DINNER TO THE HON. MR FITZHERBERT.

Press, Volume XIV, Issue 1857, 29 March 1869, Page 3

DINNER TO THE HON. MR FITZHERBERT.

On Wednesday evening last a complimentary dinner was given at St. James's Hall, by a committee of colonists and other gentlemen interested in New Zealand, to the Hon. W. Fitzherbert, Colonial Treasurer of that colony, in recognition of his able and successful services as the financial representative of New Zealand in England. A further token of appreciation of his exertions, in the shape of a very handsome silver tea and coffee service, just presented to him by the same body of gentlemen, was exhibited in an anteroom during the evening for the inspection of the company. The banquet was presided over by Sir George Grey, late Governor, and at the cross tables there were Earl Granville, Right Hon. Mr Monsell, Mr Wentworth Dilke, Sir C. Clifford, Mr Vanderbyl, and others. About 150 gentlemen were present. A London paper reports that— ' Earl Granville, in responding to the toast of Her Majesty's Ministers, returned his hearty thanks for the high honor which had been paid her Majesty's Ministers. He believed the colonists had the sympathy of this country to the greatest extent. He was sure they all felt .the greatest sympathy with those who had suffered such dreadful misfortunes. So good a diplomatist as Mr Fitzherbert would not expect that he would make any postprandial declaration of Ministerial views as to the extent of any sympathy which they might show. He felt the utmost confidence in those Anglo-Saxons who appeared in distant countries to show even a higher selfreliance than they did in this more routine and artificial society. He believed they would surmount the difficulties they had had to encounter; because, even amidst the losses occasioned by these unhappy wars, and by the commercial crisis in this country, they had continued to progress. His Lordship concluded by proposing " Prosperity to New Zealand."