VALEDICTORY
MR A. G. SEELEN
The departure of the Methven postmaster, Mr A. G. Seelen, was the occasion of a very representative gathering of the public of the district in the A. and P. rooms on Tuesday evening. Mr Seeleii has been transferred on promotion to Dunedin, and the people of the district met in strong force to say good-bye to him. Mr J. Carr, chairman of the local authority, presided. During tho evening a lengthy toast-list was honoured, and harmony prevailed for several hours. Songs were contributed by Messrs Irwin, Smith, Cane, and Pearce, and the Rev. C. L. Sparrow, and recitations by Messrs Tomlinson and Pearce. Mr Cane gave a pianoforte solo and also acted as accompanist. In presenting Mr Seelen with a handsome cold watch, suitably inscribed, Mr Carr said that when Mr Seelen arrived some years ago he came with quite a reputation, and 'he had certainly sustained it during his stay in Methven. During his term of office the business in all the departments under his charge had increased tremendously, especially the telephone exchange, which now stood next to Ashburton in the number of connections in the province of Canterbury. Mr Seelen had been faced with great difficulties during the war period owing to frequent staff changes, hut in spite of thin he had kept a uniformly high state of efficiency in the office'and been invariably courteous to all classes of the community. In conclusion, Mr Carr said he hoped that the guest's future career would be bright and happy, and that ho would always look back to his stay in Methven with some degree of pleasure. Mr Carr's remarks wore supported by Messrs Dart. Stone, Campbell. Dohertv, J'essep, Morgan, Smith, and Roll. Mr Seelen thanked the residents for the great honour they had shown liim and for their handsome present. He said he had much enjoyed his stay in Methven, and he was leaving it with a great deal of regret. The district had a great future, and he felt proud that he had been connected with it for some years.
Earlier in the * evening the Post Office staff had presented Mr Seelen with a solid silver cigarette case as a token of the pleasant- relations that existed between him and his subordinates.
During the evening Mr Carr took the opportunity to welcome to the district Mr Allen, Mr Seclen's successor.
VALEDICTORY
Ashburton Guardian, Volume XL, Issue 9897, 30 August 1919, Page 6
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