WELLINGTON'S TOWN HALL. LAYING THE FOUNDATIONSTONE.

Royal personages are allowed little time for rest on occasions such as the present. The clock "had recorded not five minutes after the passing of the Friendly Societies' representations, Avhen the ducal carriage was again at the door. His Excellency tho Governor left en route for the site of the foundation-stone first, and was followed by a carriage containing two of the Ladies-in-waiting attached to the Royal Party. Finally the Royal carriage, with the Duke and Duchess, drove off, receiving a Royal salute from the guard stationed at the entrance gates, and cheers of the crowd waiting outside. The drive through the streets to the Town Hall site, made at a trot, was a repetition of the morning's triumphal march, t A quick transformation was effected in Manners-skeet this morning, and a picturesque effect was obtained with streamers run across from verandah-posts. As the streamers were put up before the "double-decker" tramcars had ceased their running through that thoroughfare, much amusement was caused by the passengers having to "duck" in order to avoid the ropes, which were fixed low down. This exercise of "dodging the ropes" was particularly entertaining in the case of the warriors who wore busbies. The chief feature of Manners-street, of course, is the Chinese Arch, upon which the enterprising and artistic Celectial residents have been bestowing much care and attention during the past few: weeks. The chief artist, Ah Gee, was imported from 6reymouth, and he and! his many assistants have built up the most remarkable arch •of the whole series. Despite tlie rough weather of the past few days, which seriously affected the dainty furnishings of the arch, it made a fine appearance today. Cunning workmanship has been displayed upon flowers (such as never bloomed in the spring or any other season of the year) ; upon grotesqueries of animals i and "creepy" things, which never existed outside a Celestial imagination ; upon dragons of lurid huo and ferocious appearance ; upon dainty silks and gorgeous hangings; upon Chinese and Japanese lamps, festoons, drapings, and' a multitude of little things — a combination which goes to make such ' a picture as Weilingtonians have never previously looked upon. The arch bears inscription in letters "understanded of the people" and hieroglyphics which only a Chinese scholar could comprehend ; but all the phrases, English and Chinese, conveyed the same meaning— tho best of good wishes for the health and happiness of the Royal visitors. The ceremony took place in the presence of a large gathering of the public, including the Premier, Mrs. and Miss Seddon, Sir Joseph and Lady Ward, and the Mayor and City Councillors, besides the Royal and' vice ?regol parties. When the Duke and Duchess arrived ; /they were received with a loud outburst of cheers, the choir singing the National Anthem. After they had taken their seats, the choir, under the conductors ship of Mr. Maughan Barnett, sang the ode, "Arise, Zealandia," accompanied by the Garrison Band. The Mayor, in a short speech, invited His Royal Highness to-day to lay the stone, at the same time presenting him with the handsome trowel of New Zealand greenstone, gold and silver. J The stone was then lowered into its place, and in clear tones His Royal Highness declared it well and truly laid — an announcement that was received with loud cheering. His Royal Highness went on to sayMr. Mayor, ladies and gentlemen, — It is an interesting coincidence that the some- j what difficult task of arranging the dates j of our long voyage should have resulted j in bringing us to your capital on the 86th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo. In this way your new Town Hall, the foun-dation-stone of which I had the honour oi laying, will be especially associated with the memory of the Duke of Wellington, and with the crowning victory of his great career. The new buiJcttng, when completed, will, I* trust, fully the increased requirements of the extended municipal government of this ever-growing capital of the colony. You are fortunate i in Uying out new cities in that it is possiblo to secure ample space for your recre- j ation, the want of which is too often painfully evident in the large centres of the Ola Country. I feel confident in j this enlightened and intelligent community, the importance of securing the best j possible municipal administration will j always be kegt before the eyes of your statesmen and people, for nothing would more contribute to the physical and moral well-being of the country than the special pursuit of such an aim. The Duchess and I can. assure you we will long remember the splendid reception which your city has given, us to-day. (Cheers.) The Rev. J. Paterson engaged in prayer and .the ceremony terminated with cheers for the Royal visitors, who then drove back to Government House. tfHE DUKE IMPRESSED. , The Duke on arriving at Government House expressed his delight at all that he had seen in Wellington, and. stated that he was especially impressed* with the warmth of the greetings from 1 the people. TO-NIGHT'S ILLUMINATIONS. A very fine spectacle awaits the people of the crowded city this evening. The illuminations will, it is said, far exceed anything attempted in the Northern city during • the celebrations there, both in magnitude and general Jbeauty. A foretaste has already been given of what the illuminations of the public buildings will look like, but no idea has yet been formed of the extent of the preparations of business people and private citizens. As soon as night falls, light will flash out from a. myriad lamps and transparencies all over the city ; and along , the line of to-day's procession the scene I should be one of dazzling brilliancy and variety of colouring. In addition the naval squadron in port will illuminate nnd add to the beauty of the spectacle. TO-MORROW'S PROGRAMME. At noon to-morrow the men from South Africa will be the heroes of the hour, for they are to receive from the Duke of Cornwall and York their South African, war medals, Each medal carries

enough ribbon for the maximum of seven bnrs to which not a few of the members ot our Contingents are entitled. bars will, however, be presented with the medals to-morrow. About 150 returned officers and men will be on parade in front of Parliament Buildings,, where a special platform has been erected for members of Parliament and other guests of the Government. Their Royal Highnesses are' to leave Government House at 10 minutes to 12 o'clock, and drive to Parliament Buildings through Museum and Sydney streets. The Duke, besides presenting the medals, will ulso present the colours to the returned corps. The ceremony should prove interesting, and will no doubt attract an immense concourse of spectators. * At 3 o'clock the Royal visitors will receive deputations from local bodies, friendly societies, religious bodies, and representatives of other institutions who intend presenting addresses of welcome to the Duke and Duchess. In the evening a dinner is to be given at Government House, after which the Royal pair are to attend a reception given at Parliament Buildings by the Government. A large number of invitations for this function have been issued, and during the evening a special musical programme is to be given. The reception will not begin until 9.45 p.m., and will conclude at 11 o'clock. Tho musical programme for the reception will be provided by Madame Eveleen Carlton, Miss Jeanne Ramsay, Miss Flanagan, Miss M'Closky, Mr. 'W. B. Cadzow, Mr. John Prouse, and Mr. Arthur Hahn, vocalists, and Miss Elsie Hennah, violinist. An excellent orchestra, -under the conductorship of Mr. W. W. M'Laughlin, who also has charge of the general arrangements, will occupy the ladies' gallery of the House of Representatives j while a string band under. Mr. Minifie will play in the Legislative Council Chamber, which will be utilised as a drawing-room; and another, under Mr. F. J. Oakes, will play in the library room. Bellamys and five other large rooms will be utilised for refreshments. The great event for the mass of the pebple" to-morrow night will be the display of fireworks, which ' is to be made from hulks moored out in the harbour. The exhibition, for which an interesting programme of great variety has been prepared, comprising 34 separate events, is to begin at 7 o'clock, and at 9 o'clock the warships will take up their turn, making an electrical illumination the like of which has never previously been seen in the harbour. The public and private buildings will again show illuminations, nnd brass bands will contribute musical selections. Altogether, to-morrow evening promises to be the great show night of this season, of festivity. Thursday is to be an "off" day so far as public appearance of Royalty is concerned. Their Royal Highnesses are to tako a run into the country. But there willf be a unique aquatic displajfor holiday makers, including naval sports, marine explosions, nnd harbour excursions. At night more illuminations and music. On Friday morning, tho Duke is to lay the foundation stone of the new railway ofiices in. Thorndon, and at 3.40 p.m. theier Royal Highnesses will drive from Government House, to the Queen's Wharf, which tho Ophir is timed to leave for Lyttelton at 4 o'clock. AMBULANCE STATIONS,'"™"" The following are the ambulance stations for to-morrow. and Friday: — To-morrow.— Presentation of war medals: At various points round Parliament grounds and* Sydney-street. Members assemble at 9.30. Friday Morning.— Laying foundationstone of Railway Building : Museum and Sydney street, Charlotte-street and Lamb-ton-quay, Bunny-street and Featherstonstreet, opposite Railway Offices. Members assemble at 10.30. Friday Afterpoon.— Farewell ♦ Museum and Sydneystreet, Charlotte-street and Lambton-quay, Westport Arch, Lambtonquay and Grey-street, Wharf. Members assemble at 3 p.m. All members who are able to do so should patrol the streets in the evenings of /Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and be ready to render assistance if required. All members are to wear their badges when on duty, either during daytime or evening. RECIPIENTS OF WAR MEDALS. The following is the list of New Zealand soldiers to whom African war medals will be distributed by his Royal Highness the Duke of York to-morrow. First Contingent. — Veterinary-Lieuten-ant Neale, Corporal Bould, Farrier Barty, Privates Blair, Button, Batchelor, Trumpeter Brown. Privates Boucher and Butters, Regimental SergeantMajor Burr, Privates Catherall, Crump, Lance-Corporal Craig, Privates Crawley, Clevoley, Dawson, Edwards, Sergeant Foster, Privates Franklin, Goble, Gestro, GlasgoV, Galpin, Hunt, Corporal Home, Lance-Corporal Hedges, Privates Harding, Hanson, Kells, -Sergeant L'Estrange, Private Munro, Sergeant Morgan, Privates Muif, M'Gregor, M'Donald, M'Callum, Nops, North, Newman, Nairn, Corporal Palmer, Privates Powell, Parfees, Peebles* Payne, RiddeM, Regimental Sergeant-Major Rogers.tjuar-termaster-Sergeanb Rockatrow, Corporal Sheppord, ' Privates Smith, Toogood, Sergeant-Major Tuck, Privet© Valentine, Sergeant Watt, Privates Walker, Withers, Wiffen, Farrier Wallace, Private Wooffenden, Private Young. Second Contingent.— Captain Hutson, Captain Sommerville, Lieutenants Blair and Kelsall, Privates Aldworth, Barnes, Bierre, Boyd, Brennan, Bugler Bell, Privates Brown, Chapman, Cameron, Cook, Cotter, Davis, Escoft, Elmslie, Fin Fey, Sergeant Fitzgerald, Privates Feeney,' Gill, Gillespie, Godfrey, Saddler Grinton, Bugler Grimstone, Private Hilliar, Corporal Hadfield, Privates Heiford, Irwin, Johnstone, Bugler-Sergeant Jenkins, Privates Kendall and Knapp, Corporal Larsen, Privates Loach, Lambert, Bugler-Major Murray, Regimental Quartermaster-Sergeant Mollumby, Saddler manning, Privates Moor, M'Tavish, Neilson, Farrier-Sergeant Neilson, Sergeant Neale, Private Naylor, Corporal O'Reilly, Private O'Neill, Sergeant Price; Corporal Rees, Farrier Rubick, Privates Richardson, Ross, Rountree, Stackwood, Stubbs, Stevens, Spencer, Signal!, Som1 merville, ( Corporal Swainson, Privates j Smithson, Taplin, Thomas, D. P. Thurston, J. E. Thurston, Orderly-room Ser-. geant Thomson, Corporal Twistleton, Privates Usher, Valintine, Wood, Wade, Squadron-Quartermaater Wighton, Corporal Willett, Private Wright. Third Contingent. — Lieutenants Fitzherbert and Collett, Surgeon - Captain Godfray, Private Anderson, Corporal Baker, Farrier-Sergeant Barclay, Farrier Bradley, Privates Bremner, Bune-Mur-doch, Couchie, Clark, Colliuge, Ctvldwell, Corporal Davis, Saddler Dais, Privates Dyke, Dingan, Duggan, Davy, Drummond, Fraser, Foreman, Goldcr, Gilchrist, Goodwin, Gumbley, Garmondsway, Glasgow, Golding, Gordon, Hurrey, Hobson, Hughes, Heifford, Sergeant Hagenson, Farrier Humphries. Privates Jags, Joseph, Johnston, Johnstone, ■ Keogh, Sergeant Krull. Privates Lam- t j bess, Lloyd, Sergeant Langford, Privatp' Mountsey, Sergeant Mair, Private Montgomerie, Corporal Manning, Privates Mackenzie, Morrissey, M'Culloch. Ser-

geants M'Donald and jM'Lenrmn, Bugler .M'Lean, Privates M'Whirter, M'Cormick, AH'onayle, jSTewcombe, Saddler Otlen. Private Poullon, Corporal Page, Private Pcn-cuii, Sergeant-Majors Pleasants and Puton, Private.-! D. S. lloss, J. Roms, R. Richardson. S. Richardson, Sergeant T. Richurd.son, Corporal It. Simpson, Privates Stewart, X.lv. Simpson, Steednmn, Stent, Snxby, Sheffield. SmithTaubman, Yon Blareniburg, Corporal Vergetto, Privates Ward, Willis. Watt, Wellwood, Wright, Warner, Corporal Wilson, Privat.es J. Williams, A. U. B. Williams, and Walter. Fourth Contingent. — Lieutenants Collins, Ro&s, aud Johnston, Privates Banks, Baker, Boddington, Bruce, Clunie, Creen, Shoeing-Smibh Cameron, Privates Gibson, Hirtzell, Hopkins, Lean, M'Dougal, Farrier Rcttcr, Privates Ridley, Samuel, Stephens, Tully, Taylor, Udy, Wallace, and Bugler Wcllsby. Fifth Contingent. — Lieutpnatot-Colonel Newall, Captain Tanner, Corporal Braithwate, Privates Bodmin, Cameron, Cooke, Cook, Dobbin, Furlong, QuartermasterSergeant Francis, Privates Hume, Hayward, Harris, Corporal Jones, Privates Le Grange, Liggins, Moeller, M'Lean, Bugler Orr, Privates Ranger, Rose, Corporal Sullivan, Private Sewell, Corporal Thompson, Private Tester, Corporal Waite, Privates Williams, Yardley. xue following, who did not serve as members of the New Zealand Contingents, will receive their medals on the same occasion: — Captain A. G. E. Bingley, 2nd Battalion Royal Berkshire Regiment; Lieutenant Wall, New Zealand Permanent Militia ; Private Marshall, Ist South Australian Contingent; Trooper Myers, Ist Regiment Brabant's Horse; Trooper L. Henderson, Kitchener's Horse ; Trooper Keane, F Squadron, Roberts's Horse; Nurse E. M. Monson, Nursing " Staff ; Nurse M. E. Warmington, Nursing Staff. Some of those mentioned above will not ba present on the occasion, but most of them have intimated that they will attend to receive their medals from the hands of the Duke. The commander of the brigade of cadets (Captain Loveday) notifies that the Wellington cadets will embark by the Corinna at 3.30 p.m. to-morrow ; and the Wanganui and Hawkes Bay cadets by the Mararoa at 8 p.m. Those invited' to view the ceremony of laying the foundation-stone of the Kailway Department Offices, are requested by advertisement to be in their places by 11.15 a.m., as after 11.30 no one wi'l be adinittad to the enclosure. Directions as to tho.use to be made of tickets, and as to modo of approach for carriages are set out in the advertisement. Before leaving Auckland the Duke of York expressed to tho Hon. J. G. Ward his appreciation of the railway arrangements in that district, and of the manner in which the Royal carriage was fitted up and run. His Royal Highness desired Mr. Ward to convey this expression of opinion to the staff of the Railway Department. A notice to members of the orchestra for the Government reception of to-mor-vow night appears" in another column. For some days 'jefore the arrival of the Royal yacht liv. M. J. Hcaly collected a hugo heap of dry wood close to his residence on the hill overlooking Lyell Day. With the aid of a pair of powerful glasses he saw the Ophir, when she. was some mi'cs off the Heads and lie at once made a huge bonfire to notify that she was in sight. Other bonfives were soon blazing on other hills overlooking Cook Strait, and a very fine effect was produced. Lieut. W. F. Ross, of the Fourth New Zealand Rougjb Ridei's, who returned last week from South Africa, was unable to take part in to-day's reception or attend the luncheon, as he has been confined to his bed for the last few days, under orders from his medical adviser. *