a doubt of the district, but what he now saw, and the fact that one town had already been created into a borough, had showed him that his frieud's prediction was not altogether to be cK pended upon. He hoped to-morrow to sea for himself in the district of Cambridge some of the practical -work they had done. The readiness, too, of the people of Hamilton to do honor to the representative of Her Majesty had convinced him of the intelligence and loyalty of the people of Hamilton.

His Worship the Mayor responded as follows:

la rising to respond to the ftwst which you have been pleased to propose and drink with such enthusiasm—on behalf of myself and the Borough Councillors, I have to thank you most heartily. I feel that this is a proud day for Hamilton, when we look back and consider what it was only five years since, strangers at that time visiting the Wa'kato, arriving on this very spot where we now are, would be led to exclaim, < Whei*e is Hamilton V The only house that would attract their attention was the Hamilton Hotel—then not one sixth the size it now is, and it was not until you descended the hill and nearly reached the punt that you became aw ire that there were anv places of business at all, and those consisted of four or five shanties built upon Government land, which were used as stores nnd a butcher's shop. Therefore, I say we have reason to be proud of Hamilton in its present improved and prosperous condition. It is unnecessary for me to comment upon the business like appearance of the place and the character of the buildings, further than that many of them I am sure are quite equal in qualify and design, although ,ot so large asanyin Auckland. We have competition in nearly every branch or profession and trade and to judge from appearance they are all doing pretty well The lawyers in particular to judge from the appearance of the offices. Referring to the Borough as I said before it is very young, but I am happy to say from past experience of the Councillors with whom I am associated they one and all are anxious to promote the welfare of the place, without consulting their personal interests which is a matter of the utmost importance in the advancement of a town or country, and I look forward t the time when Hamilton will be considered one of the leading cities in New Zealand. Mr F. A. Whitaker proposed "The Commercial Interests," and deprecated such a toast, of all toasts, being placed in his hands. Mr K. Hill returned thanks.

Captain McPherson proposed the agricultural interests. He thought he must have been chosen as knowing least of all upon the subject, and as having been least successful. This he could say, the soil and climaie of Waikato was second to none in the colony. In New Zealand every man turned farmer, and in no part of New Zealand could a man with little experience succeed better than in Waikato. Our Auckland friends complained that Waikato had not produced crops in the quantity that was expected from them, but the railway and the progressive advancement of the country would alter all this, and before long Waikato would take its place ajs the largest grainproducing district in the North Island. Mr Seddon replied to the toast. " The Press," "The Ladies," and " The Host and Hostess," were severally proposed, and duly responded to, and the company broke up and separated about half-past ten o'clock.