KING EDWARD'S DEATH

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 823, 23 May 1910, Page 8

KING EDWARD'S DEATH

"WHOLE EARTH WIDOWED." GRIEF OP THE MAORI PEOPLE. Deepest grief at the death of King Edward VII, keenest sympathy with the Queen Mother Alexandra, and loyalest welcome to the new King George V, are well expressed in a beautiful address which the Prime Minister (Sir Joseph Ward) was asked by representatives of tho whole of the Maori people to transmit to his Excellency the Governor (Lord Plunket) oil Saturday. Among the chiefs and chiextainesses who were present when the Hon. J. Carroll, on their behalf, made tho request, were:—-Heu ?-eu 'l'ukeno (Lake Taugo),_ Wiki Taitoko (Wanganui), Tuta Nihouiho (Gisborne), A. Rore (Blenheim), and Raihania (Upper Wa-nga-nui). The Prime Minister, after ng&nui). Following is the text of the address:— "Our very sorrowful greetings unto you this day upon which, as fate has ordained, we pay the last sad rites to our deceased Ariki, King Edward VII. We cannot let this solemn occasion pass without expressing our sincere grief in these words of sympathy, which we ask of you to kindly convey to tho widowed mother ajid her Royal family now tent lowly in th© house of mourning. "Go then, Oh, our Ariki, our King, who was so mindful of thy Maori people. Go to thy fathers and ancestors. Go to your mother, Queen Victoria, to her whose sympathy so touched her Maori people that the Maoris clung unto her loyally in her day and ' all through thino own days. And now that thou hast left tho burden of sovereignty to thy son, King George V, wo will loyally cling unto him even as tho paua clings to his native sea. rock. Go to the very latest hour. Thou hast been the charmed apex of our national structure. "Alas! It is now broken Even the plums of the canoe; My shield from the tempest In this world of the South; My lofty spreading tree Has fallen and become as dust; Whence these my tears And vain lamentations I am desolate indeed. "Go thou, ascend! "Climb up, ascend On the sacred vine, Being the path of Tawhaki, By which he ascended to the .sky, To be welcomed by the saints, Maikuku and Hakaka. 'Come, uplifted soul,' A voice crieth. 'Welcome, thou sanctified one.' "And.'tis even so. Go thou to thy ancestors in Heaven. Go. Go on the path of Awanui-a-rangi, which even now gleams from the sky earthward, a glowing sky-print known as the auakeroa and as the messenger of Rong<Sma. It appears as a brilliant ladder whereon thou mayest ascend to the tentlf heaven. Go. Thou hast withdrawn thyself from thy sacred throne and. the whole earth is widowed. Go thy way the King of Friendships, of such friendships as enabled the assurance of peace throughout the earth. "To thee in our sadness, oh our Alother Queen Alexandra, we now turn, [ for thou are the living memory of him whose mortal frame has passed from us. We desjre to assure thee that thy keen anguish and distress is sympathetically felt by us all in the encompassing darkness which has so suddenly fallen about this far distant island of tho earth. "A lament of sorrow for the dead (that of Hinauri; the widowed sister of Maui): Cry forth. I cry forth, > Yea and indeed, To the mystic tides of the ocean, To the deep gulfs of the ocean, To. the leviathans of the ocean, To tho great fish of the ocean, To come forward and swallow down> ILina; 1 Hina the unconsolahle, bereaved, Bereft of her treasured one Whose woes struck into Heaven, Sleep th«e. Soon shall I follow thee. Bring forth the cleaver to end me That I should soon be in thy wake. Ah, me! And oh for a 1 large measure of sympathy To ease my woe. "Oh, mother, bo stout-hearted. Although he who was all thy life has gone to rest with his numerous ancestors, we still look towards thee as the source to which our expressions of sorrow and sympathy may be directed to the end that we be mutually consoled in this our common woe. And in equal sincerity we would remind thee that thy son, in whom our king still lives, will require the power of thy sustaining assistance and influence in this early period of his Sovereign's work. Ye have already fulfilled tho words of the Scripture, which sayeth, 'I shall make of your issue a numerous nation to reign in tho kingdom of tho Lord.' AVe trust and believe that thou shalt in this thy day of trial be as steadfast and as stout-hearted as was our loved mother Queen Victoria on the death of her dear husband, and we will ever pray, oh, our mother, that' the Lord of Hosts shall preserve thee for ever and for ever. Amen. "Turn we now to greet and welcome yon, our King George V. May you live for ever and ever. Yonder the sun rises in its brithness, Arise thou living soul. . A Tetekura dies and a Tetekura survives ; Climb hither, asccnd hither, Bring to mo waters of life Even to thy Maori people, , For the night is dark, And the slumbers o£ the people' Fitful and disturbed. [ Climb hither, Oil sun, On the path of thine ansectors. Thou art of the highest And brightest of the Constellations, Thou art of Rangi Of Tane and of Hapai, Of the bright company of Heaven Which gives unto us. The hum of tho tempest, The fiaffh of the lightning, And the reverberating roll of the thunder. "We welcome thee. The Maori people unanimously rejoice that thou hast become their King. We rejoice because we have already seen you face to face in New Zealand, when it pleased you to announce to us that you renewed the. precious covenant of your grandmother Queen Victoria for the protection of your Maori people. "Welcome. These your Maori people are in you assured of the continuance towards them of their Sovereign's favours and regards during the coming years,, and it is right that you should continue these, for you are 'The Heir to the Ages.' It is with the deepest earnestness that we assure you that our affection for you and yours is as it has always been to the Throne you now grace. "May the new King live and prosper. Amen." In the course of his reply, the Prime Minister said that to show that the address would bo appreciated he would like to read the following cable which lie had just received:— "To his Excellency the Governor, Wellington. "With reference to your telegram of May 15, I have laid before the Queen Mother the message from the united Maori chiefs and tribes, and she desires that they may be told that she appreciates deeply the sympathy and love of the Maori people, and their con- ■ dolonces with her on the death of his Most. Gracious Majesty, King Edward VII, who ever felt the niost lively interest, in the Maori race." Sir Joseph also remarked that ho would forward the address to his Ex-

cellency, with a special message for transmission te the Queen Mother and King George V. Mr. Te Heuheu then expressed the hope that some representatives of the Maori people might be present at the coronation. Sir Joseph said ho thought it would be very fitting for both races of this portion of the Empire to be represented at the coronation of King George V, and at tho right time be would be only too pleased to have their request considered in the proper quarter. i ST. JAMES'S PRESBYTERIAN. A memorial service was conducted by the Rev. W. Shirer in St. James's Presbyterian Church, Wellington South, on Friday evening. The local Boys' Scouts mustered ra strong force. MISSIONS TO SEAMEN. There was a full attendance on Friday night at the memorial service at the Missions to Seamen's Institute, when the favourite hymns of the late King and the Queen Mother were sung. Mr. Moore, the missioner, referred to the late King's goodness, as shown by his work in conjunction with the poor and hospitals. He was a man who climbed to fame rather than was born to it. The late King was a power indeed in the world, as seen in the smooth running of the nation since he came to the throne, and "he being dead yet speaketh," perhaps stronger in death than people thought. In that meeting of the seven monarchs at Windsor that day, near his beloved remains, the peace of the world might be further sealed. The greatness of an Empire does not consist of her 30 miles of warships or her 70 miles of merchantmen, or her fame or her goodness, but in her righteousness. Miss ■ Mueller sang feelingly "Crossing the Bar," and at tlie close of the service the congregation stood while the "Dead March" was rendered by Mr. Gardner, organist. AT OHIRO HOME. A memorial service held at the Ohiro Home on- Friday was most successfully carried out. The old people were presented with mourning ribbons, and assembled in the hall, where the Rev. Mr. Ballacher conducted a service. The master of the home (Mr. A. H. Truebridge) presided at the organ. ST. LUKE'S, WADESTOWN, On Friday a memorial service was held at St. Luke's, Wadestown, the vicar (the Rev. T. G. Kay) officiating. Special prayers for the King and the Royal Family were, said, and the late King's favourite hymns were sung. The service was most impressive. The church bell was tolled during the day. THE CIRCLE OF MOURNINC. THE CIRCLE OF MOURNING. (By TeleeraDh—Press Association.) Auckland, May 21. A notable feature in connection with Friday's memorial services for the.late King is the fact that owing to the differences of time according to longitude in the widespread possessions of Great Britain, they embraced a period of practically 24 hours, thus affording a striking illustration of the aptness of the well-known saying concerning the great Empire "on which the sun never sets." This interesting aspect of tho day of mourning of tho great natio that was "builded on tho seven seas" was touched upon by tho Rev. Canon Macmurray, in his sermon at St. Mary's Cathedral, Parcel]. For 24 hours ,as the earth rolled round the •sun, he observed, the bells were tolling and funeral services were proceeding as tributes to the goodness and greatness of the late monarch. Tho note, ho said, was first struck in the Islands of Fiji earlier:in the day. At that moment it was striking in New Zealand, in an hour or so thence it would bo struck in Brisbane and Sydney, a little later on in Melbourne and Adelaide, and later, still in Perth and Hong-Kong, A little later, again, in Colombo and Calcutta, yet a little later in Aden, later in Egypt, South Africa, and Malta; then later on the great national note would rise from the central scene of all, Westminster Hall. "Nor will the note cease there," said the preacher. "Arbour or two_ later it will be again taken up in Newfoundland, thence across the Great Canadian Dominion to Vancouver, and then a little later dying away in the Islands of the Pacific, where it began." IN OTHER CENTRES. MANY GREAT GATHERINGS. ®y Telegraph.—Special Correspondent.! Palmerston North, May _ 20. A great ooncourso of people assembled in the Palnierston Square, around the band rotunda, this afternoon, when a memorial service was held in connection with the death of King Edward. Seating accommodation was provided for some thousands, but quite half those present had to stand. So large was tho gathering that not only was the Square itself crowded, but the thoroughfares in the . immediate vicinity were thronged with hundreds of people in motor-cars and vehicles of every description. ,• The Mayor (Mr. J. A. Nash) was in charge of the proceedings, and the arrangements he had made for carrying out the ceremony were most complete. The military, including the Mounted Rifles, Palmerston Rifles, Palmerston Guards, tho cadets from the three public schools, two divisions of boy scouts, and the veterans, assembled in Coleman Place, and, headed by the Palmerston Brass Band, marched in silence to the band rotunda. The rotunda was occupied by the Major and borough councillors, representatives of local bodies, members of the clergy, and prominent citizens, tho Fisk Jubilee Singers also being among the numher. The Salvation Army Brass Band was present, and, with tho Palmerston Brass Band, assisted in .the musical portion of the ceremony. The service, which was most impressivo throughput, started precisely at 2.30 by tho band playing Beethoven's Funeral March, followed by a hymn and prayer. The Revs. D. Hird and J. W. J. Spence gave short addresses, and tho Fisk Jubilee Singers, besides assisting with the singing throughout the service, also rendered two hymns by themselves, one of them being "Steal Away to Jesus." The ceremony will be long remembered by those present. Marton, May 20. The memorial service at Marton today was largely attended. The procession moved off at the north end of High Street, and was preceded by the Marton and Junction Bands, playing en route to tho Park, where an impressive service was conducted, the R-evs. V. H. Kitcat (Anglican), D. Gordon (Presbyterian), C. Griffiths (Methodist) taking part. Impressive addresses were delivered and suitable hymns sung. The I procession included the two bands, members of the Royal Rifles, vetorans, school cadets, clorgy, the member for ' Mnnawatu fillr. E. Newman), the Mayor (Mr. R. E. Beckett), members of the borough council and officials, tho chairman of the Rangitikei Council, members, and officials, members of tho Foresters' Court and Drnids' Lodge, and Firo Brigade. There Was a representative attendance of Maoris, who sounded tho lament, and then followed n record gathering of civilians. Fully 2000 were present. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) Wanganui, May 20. Tho largest gathering seen in Wanganui took place this afternoon, when a united memorial servico in memory

of the late" King Edward was held in Cook's Gardens. All the Nonconformist Churches took part together, with the Rev. A. 0. Williams, representative of the Native Church. Mr. J. H. Keesing also took part on behalf of the Jewish people. The Garrison and City Bands, veterans, Territorials, scouts, cadets, fire brigade, and school children were on parade. The Garrison Band played the "Dead March." Tho Rev. J. A. Lutford and the Rev. J. D. M'Kenzie delivered addresses, and the vast congregation joined in the hymns. The servico concluded with the National Anthem. Prior to tho united meeting a service was held at tho Anglican Church, which was' crowded to overflowing. Pahiatua, May 20. Xliis afternoon a procession of local bodies, friendly societies, fire brigade, junior cadets, boy scouts, veterans, and volunteer officers, headed by a band playing the "Dead March in Saul," proceeded from the Borough Council Chamber to the Drill Hall, where a united memorial service was held. The largo hall was crowded, and a number were unable to obtain admission. The sorvice conducted by the local clergy was very impressive. Naplor, May 20l A united public service marking tho day of King Edward's funeral was held in Clive Square this afternoon. Over five thousand persons attended. The Mayor of Napier and clergymen of Protestant denominations occupied seats in tho band rotunda. There was a large attendance of the Territorial Forces, cadets, veterans, and Boy Scouts. The Higldand Pipe Band played the lament, "The Flowers of the Forest," after which the City Band played the "Dead March." Religious services followed, in tho course of which an address was delivered by Bishop Averill, of tho Anglican Church. At the close of the service the buglers sounded the "Last Post" and a verse of the National Anthem was rendered. The memorial services held at OtaM on Friday afternoon in connection with the late King were carried out under I a dull, leaden sky, and the attendance [ (writes our correspondent) was not as large as it might have been. The address, delivered by the Rev. Mr. M'Nickle, was a most eloquent and impressive one, and was listened to with deepest interest throughout. The Rev. Tumuera (Nativo minister) also addressed tho assemblage, and dealt with, the Royal Family in general. The discourse was an earnest one and fully appreciated. The Revs. Smith (Anglican) and Rands (Methodist) also assisted. Our Greytown correspondent writes: We, in common with the rest of. the English Empire, held onr service of mourning here on Friday to show oui grief at the loss suffered by the death of King Edward VII. The service was held in the Town Hall at 7.30 in the evening, when the Revs. A. T. B. Page Anglican), G. H. Standage (Wesleyan), and G. K. Stowell (Presbyter-' ian), and Mr. J. Crawford (missioner) officiated. The combined choirs of the churches, under the baton of Mr. Irving, took part. A number of Maori girls, led by Iraia tc Whaite, and conducted by Hector Manihera, sang a lamenting waiata very effectively. Tho volunteers, school cadets, and scouts were present. Colonel Tate, Major Charters, and Lieuts. Saunders and Kidson were also present. Friday was observed as a close holiday here, and all business was suspended. The memorial service conducted here' on Friday (writes our Woodville corro-: spondent) was very largely attended. Probably no gathering since ths meetings held at the time of the death of Queen Victoria has been so largely representative of the borough and outlying districts. The committee did wisely in adhering to the original hour fixed, viz., 11 a.m., as this gave tho country people an opportunity of attending, which many could not have availed themselves of if the meeting had been held in tho aftenjpon. Tho committee had arranged the seating of tho hall and draped the raised platform, both of which must have taken considerable time and labour, and showed that his Worship tho Mayor, who was in charge of matters, desired that iiothing should be lacking in this respect. At the hour of 10 a.m. the volunteers, school cadets, and veterans assembled at the main school grounds. These, marched to the Drill Hall, headed by the band. As an opening voluntary the band played "Lead, kindly light." The Rev. Eccles followed with prayer. Several lessons were read by Ensign Jenkins and Missioner Stanton. The sermon was left in the hands of the Rev. Gardiner, who held the people's attention, preaching from the text, "Blessed are they that mourn." The hymns used throughout the service were: "O God, our Help in Ages Past," 'Tor ever with the Lord," "Abide with Me," and "Nearer my God to Thee." At the conclusion the band played the "Dead March" from "Saul," the congregation standing. The whole meeting was such as will live in memory for many years, more particularly with the school children, who attended in large numbers. Friday last in Paraparaumu was observed by all as a day of great solemnity in memory of the late King Edward VII. From noon until 2 p.m. the bell of St. Paul's Church was tolled, under the superintendence of Mr. W. J. Wyman. At 2 p.m. a memorial service was held in tne church, at which there was a very crowded congregation. For the opening voluntary Miss Winnie Whiting, the organist, played Rimbault's "Funeral March." The service was taken by -the vicar (the Rev. J. Edwin Jones). The special hymns sung were "When our Heads are | Bowed with Woe," "Now the Labourer's Task is O'er/' "Nearer my God to Thee," and "Days and Moments Quickly Flying." The Rev. J. Edwin'. Jones preached from the text, "What man is he that liveth and shall not see death," Psalm 89, 48. After tho Benediction the congregation sang tho "Nunc Dimittis." At tho close of the service Miss Whiting played Handel's "Dead March" in "Saul." Memorial services were also held at St. Luke's Church, Waikanae, at 7 p.m., taken by Mr. J. A. Austin, the organist being Mrs. Johnston. At Paekakariki Anglican Church at 2 p.m. tho service was taken by the Rev. W. E. Drinkwater, of Huntley College. Marton.