MR. JOHN FOSTER FRASER

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 626, 1 October 1909, Page 8

MR. JOHN FOSTER FRASER

RECEPTION AT CHKISTCHTJBCH

. bTRHCK,JVIT.H OUR .-ENGLISH WAYS.' . . IBy. Telegraph—Press Association,) ■'./.■. " ~ it ' ' Christchurch, September 30. ■ Mx.^,J..l.oster-Fraser.was tendered a public reception by the Mayor and citizens this morning. /In-, the',;course.;of ■ some.,' remarks, 'Mr.; Fraser said that he had been looking/forward for.; a/good, manj years' for an opportunity, of visiting,;:this,Dominion. ■ This,, however, was a country a long way from.the rest of the world, and- a busy man' could'.not always afford the half-year ■ wbich, was necessary', to get ■ even' a most, cursory ..view of the Although ;he had'been hbre only'a few days he had found that, not-.onljr was'his .time/not being, wasted, but it was being very well repaid. One; of the things that struck him was the remarkable growth of- the Now, Zealand cities. It was .only. sixty-years'since the dolony came' into being, and iinstead .of being ashamed of it, the people had every reason to be 'proud of, the progress which .had. been made. He had knocked about a good many countries,; and he had been/reminded that this .was the-forty-eighth'-country, that 'he ; visited"in the : course), of, his career,. and of / all the countries /which/, he had visited, naturally, a; country like this'(so- farVremoved.'.fr'om' -the. centres of older! civilisation)"must present- features, of attraction to any man who tned to.study!the progress-of-human-affairs. '; . '-(.'.The; British. Empire from other, old Empires. It had embarked on a great experiment— the/, experiment of -having j selfgoverning . colonies all over the world. Theso Colonies and the Mother Country wore bound together,', not by- bands, of steel, ' or held toi.gbthor by armies, but by the best bands -of fellpwship and ;love. towards one another* and ■by; the- ties of blood; He remembered with what a ibrill he went through l England-when there 'was'an/-agitation' about-the necessity 'for the,stronger.naval defence of.the Empire, and ,the spontaneous manner/in which the'.,whole if New Zealand offered a Dreadnought. ' " Mr. T. E. Taylor, M.r.: They were never consulted.,/;- . • . .- • Mr. Fraser: That offer was. not mado merely to vhelp f.tho." Empire, -5, or the Old Country. Whatever,offer was,made, whether the people believed, that it was a good offer or. a bad one,; it:was.recoghised'that, behind it, was the gener-!. ous feeling that something should bo done by alf classes and all-parts of the Empire to bear their legitimate/share;in/the defence of the Empire. . - . " ' The speaker went'on/'.tq say that/it was extremely interesting .to''a 'such as, himself *to noflce'- how,' though so" far, re-' moved from the ! 01d Country,, the traditions and wayfl'of English, life .wero maintained. / ... AT DUNEDIN. ; ' -(By, Telegraph—Press Association., i ;. . Ounedin, September 90., V Mr. "'J.' -Foster.' Fraser arrived 1 here by the secorid- expre'ss- to-night, and -,was .welcomed -by. thev Caledonian Society, .Gaelic Society, and Burns Club. He >will be accorded;.a civic wel-come'to-morrow. ; , ; . , , ■ -..-