THE COLONIAL TREASURER. ARRIVAL IN AUCKLAND.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 161, 8 July 1895, Page 2

THE COLONIAL TREASURER.

ARRIVAL IN AUCKLAND.

AN ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION,

PRESENTATION OF ADDRESSES.

AN INTERESTING INTERVIEW.

The Hon. J. G.Ward, Treasurer and Postmaßter-General, returned to Auckland by the Canadian^ Auabralian Company's R.M.B. Warrimoo, which arrived in harbour oa Sunday. Mr and Mrs Ward have been absenb from New Zealand for a little over five months, and they are both in excellent health. They have been favoured with remarkably fine weather since their departure from the colony, both on the outward and homeward voyage, and especially between Vancouver and this porb, with the exception of a rather rough sea and a few squalls on Friday last, after leaving "Fiji. Mr Ward speaks in grabeful terms of the hearty hospitality- and courtesy he and Mrs Ward have experienced everywhere in the course of their travels. Bub,,notwithstanding this, and the many objects of interest they have seen, they are fain to confess that,'after, all, " there's no place like home," and thab for picturesque scenery, pleasant climate, and everivcomfort and refinement, there is no need to go outside New" Zealand. The Warrimoo, as will be seen by the report in our shipping column, made a very good trip from Vancouver,' and the divergence to Auckland will make no serious difference in the time of her arrival in Sydney. A report has gained currency in the columns of some of our contemporaries thab the Warrimoo would call at Auckland for . the express purpose of' testing the time occupied in this route, bub we have the besb authority for stating bbab^ bhe rumour is unfounded. The divergence was 'made by Mr _ Huddarb, the London manager, with the concurrence of the Postmaster - General of New South Wales, as an acb of courtesy to Mr Ward, so as bo enable him to reach Wellington with as little delay and inconvenience as possible. The Warrimoo lefb Victoria, British Columbia, ab midnight on Sunday, June 16th, ben hours laber bhan her advertised time. She reached Honolulu ab 11 p.'m: on the 23rd, leaving bhab porb ab 3 p.m. on the 24bh and arriving at Suva ab 6 p.m. on bhe 3rd July, only bwo hours later than her appointed time. She lefb Suva ab 11 p.m. the same nighb, arriving in this porb as above stated. We learn from Captaid Bird that there has been no intention to make a record trip, the Warrimoo having only made her usual average mileage from porb to porb. Had the object been to test thev practicability of making Auckland an intermediate porb of call withoub reducing the efficiency of the through service, bhe time occupied could easily have been cub down bo as to enable the Warrimoo to land her mails and passengers ab Sydney on bhe due date, July 9th. But as this would have disarranged the service as regards the other intermediate porbH of call, the ordinary timefor bbc accomplishmenb of the passage was adhered to. The Warrimoo was signalled soon after 11 o'clock, and came up the harbour in chage of the Wharfinger, Captain Duder, getting abreast of the Queen-sbreeb Wharf at 1 p.m. Some delay occurred in berthing the vessel, owing to "the strong wind and tide on bhe bow, and evenbually when she was made fasb, quite a large crowd had assembled to welcome the Treasurer. Mr and Mrs Ward were on deck as the steamer came alongside the pier, and cordial greetings were exchanged with numerous friends and acquaintances ashore. The gangway having been run oub, bhere was quibe a rush for the steamer's deck, and Mr and Mrs ] Ward were instanbly surrounded by a host of representative citizens. -The welcome was most enthusiastic and spontaneous, but by no means , formal, and passed off in a manner thab musb have been highly gratifying bo all concerned. Amongst those present to welcome Mr and Mrs Ward were His Worship the Mayor (Mr J. J. Holland), Inspector Hickson, Mr Granb (Railway Department), the Rev. Shirley Baker, Mr T. Thompson, Dr. Beale, Miss Seddon, Misa Louie Seddon, the Misses Baker. The Women's Political League was represented by Mesdame3 Kerr, Hendre. Collinga ; and the Workers' Political Reform League by Messrs Had field, Darlow, and Sandford ;" Trades and Labour Council, Messrs Ryecrofb, Tudehopo, and Johnson ; Knights of Labour, Messrs C. S. Wright, King and Dixon ; Liberal Association, Messrs Wilding, Beehan, and Napier. Mrs Ward was presented with handsome bouquets by Mias Ettie Regan (daughter of Mr James Regan) on behalf of the Trades and Labour Council, by Mr Bias on behalf of Mrs Firbb, and by Miss Seddon. ADDRESS OF . WELCOME. The following address of welcome was presented to Mr Ward by Mr Napier, on behalf of the Women's Political League, the Women's Liberal League, the Auckland Trades and Labour Council, the Workers' Political League, the Knights of Labour, the Central Council of Labour and Liberal Associabions, and bhe Liberal Association :— "Sir,—We the undersigned citizens of Auckland beg to accord you a hearty welcome on your arrival in thie ciby from Greab Britain. Your visit to the Old Country is recognised by both political friends and adversaries to have been productive of considerable benefit nob only to this colony, bub to the whole of Australasia. Thecalumniesagainsbbhecolony which were so persistently disseminated in Great Britain by disloyal New Zealand writers and speakers have been triumphantly refuted by you, and you have the proud consciousness of having placed New Zealand in a higher and sounder position before the financial' world than the country has ever occupied before. The successful raising of £1,500,000 ab an unprecodentedly low rate of interest, mainly through your exertions, for the relief of the farmers of this country, has meribed for you bhe special gratitude of the agricultural classes of this colony. We warmly congratulate you on frhe success of your mission, and thank you for the loyalty and devotion to New Zealand which you have manifested while in. England. Again welcoming you on your homecoming,—We are, etc., ' MR WARD'S REPLY. The Hon. J. G. Ward, in reply, said : Mr Napier, ladies and gentlemen,—l desire to return you my sincere thanks for the very great honour you have done me by presenting me with this address. I can assure you I come bo New Zealand again with a feeling of very greab pleasure, and lam more than delighted to see the shores of the colony once more. I had a duty to perform in leaving you. You have referred in the address to bhe detractions made concerning the colony, and which had been spread industriously in England, lb is very much bo be regretted thab bhere are people in the colony who subordinate bhe good of the country to their personal desire bo injure the men ab bhe head of affairs who are doing their best for the good of the country. In my opinion, no matter what parby is in power, or what Government is in office, if what is wanted is bo help build up the country and make ib a greater and a better one, even if there is a difference of opinion with the men carrying on the business of the counbry, these men should have your moral support. Ib is quite right and proper in the ordinary course of events to endeavour to pub into power people who do nob hold the views of tboße now carrying on the business of the country, but ib is neither right nor proper to abtempb to traduce the characters of men who are doing whab in their belief is, bhe best for the good of the country. (Applause)- Thab', gentlemen, we all know, was done in my ; own case. I did

I nob feel, as some peopleapparently thought I would feel-^I did nob feel in bhe least deterred by the debracbors who maligned me before and aftorllefbNewZealand. Neither did I during the whole time I was^ in London. And I wish to < say thab during the whole of that time no portion of the press, nob one of the papers in bhe great ciby of London, published a single line of the detracting statements which had. been made, with the distinct iobjecb of injuring the country. Ib showed.thab in London bhey'haye high-boned, honourable pressmen —men who would not, for bhe sake of gaining temporary advantage, forgeb what was due to one of the greatest institutions in the world—the Press. (Applaase,) THE LOAN. In bhe address you have referred to the loan recently successfully floated ab 3 per cenb. I am nob going to be egotistical enough to take all the credit of whab had been done, but I do say bhab nothing in my opinion has', been done more calculated to asoisfc the people of the colony to meet the troubles before them than the general lowering of the rates of interest which this must bring about, if ib has noli been broughbaboub already, both publicly and privately. I noticed only this morning thab some of my political opponenbs havo endeavoured to find reasons to excuse the successful floating of this loan. When ib was first mentioned thab we were to raise a 3J per cent., and then a 3 per cenb. loan, we were bold bhe rabe was entirely too low, and in certain quarters it was said bbab ib was bound to be a failure. Now when it has proved to be a greab Buccess whab do we find ? Those who had previously said thab disaster was bound to overtake the proposal, were now saying there was such a plethora of money that no other result.could have been attained than has been attained. (Laughter.) Let ib be remembered bhat there were two other countries known in London ab any rate who were going in for loans. If there had bden that plethora and their credit was bo high, why did they nob go in for a 3 per cenb. loan? They had nob bo fight againsb that which New Zealand had in'the way of published statements used toinjurethe country. The loan had gone off successfully, and it was said the plethora of money was alone responsible for it. Had the loan been a failure these same people would have been seen, many of them, trying to howl the Seddon Ministry out of power because their judgment was bad. I hope this reference to the matter will nob be considered out of place, bub when 1 heard menbion made of bhe matter in the address, it was particularly gratifying, because, as I'said in England and in New Zealand, bhere are no people more, conservative as far as finance is concerned than suoh as are signatories to the address. Everywhere I have been I have received every kindness, every courbesy, offered, I bake ib, as a compliment, nob to me, bub to the counbry I represenbed, and I would have been a very poor specimen of a Mew Zealander had I nob, in season and oub of season, publicly and privately, combated the observations wilfully > made to injure the colony. I took ib to be my duty to do this. Whether successful or nob, I did all in my power bo raise bhe credib of New Zealand, and you have this fact thab bhe colony now stands in the foremost rank financially of any of bhe Austailasian colonies. In fact, New Zealand's credib is as good as almosb any country in the world. (Applause.) PEDEBATION AND FINANCE. Remember whab was advocated by the chief advocates of federation for the Australasian colonies. Ib was bbab by a fusion of bhe differenb colonies they would improve credib, and be able to geb loans aba rate of say 3 per cent., and here you find, what ? Tbab one small colony, with a population of under BUO.GOO, in bhe face of being traduced publicly and privately, , has been able to do that which some of the greatesb statesmen of Australasia had said could only be brought aboub by federation. That must redound bo the colony's credib. No mabter whab parby is in power, or whatever differences bhere may be, when such a thing as this has been accomplished, they should shake bands, and congrabulatebbecountry npon havingsosuccessfully emerged from whab, a short time ago, was believed to be a bad position financially. It seems only yesberday that I was very hard at work across bhe water advocating New Zealand matters. Now, owing to the rapidity of travel, I found myself where I am delighted to be, in New Zealand, and going to assisb my colleagues, to assist as far as I can to further the policy to which bhe Gpvernmenb as a whole have given adherence to. SIE GEOBGE OBEY. ' I may take this opportunity of saying thab in coming up the harbour to-day I learned with very great regreb bbab bhe greab Pro-Consul, Sir George Grey, who so long and faibhfully represented the City of Auckland in the Bouse of Representatives, has, through ill-health, cabled bis resignation. This is a mabter for very general regreb. I saw him jusb before leaving London, and he then expressed bhe hope thab he would be able bo reburn bo bhe colony. Indeed, he had contemplated for a considerable time returning to the colony with myself. Unfortunately, Sir George's health was such that he feared baking bhe sea voyage, and bhe resulb has .been that his resignation has been tendered. AH will regreb Sir George's departure from bhe political arena for ever, a* far as New Zealand is concerned. I believe lam echoing bhe sentiments of the people of New Zealand in expressing regreb at the final retirement of the venerable and esteemed gentleman from the political arena. THE AUCKLAND.ELECTION., One has gone, and you have to find his successor. Let me say this—as the representative of the Government, I would ask the electors to remember one thing. There is an active, alert and vigilant Opposition composed of men anxious to displace the present Government, Unless there is preparedness to make self-sacrifice, to give and take in certain, things, to stand by whoever is selected for the position of member, in all probability you will be beaten. Therefore, I ask you, as men anxious to see the policy with which you, are associated carried on "successfully, to think the matter carefully and impartially out for yourselves, and whatever may be the differences of opinion amongst yourselves, when the right time comes be prepared to sacrifice something, and nob allow a splib in the parby, and one of the outsiders to come in. (Applauae.) I give you this advice and feel sure ib will be taken withoub offence. I am only desirous of seeing the city of Auckland represented in the House of Representatives by a member of the same party as that to which Sir George Grey belonged for so many years. Sir George has been in the forefront of political advancement in New Zealand, and his name has been known in every progressive country for years past. It.1 would then nob be a compliment to him if the majority of the people in Auckland showed, a desire to return one opposed to him. lam delighted jo see so many old friends this afternoon. THE WOBK OF THE SESSION. We leave for Wellington in a few hours, and in the ordinary course of events I will be receiving some very hard knocks. (Laughter.) Althoueh lam nob a pugilist with my fists, I can take hard knocks and can give tbem tooi (Laughber.) Ab any rate, I am always delighted to meet my enemies—my fees rather, for I do not believe I have any enemies. (Applause.) lam going to Wellington to assisb my colleagues in carrying on nothing new, but bhe well-defined policy laid out, not recenbly, bub when bhey first came inbo office. I have seen in London lebters about Ministers which positively made my hair stand on end—letters which contained references compared to which the 'term ap-

■plied to them,recently—" the five devils of Socialism"—was a fool so far as a figure of speech was concerned. Some of bhe statemen te circulated in financial quarters which was, afber all, the basis upon which New Zealand and all other countries stood, were astounding, aud were so unjust, unbrue, and malevolent, thab one could only assume that bhere were people in the colony pre-, pared to do anything bo discredit the country in order to put the present Ministry out of power. Thab was nob fair, and ib injured the country. The present Ministry migbb go out of office at any time and take their seats on the Opposition benches. Bub the party to which they belonged would never drag the name of the country through the mud in order to put their opponents out of power. They realise bbab they all ought, to bhe best of their ability, do whab they can bo further bhe interests of the country. The country 4s suffering from depressed prices. All countries are suffering from the same cause. The business of the Government will be bo assist to raise prices, to assist the producers from the soil, and help them, ab any race, to get the best poesible prices ab bhe lowesb possible cost. The Government's opponenbs have, a righb bo criticise their policy. Bub bhey have no righb bo injure the properties of people the sysbem of depreciation bo which I have referred. (Applause,) I have taken up your time a libble longer bhan I intended. 1 can only again convey to you my very sincere thanks for the honour you have done me in presentingthis address. Since we left New Zealand we have girdled the-earth, and I tell you from my aearb, thab so far as I have seen, I would not care to live out of New Zealand. (Cheers.), - Three cheers were given for the Colonial Treasurer and Mrs Ward, and tho proceedings concluded. DEPUTATION FROM THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. Mr Graves Aickin met bhe Hon. Mr Ward on arrival of the Warrimoo, and informed him that the Chamber of Commerce desired bo meet him previous to his departure for Wellington, for the purpose of presenting an address of welcome. It was arranged to meeb Mr Ward ab bhe Auckland Club ab 3 p.m., and ab bhab hour bhere was present a large and representative gathering, including : —Messrs M. A. Clark (chairman), R. B. Kent (vice-chair-man), R. A. Carr, S. Vaile, Graves Aickin, C. Seegner. These gentlemen represented bhe Chamber of Commerce. There were also present Hie Worship the Mayor (Mr J. J.: Holland), Messrs H. Brett, T. W. Leys, Tbos. Thompson, John Reid, A. Kidd, R.0. Young, P. A. Philips (Town Clerk). 'Mr M. Clark, Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, said it bad been arranged that questions should be asked the Colonial Treasurer, but owing to bhe day being Sunday.they now asked thabbheTreasurer's reply should be senb by post. Mr Clark bben read bhe following address, which he said would be engrossed :—"To the Hon. J. G. VVardj Colonial Treasurer and Postmaster-General of New Zealand : Dear Sir,—On behalf of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, we are pleased to have this opportunity of giving you an eariy and cordial welcome, upon returning to the. colony you so ably represented in England as Colonial Treasurer and Minister of the Crown. Tho steps you have taken to enlarge the trade of the colony, by effecting improvements in its communication with bhe rest of bhe world, bhus affording increased facilities tor trade, have been to us especially gratifying. As a result of your viaib to the Mother Country, marked abtention has been directed to the unique advantages of New Zealand, which in itself should materially improve our position as a colony, and benefit us commercially and financially. In the belief thab you have rendered most talented service bo the commercial community, as well as tho whole colony, we thank you most heartily. Permib us ab this time the privilege of in our welcome bo yourself the respected partner of your sojourning, Mrs Ward, who we hope has experienced much enjbymenb from her vieib to bhe Mother Country.—(Signed) M. A. Clabk, President." The Hon. Mr Ward, in reply, said: I desire to tender you thanks for your kindness in presenting this address. 1 can assure you thab you would yourselves, under similar circumstances, appreciate such a mark of confidence. Anything I have attempted to do during my absence from the colony has been prompted by a desire to do as much as I could to further the interests of tho country in which we are finding our living. I found in commercial and other circles a vaeb amouob of misconception about whab has been done and whab we are trying bo do in New Zealand. To the besb of my ability I attempted to place before the people abroad the position 'aimed ab, what was being attempted in connection with various industries, and above all to improve New Zealand's connection with outside countries for the devetopmenb of commerce. It appears to me as a man who has been for a long period of his life mixed up in commercial matters, that one of the things required bo be done is bo geb outside markets for our produce. All parties can shake hands over a matter of this sort. Unfortunately of late years produce has not been bringing very high prices, bub I am glad to be able to recognise that bhe distrieb of Auckland has been doing something through the great deVelopmenb which has taken place in mining. Although I made no public display of the matter in London, I was referred bo freauently about the district, and to the besb of my ability I gave such information as I could. I did nothing ab any rabe of an injurious nabure bo the efforts which were being made to develop the mining resources of the distrieb. In one or two mabters I was the medium by which some good has been done. I took ib all were anxious legitimately to use the advantages of the country, and to bring money to develop resources, and wherever I was applied to—and the applications, were very numerous, in aonio cases too numerous for my personal cojnforb—l gave the information desired. On the whole, personally, I was very satisfied with my visit bo London. I had bhe opportunity of meeting many people who were very much concerned in New Zealand, and who were anxious to know what we are trying to do. This applied to the commercial world particularly. Ib is very gratifying to me bo return and receive such a mark of appreciation as I have received today. lam very grateful for bhe allusion to Mrs Ward in the address, and I can assure you Mrs Ward will appreciate'it highly. » THE PACIFIC MAIL SERVICE. Having formerly replied to the address presented, Mr Ward, in course of conversation on general bopics arising out of his trips, remarked upon bhe importance' he abbached bo bhe subject of the proposals for con true tion of a Pacific cable. He could no doubt have said a great deal with respect to bis own negotiations with regard bo this and other mabters, bub could nob do so before fireb making his colleagues in bhe Ministry acquainted with the facts. He did say, however, thab ho thought the difficulties surrounding this projeeb had been very much exager-, abed. Too much sbreas, he considered,:had been laid on bhe claims pub forward for an [Imperial subsidy, and in this connection he : recalled the fact bhab bbc Eastern Extension Cable Company were nob granted any such assistance. TRADE WITH CANADA; Mr Ward could evidently have said a greab deal on bhe ppssibilies of trade between New Zealand and Canada. He has a keen eye for such openings, and when his formal report is published ib will be found to contain information of the very greatest value to this colony from a commercial pfjinb of view. Incidentally Mrvy.ard remarked bhac he believed- 'New Zealand

would find in Canada markets for her produce even "greater than in Australia. The western part of the Dominion, he believed, could be better 'Supplied with many of our at tides of export more advantageously than from the interior and disbanb parts of the i country. Ho: has, subject to the approval of his colleagues and ratification by Parliamenb, entered into a; reciprocal treaty with the Government of "Canada for the interchange of various products. ■ - This treaty Mr Ward said he believed would be highly advantageous to New Zealand, but he declined at thab stage to enter into details. PACIFIC MAIL SERVICES. ' lb is well' known that in the report Mr Ward has to make to Parliamenb bhere •will be found some ■•■proposals of impprbance with respect to the Vancouver mail steamship service. He was naturally reticent on this subjecb, - and was nob pressed for information. He did say, however, thab he, saw no reason why we should nob have both 'the * San Francisco and Vancouver mail service. On the present trip the Warrimoo is a full ship, and were she to call regularly at this porb mosb probably a new and mosb imporbanb outlet would be found for many of our leading articles of exporb. THE EASTERN QUESTION. Mr Graves Aickin remarked that one subjacb in which the Chamber had manifested some interest was the prospect of trade with Japan. Mr Ward, in reply, said he had given- this subjecb careful consideration, and would have something to say thereupon subsquently; Ab presenb he would only Bay thab he did think bhere was an opening for trade extension in this direction. He did, nob, however, bhink bhe. same conditions would apply to China. THE TREASURER INTERVIEWED. A representative of the Stab obtained an interview with the honourable gentleman, and elicited some information regarding his visit bo Canada, thus supplementing the lebber of our London correspondent, who has chronicled bhe Treasurer's doings in London up bo bhe date of his departure on the let ulb. After the cußtomary greetings, the reporter congratulabed Mr Ward pu his safe return to New Zealand afber a journey of less than thirty-six dayß from London to Auckland. . " Yes," replied the Colonial Treasurer, ■" Mtb Ward and I have had a very pleasanb and enjoyable brip, and have been able bo obtain a little much-needed rest and quiet after a very exacting round of official duties and social functions in England and Canada." Th6n I presume, Mr Ward, thab on the whole your trip has nob been quite the luxurious picnic which some of the Opposition journals have imagined ? By no means. In London I found the pressure of business so severe, and the übiquitous iriberviewers who came to me so numerous, thab I could only now and then snatch a brief interval to' visit a few places of interest in the metropolis, arid my time was so taken up that I was obliged to forego many attractions, and to decline a large number of invitations that came pouring in from all quarters. One feature which struck me both in England and Canada was the open-banded hospitality which the people extend to colonial visitors. Bub anyone who imagines thab my sbay in London was all beer and skibbles, is egregiously in.error. I was hard'ab ib up bo within a few minutes of my jumping lin bo a cab and being driven to the Euston railway station en route to Liverpool. I presume you crossed the Atlantic in one of the new ocean greyhounds ? Yes ; in bhe Cunard Company's Lnqania, bhe largesb and fastest passenger ship afloab, To give you some idea of bhis wonderful record-breaker, I may mention bhab in the passage bo New York she sbeamed 548 nautical miles in M hours, equal bo 634 statute miles, or an average speed of 26 5-12 statute miles —pet - houc T -,~-Qn—another; occasion,, between .8.30 a.'in; and 12 noon' on ther next day, she accomplished 610 ...knots,; .equal to 706 statute miles; in* 27ihrS; wojr 25 35tb miles an hour, while the general average of our passage right across the Atlantic equalled 25 miles an hour, and ib would have been even larger bub for the prevalence of a rather heavy sea for two days. There is one disadvantage attached bo bravelling wibh such rapidity, you have very little time or opportunity for observation. The voyage over the Atlantic, the short stoppages ab New York:, Montreal and Ottawa, and the flitting by lake and river and forest and prairie through the wild grandeur of the Rocky Mountains, with passing glimpses of villages and downs, and, again, the short runs ashore ab Honolulu and Fiji, leave an impression on ' the mind of the traveller like the transient scenes in some moving panorama. Whab kind of reception did you meet with en route?

The kindest imaginable. The people we met vied with each in showering courtesies upon us. Tho Canadian-Pacific Railway Company placed a special car at our disposal. Captain Bird, of the Warrimoo, and his officers did everything in their power to make the voyage from Vancouver as agreeable as possible, and we were fortunate in having a number of very nice fellow passengers. -;. Did you see anybhing in America worth introducing into New Zealand ? I spent a day in New York and visited a number of interesting places, among bbem the Telephone Exchanges, atone of which I balked wibh the greatesb distinctness on an ordinary instrument in every day use over a distance of 900 miles. A telegraphic message was sent bo Mrs Ward from Boston and was printed direct from bhe instrument and recorded in our presence. However, I found the Telephone Exchanges ab Honolulu even superior in some respects •,tjt;%^ajipf New York. Mrs Ward.and I also ascended bhe bower over bhe office of the "New York World," which is 23 storeys high, and commands a bird's-eye view, of the city and suburbs. i-Not far from the tower is anobher building in course of erection which is to con tain! 27 storeys. In fact, there seems to be a sort of craze for lofty buildings and ib is impossible to say where it will end. At presenb ib would seem bbab bhe craze is ac much due to bhe spirit of emulation among bhis wonderfully enterprising people as it is to the fabalonaly high prices of land in the cities. Then you went to Ottawa from New! York instead of the Halifax route ? Yes, up bhe Hudson River railway to Montreal, where we arrived early on Sunday morning, June 9th, and remained until 9 o'clock bhe same evening. We stayed ab bhe Windsor, one of the finest hotels in Canada,, and as regards comfort and the magnificence of the interior decoration, equal to any of the leading hotels in London. Montreal is a pretty,"well-builb city, wibh fine, straight level streets. There is an air of neatness and cemforb everywhere which contrasts strikingly with the bustle and feverish dollar-hunting of New V ork. The architecture of the buildings is tasteful and substantial. The footpaths are protected from the heat by shade trees. We reached Ottawa on bhe morning of the lObh, and during bhab day and the forenoon of the lltb, I was in conference wibh the Premier of the Dominion Government, Sir McKenzie Bowel!, the Hon. G. E. Foster, Finance Minister, and other members of the Cabinet on various subjects of mutual interest and importance to Canada and New Zealand. Telegrams which have reached here from Ottawa state that you have negotiated a reciprocity tariff between the two countries, and have enbered into nn agreement regarding bhe Canadian-Pacific mail service and bhe proposed cable. May I auk you, Mr Ward, if you can, withoub revealing Cabinet •ecrebs, vouchsafe any information on these heads ? Nob at present, As a matter of courtesy and Ministerial etiquebte, they muefc firab be.

communicated to my colleagues, and next they will require the ratification ;of the Legislatures of both countriesbefore they can be finally adopted. I may say, however, tbab I was much impressed with the remarkable energy and enterprise of our Canadian cousins as shown by the number of large and highly flourishing industries established throughout the country. We have many commercial interests in common wibh Canada, and could exchange many producbSiWibh mubual profib and advantage, developing in course of time a large and growing trade. Bub for obvious reasons, I cannob ab presenb go into details, lean only say thab bhere is a prospect of a reciprocity tariff being arranged between Canada and New Zealand under which several of- pur products will be admitted free of duty, and extensive new markets will be opened up for our exports. ; There is one question which thab auggesbs, namely, whether during your visits' to England andCariada you. made any inquiries as to possible improvements in the; prices of New Zealand's products ?. Yes, I made 'very extensive inquiries from leading authorities and experts, and the result is that I amconvinced that there is no reason why bhe value of: our sheep should rule so low in this country as ab presenb. In my opinion, too,- the causes musbba looked for bhero and nob ab bhe other side. lam satisfied that good sheep ought bo be fetching ab least* 2s 6d a head more than they do to-day. Was there anything of public interest in your visit to Honolulu and Fiji ? 4 Ab Honolulu, Mrsi-Ward and myself were hospitably entertained ab dinner by Major flawes, bhe British represenbatiye,. who showed us a number of places Of" his' toric inberesb. Ab Fiji we were welcomed by Chief Justice Barclay, Acting-Adminis-trator of the Island, who presented me with the Fijian emblem of a gift from one chief to another. He also gave Mrs Ward; a finely-carved club. ...... DEPARTURE FOR WELLINGTON. Mr and Mrs Ward and M r Hyde, Sopretary, lefb by the eight o'clock train for' Onehunga, where they went on board bhe Hineoaoa, which lefb for Wellington ab an early hour this morning. , THE WELLINGTON RECEPTION. . Wellington, this day. Mr Ward's Reception Committee definitely fixed Wednesday for the reception, and Thursday night for the banquet.