TRIBUTES IN HOUSE

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 14, 11 October 1933, Page 10

TRIBUTES IN HOUSE

Service to the Dominion

SYMPATHY ON ALL SIDES

Tributes to the memory of the late Mr. H. E. .Holland, Leader of the Opposition, were paid in the House of Representatives yesterday afternoon. Members passed a resolution placing on record his faithful service to the Dominion, and expressing sympathy with his widow in her bereavement. The House adjourned until to-morrow afternoon as a mark of respect to Mr. Holland. The Prime .Minister, Rt. Hon. G. AV. Forbes, said members had met under very sad circumstances. The body of the late Leader of the Opposition lay in the vestibule of the building. It only seemed a day or so ago that he was a figure in their midst. Right throughout New Zealand there were expressions of sorrow and regret at bis passing. In times like the present, iu the presence of death, their little differences in the heat of controversy vanished.

Fearless Fighter.

He could well remember when Mr. Holland first came into the House, with a reputation as a fearless fighter in. industrial matters. Throughout his life he adhered strictly to those principles he believed in. Very soon after he entered the House it was found he was a force in debate and of untiring industry. It was inevitable that be should become leader of his party and Leader of the Opposition. As Leader of the Opposition he had the highest conception of the duties relating to that office. He was always a fearless upholder of the rights aud principles of members of the House, and had the highest conception of the place Parliament should occupy in the life of the nation He valued the ancient forms and ceremonies in the House. Mr. Holland never spared himself in his duties, and what he attempted he did to the best, of his ability. Although they might have differed with him, yet they could say he never departed from the strictest rule of fairness in debate. Monument of Good Work.

The Deputy-Leader of the Labour Party, Mr. M. J. Savage (Lab., Auckland West), said that Mr. Holland’s journey through life had not been over a path strewn with roses. On the contrary. he had many tasks to do which called for courage and devotion to principes, but he never wavered. “He goes to the grave,” said Mr. Savage, “leaving tens of thousands of personal friends, and hundreds of thousands who will agree that a friend of the poor has passed away. The man has passed, but he leaves behind him a monument. of good work which will live in the memories of those who knew him best.

“He died as he would have wished, fighting the battle of those who were nearest to his heart—his final hours being occupied in paying a last tribute to an outstanding representative of the Native race, the race that he had learned to love and respect. His last public act brought him into immediate contact with a great gathering of that great race, and in that, too, he was following the dictates of his heart. The welfare of the Maoris was his constant concern and his passing makes one friend less for a noble people. “Our thanks are due aud freely offered to the Government for the part played by Ministers under very distressing circumstances. They have acted with promptness and in generous spirit. To the Maori race we offer our heartfelt thanks. We have tried to meet them as equals under circumstances which meant mutual distress, and if we have failed to come up to the high standard of humanitarianism that was set by them, we have at least done our best. The Press of the Dominion—with one outstanding exception, the Wellington morning news-paper—-has treated us with the utmost courtesy and fairness, and we tender our sincere thanks.”

Wide Knowledge.

The Minister of Finance, Rt. Hon. J. G. Coates, said that on many occasions in the House he had been in close contact with Mr. Holland and had always found him straightforward and honourable. Those who had known him intimately had admired his wide knowledge. No one had ever doubted his sincerity and devotion to duty. An outstanding feature of his character was that be bad never bit below the belt. He was a clean fighter, and was respected by those with whom he differed politically. “We saw him begin in a small way.” said Mr. Coates, “and we saw how his influence and bis knowledge gained for him a very prominent place in this chamber and in the public life of New Zealand. He was held in high esteem by thousands of our people. T don’t know anyone who did not enjoy a chat with Mr. Holland. He had a fund of information, and although not a widely-travelled man. he kept himself in close touch with everything that was going on. As a family man we always admired him. His was a great, example, and those of us who knew him intimately knew something of the wonderful esteem in which he was held by his family.” Mr. Coates said it was typical of Mr. Holland that he had insisted on doing his duty right up to the last minute. Those who were present at the funeral of the Maori “King” admired the pluckv manner iu which Mr. Holland had tackled the hill on which the burial had taken place. This task must have been a tremendous strain upon his resources.

High Esteem By All.

“I know.” continued Mr. Coates, “that the Maori people of the Waikato were no less distressed than his ini'mate associates, who had sat round him every day for many years in this House. I think we have just had brought home to us once again what a privilege it is for any citizen of this country to possess the good opinion of the Maori race. Mr Holland was held in high esteem both by Maori and pakeha.” Mr. Coates thanked the Maori people for the manner in which they had handed over to the relatives the body of the late Mr. Holland. It was a beautiful ceremony, he said, and a great tribute—a tribute that could only be paid by the Maori people.

An eloquent tribute to the memory of the deceased was paid by Mr. Taite Te Tomo (Govt.. Western Maori). Great was their grief, he said, when they heard that Mr. Holland had passed away. The break was like that of a dry branch. “Let me say farewell to him in the words of the Epistles,” said Mr. Taite Te Tomo. “Jehovah gave thee, Jehovah has taken thee, let us praise Jehovah. ’’