GISBORNE CELEBRATES IMPERISHABLE MEMORY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22621, 26 April 1948, Page 4

GISBORNE CELEBRATES IMPERISHABLE MEMORY

ANZAC DAY COMMEMORATION CEREMONIES IN TOWN AND COUNTRY People of the Gisborne and East Coast district joined yesterday in moving commemoration services and ceremonies based upon the Anzac tradition, paying tribute to the sacrifices of two great wars and dedicating the future to the service of peace.

Even in the smallest settlements j the anniversary of the landing at Gallipoli was marked in some special manner, not merely in I honour of the men who died on the j desperately thin peninsula foothold won on April 25, 1915. and held until the evacuation in January. 1916, but as a tribute to j the men of all services—and women too—whose sacrifices have paved the way to victory in the two wars. “Soldiers' Salute” at Dawn Stand-to In Gisborne, the day's observances began before full daylight when targe numbers of veterans gathered before the War Memorial on the Kaiti esplanade for the dawn stand-to which symbolises the spirit of all the services, as in the war years they greeted each now day with watchful determination. Year by year the significance of this muster in Gisborne appeals more and more to those entitled by their service in combat to participate in the “soldiers' salute" to fallen comrades. Yesterday’s gathering in the false dawn saw perhaps the largest attendance to date, the Kiwi element being strongly represented, while the Diggers easily held'their numbers by comparison with other years. Under the command of Lieut.-Colonel J. Leggat. president of the Gisborne Returned Services' Association, . the big muter formed in ranks before the memorial on the quiet order to “Stand-to!’’ and stood silent for a few moments. Beside their president stood Sir Patrick Duff, High Commissioner in New Zealand for the United Kingdom Government, and a veteran of the Gallipoli venture of the famous 29th Division. The pause was broken when Lieut - Colonel Leggat stepped forward and placed a laurel wreath upon the base of the memorial, below a plaque carrying the names of the district’s war dead of the 1914-18 war. Buglers sounded the “Last Post" and “Reveille - ’ while the parade stood at attention, and a few moments later the order “Stand down!" ended the cere-

AT THE SOLDIERS’ PLOT

mony. Large Crowd at District Service Continued veneration for the Anzac tradition was exemplified by the large attendance at the district service whicn took place at 9.30 a.m. on the same site. The vicinity of the memorial was crowded with Gisborne people and country visitors who took part in the annual act of dedication, and the parade which preceded the ceremony marched through streets lined with spectators. Veterans of both world wars and of the South African campaign were accompanied on this march by four bands and by representative bodies of High School students, Boy Scouts. Sea Scouts, Girl Guides, members of the St. John Ambulance Corps, and a strong muster of the Boys’ Brigade, the parade strength marshalled by Captain L. R. Stichbury being well over 700. During the ceremony at the memorial, at which a stirring address was delivered by Sir Patrick Duff, representatives of local bodies in town and country laid handsome wreaths upon the monument. Next to the tribute of the Gisborne R.S.A., pride of place was given to a wreath with the message: “In salute and proud remembrance, from the 29th Division.” Private tributes also strewed the base of the monument, many of them hand-somely-wrought wreaths and others less formal but no less significant of loving memories. “To Daddy” A tiny floral cross, obviously the work of a child and inscribed “To Daddy,” was tucked inconspicuously in a corner of the masonry For the many people wUo stayed after the ceremony to view the tributes more closely this little token was perhaps most moving of all. The service, which was conducted by Major Elliott, followed the customary lines. The Legion of Frontiersmen mounted a guard upon the memorial steps, and buglers of the Home Guard Band played the “Last Post'' and “Reveille” against a background of muffled drumming. The ceremony was completed when the parade re-formed and marched past the monument, saluting it with a smart “eyes right" as each unit moved by.