PEACE CELEBRATIONS.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16507, 26 April 1919, Page 9

PEACE CELEBRATIONS.

ARRANGEMENTS FOE- NEW ZEALAND. (rRESS ASSOCIATION* TELEGRAM.) WELLINGTON. April 23. j Sir James Alien states that tho Government has Leon in communication with tho Imperial Goverment to ask whether they would say if the cclebra- '. tions were to take place on the signing ; oi the preliminary Peace or on tho final Peace. J "We have been unable to get nn ani swer." h-? said, "so we have had to : decide for 'ourselves. Cabinet has come to the conclusion that the celebrations should take place on the signing of the preliminary Pence. As this ! may take plnoe at any time, those local authorities who desire to carry out Peace celebrations are warned that they should make their preparations without delay. The Minister of Internal Affairs has been -asked to circulate this information to local bodies. As soon ; ns we get official intimation of the signins °f the preliminary Peace- wo will notify the public. I hope the people will not accept anything but the oliicial information from the Government."

STATEMENT BY lIOX. G. W. RUSSELL. Referring last night to Sir James Allen's announcement that tho Government had definitely decided that the Peace celebrations were to tako place at the signing of tho preliminary peace, the IJon. (.!. W. Russell stated that several efforts had been made bv the Government of New Zealand to obtain the direct instruction of the Imperial Government as to when the Peace celebrations were to take place, in order that the Dominion might be in line with the rest of the Empire, but, as tho Acting-Prime Minister had stated, no answer being received the celebrations would take place at the preliminary signing, instead of waiting for tlie final act of the drama. Instructions had been sent to the Internal Affairs Department, 31'r Russell added, that all the local authorities were to be notified at once of the decision so that they might prepare for celebrations at an early date. The Government had resolved to validate next session any expenditure that might be made bv local bodies on Peace celebrations. The law of last session was somewhat defective in that it provided only for validating contributions made for peace celebrations. The local bodies, however, had been informed they might spend their roonev directly on Peace celebrations instead of indirectly. AUSTRALIA'S DECISION. (Bv Cable.—Press A'eociaHcra.—Copyr : (?ht \ (Australian and N.Z. Cablo Association.) MELBOURNE. April 25. The Federal Government has decided upon a two days' period for tho Peace celebrations—Sunday for thanksi giving and Monday for a holiday.