RE-UNION LUNCHEON

Grey River Argus, 1 March 1928, Page 5

RE-UNION LUNCHEON

PIONEERS GATHER AT THE PARK A HAPPY FUNCTION. One of Hip most enjoyable Jubilee assemblages was that at the Pioneers’ Reunion Luncheon yesterday afternoon, when close upon four hundred people were present at the Victoria Park Grandstand Hall. The Mayor, Mr J. W . G reeiislade, presided, and at the head table there also were seated The Primo Minister, Rt IL-n J. G. Coates, and Mis Coates; the Leader of the Opposition, Mr H. E. HMinn 1 ALP., and Mrs Holland; Airs R. J. Seddon, the Mayoress, Mis J. W. (1 roensln.de; Hon 11. L. Michel, M.L.C., am! Mrs Michel; Mr T. E. V. Seddon, M.P.. and Mrs Seddon; Archdeacon York, Messrs W. 11. Parfitt, J. McGinley and J. Taylor. At the call of Archdeacuu York, who asked the gathering to r eal! the many blessings of the past sixty years, thc( Doxology was sung. An excellent luncheon was spread by the Jubilee Executive’s Ladies’ Committee, under the direction of Mrs Limlop, and there were no two opinions as to its quality by the way in which it was dispatched. The first toast, that of “The King.” was accompanied by the singing of the National Anthem. Hon H. L. Michel (Hokitika) proponed “Tho Grey District Diamond JubileeCommittee.” and said that in the absence of Mr J. A. Murdoch (County Chairman of Westland), who was to have proposed the toast, ho was very pleased to fill the gap. It had been a happy inspiration which decided their Grey friends to celebrate, as they were doing, the Diamond Jubilee of this great centre of industry . The previ-

ous day’s procession was a remarkable contrast to the processions with which, as a boy, he was familiar in the first days of Hokitika, when there came men from the various mining places in processions of a sad, rather than a jubilant character, even from as far away as the Greenstone, when a man was (‘ither injured or killed. The whole fielr 1 would cease work, and if wounded thr victim would be carried on a litter by relays of miners to the hospital, o~ if dead they came in for his funeral. Yesterday’s procession really symbolised the progress since then on the Coast in industry, and peaceful, settled life, as compared with the rough and tumble life in the times of the Pioneers. They knew how well the women played their part in those days, and ever since. Even when the Otira Tunnel had been driven, he thought of the loyalty of the women who endured the privations of life at Otira, while their husbands were engaged on that national work. The Jubilee Committee did well to celebrate the occasion, and honour the memory of all the fine men and women who played the hardest part in the history of the West Coast. He hoped the next fifty years would sec the old spirit of comradeship preserved. 'l’he public were indebted to th? Committee, and he wentioned especially the Chairman (Mr Greensladc), the Secretary (Mr C. A. Rose), and the Organiser (Mr E. I. Lord), while in coup ling with the toast the name of Mr T. E. Y. Seddon, he asked them to honour it with enthusiasm.

Musical honours were accorded the toast.

Mr T. E. Y. Seddon, M.P., said th? proposer of the toast was very heartily to be thanked for his kind refer cnees to the Committee, whose tremend ous work was realised by everybody, and they were fortunate to have a Mayor with the will, tact and judgment required to take charge of the Celebratfions, while the Mayoress had also .cooperated very effectively. For th-? Committee, he could say they had a body of mon who had worked nobly to make the Pioneers and the visitor; welcome and happy. So many of those present, however, looked too young to fulfil the qualification for attending the luncheon, namely, to have been on the Coast before 1880, and to be sixty years of age, that he could only conclude they wore like the boys who go T under the tent to see the circus. The proposer of the toast was on a fine note when he said it was for those who came later to honour and emulate the Pioneers who blazed the trail. His mother, who was present, could tell much of the early hardships, and her family thought it a grand thing to get her to narrate her own cordial reception from the Pioneers when she went up to reside beside the Right-hand Branch of the Waimea Creek, where she reared several of her children, and where indeed the political career of his

father actually began, at the Big Dam. Those were the days she liked to talk about, when the people were so helpful to one another. When she met their descendants now, she could name their parents and grandparents. It was in the memories of that past that they wished the Pioneers to‘live for the time being, and then to go away with the

conviction that their gallant efforts on behalf of the present generation were now thoroughly appreciated. The Committee appreciated the financial ab.l re-

ceived from the Government, and as he had asked Mr Coates for this, he was sure the Government would lend fur-

ther support if there were a deficit, so that there was no need for them to stint themselves. They appreciated Commodore Swabey’s action in sending a warship, and also the wholehearted support everybody had given. In shanking the ladies for their aid, especially that day’s spread, he must refe” to their head and organiser, Mrs Lindop—(applause)—but all of them had wo deed hard to ensure such a success.

Proposing the toast of “The Pioneers,” the Mayor said he was proud to hold his office at this juncture, the Jubilee being ( jic of the most important functions ever held here, meant as it was to honour the grand old Pioneer people. He was pleased at the fine response. and at the many cables and messages from absentee Pioneers who sent their congratulations, showing their spirits were with us here at this time. They were there not only to pay a meed of praise to the Pioneers surviving, but also io the many mor;? who had crossed the Great Divide. The Pioneers were a. noble band who came, blazed the track, and developed this portion of New ealand, and made it what it is to-day. When money was needed years ago, the West Coast Pioneers had found gold, and that had assisted the Government. Those of to-day

recognised their worth with humility and admiration. The fact that many (•i‘ the ladies present look'd young was dv.-e to the fine West Coast climate, and it was good to see the cheerfulness of i.iu veterans, 'l/.c Prime Minister was right in saying the Pio :eers were a

gallant, venturesome band, with few laggards, who carved ou- homes for New Zealanders—a loyal band who helped to build the Empire by moulding this into a worthy unit of the realm to which they had been proud to bell ng. We of to-day would not stand stl’i. but would realise our duty to

cr. 'y on the Pioneer tra** lion in conquering nature for the s?r\ic- ( of man. "he Pioneers of the Coast came at a t. inc when the. young coion v had no money, and when it was realised chat they produced vast wealth, and :t was nee j how they had verily laid the economic foundation of the Dominion. He had been told as much •< j eight tons of gold was won at Moonlight Creek in about a month. (A’oi'.es* “Oh’”) Mt ontains of c uartz remained, and it • T.j'y needed capital for prospecting and c!c‘ elopment to realise tin vast wealth x hich Nature had stor'd upon this (’-..asL If the Governin'.nt were more sympathetic, there were the means her n to start great, lasting industries. The Pioneers were among the strongest believers in the future of this district. They were all pleased to have the Prime Minister an dthe Leader of the Opposition at their gatherings, and trusted all would have a pleasant stay, doing their utmost to make it so. The Government had helped them to a certain extent with the Jubilee, and they were grateful. To all the visitors, as to all the veterans, he extended tin? wish for long life, and trusted the Pioneers would yet see the West Coast and the Dominion making great progress.

Rt Hon J. G. Coates said tn? Mayor was to be thanked for voicing the appreciation of the present geneintion, from the local viewpoint, for the work of the Pioneers, and correctly interpreted the mind of the present generation throughout the Domiiron. He would not speak as a West Coaster, but as one coming to the (bast from a distance; as indeed, who was, for the time being—as he would remain probably for a long time yet—conducting the affairs of the Dominion, although Mr Holland might in a minute dispute that anticipation. With that responsibility on his shoulders, the speaker would like to pay a tribute to the work of the New Zealand Pioneers generally, not only here, but wherever they had worked to make the country easier and more comfortable for us to live in to-day. He realised the fine work of West Coast members of Parliament, and everybody recognised that the late Richard Seddon was a figure admired not only on the Coast, but by the people from end to end of the country. He had been mainly responsible for the conduct of Parliament in a manner that brought it credit and upheld the best traditions. The experience which such a man had gained among the Pioneers had left a definite mark upon the Statute Book, representing a broad and democratic outlook, and demonstrating that class considerations could be ignored, when the. objective was made the community as a whole. Those present would later have the opportunity of swapping ideas and reminis* censes, having a faculty for telling stories, hut let them maintain the memory of those who had gone before them, who had made history—the men and women to whom they owed a debt of lasting gratitude for making the country. Fitting opportunities such as this Jubilee, should periodically be given to perpetuate the tradition of those j who had known the greatest handicaps i who had tackled the impossible, which only thj bravest could have overcome. Their extraordinary good fellowship had its definite reflex in the eharacte s of the people of our own day, and the hospitality of those days should be perpetuated for all time. One supposed we now were too busy for such a spirit to thrive, but he had been reared among pioneers of that type, who never let the stranger go from their doors without asking him if he would have something to eat. He hoped they would always have the spirit which made New ealand everywhere noted, for the troubles of people were mutual, and team work was always needed, in the future as it had been in the past. Names I among the pioneers stood out such as the explorers Brunner and Heaphy, the Oakes Brothers, Harper, Mackley, Lock Mackay, Rochford, Whitcombe, and Reuben Waite, the founder of the Grey. It was said: “Once a Coaster, always a Coaster.” That was fine—there was nothing better than that one should always be proud of the locality to which one belonged, or which gave one birth. Undoubtedly that sentiment was strong here. Going back fifty years, when the population of New Zealand was 450,000, they could see the strides made when they compared it with the population now—one and a half millions. In the schools there were 36 000 pupils, and now there were 220,000. The number of horses had increased from 27,000 to 303,000; the sheep from thirteen millions to twenty-six millions; the cattle from 518,000 to 3,255,000;; the value of imports from £6,000,000 to £44,780,000; the value of exports from £6,300,000 to £48,400,000; the value of trade per head from £29 10s to £67; and th? Post Office Savings Bank deposits from £467,000 to £50,000,000. The Government had hosts of requests for improved transport and for district development; and while all could not be grant ed, there had been a vast improvement made. When one left the South Island and indeed in some parts of it, one was told the Otira Tunnel had not not been worth while, but all knew it was an undertaking of national importance that had long been overdue. Whether the best use was being made of it he could not say —their Chamber of Commerce thought a great deal more use could be made of it—and they would see what could be done in that regard. Electrical development had begun here, and correspondent with the figures quoted in the matter of progress. West Coasters had assisted greatly in passing our humanitarian legislation, which includ ed war pensions totalling £1,128,000 annually; old age pensions, £1.000.000, and several other pension funds. Those responsible, ami the country generally, were not unmindful of the aged, the sick, the crippled and the young, as those people were dear to their hearts, and he hoped our young folk would always recognise what the pioneers did, would see that the men women

who had borne the heat and burden of the day were never forgotten. It was /good to recall that what pulled them ' through was the faith which they had I in themselves, their loyalty and. fidelity [to the Const it ut ion. He wished them all a happy time here, and expressed to the Mayor and member for the district appreciation of the hospitality extended. They felt now they were at home, and did not want to go away. He would again have to think over that financial aspect of the Jubilee, and lie could only give them the familiar assurance that it would have his “most careful consideration.” ‘‘.Kia Ora!” were the Prime Minister’s concluding words, and these were followed by gen oral cheering and the singing of “He’..; a Jolly Good Fellow!” Mr 11. E. Holland, M.P., Leader of the Opposition, said it gave great pleasure to him in being there to meet theof the old pioneers, for. whilst he was not born hero, the West Coast was his adopted home. He understood and reciprocated the sentiment and the spirit which inspired the West Coast. He would not speak in the pessimistic strain of the Prime Minister, although with much of what he had said the speaker agreed, so that the statements of Mr Coates to that extent were right, for he never disagreed with the Prime Minister except when he was wrong. (Laughter.) In no pessimistic vein, but with a full sense of the importance of the position which the speaker held in the political life of , the Dominion, he wished to address them. Mr Coates was certainly a very, busy man. but the speaker was even j busier, for while Mr Coates’s efforts were strenuous to keep his place in the office of Government, he (Mr Holland) ) had to look after Mr Coates, and his hands therefore were full; for. on top of this responsibility, he had to face the further responsibility of becoming eventually the successor of Mr Coates in the government of the country. (Loud laughter.) He might say he spoke, not like the Prime Minister a visitor, but as a resident, for they sometimes thought the most important part of the Grey district was that in the Buller electorate, such as the Grey Valley and the district including the miners. As a representative of the Coast, he had great pleasure in meeting the sons and daughters of the ■pioneers —that fearless, upright vanguard who came adventuring here in bygone days, and laid true and firm the basis of a democratic Society. He spoke of men such as had raised the Hag of insurrection on the battlefield of Ballarat and had there won for Australia the exercise of the right of constitutional government—the men who went into the Eureka Stockade, where the foundation of Parliamentary government was laid. These were, the pioneers whom one was proud to have known, and at Timaru he met one old gentleman nearly one hundred years of age, who wore no glasses and had lost not a tooth in his head, and who was a survivor of the heroic band that were in the Eureka Stockade. These were a wonderful type of men, and when now we were talking of enjoying in these new lands of the South the benefits of constitutional government, we could not forget the men who had vindicated that right for us. Everywhere one went, north, south, east., or west, one would meet the West Coasters, im- • bued vet with that wonderful sentiment of identity that, had been born when they faced dangers together. Out of it had grown the social spirit of the Coast. It was the product of those social and economic conditions which had given us that programme of Socialistic legislation such as the Prime Minister had relied on for his proofs of progress —the Post Office, the Railway Department, and quite a number of other utilities in which the Socialistic spirit was exemplified, and which all worked out for the benefit of New ealand. This gathering reflected credit on the Committee and people of Greymouth. It brought home the fact that time was fleeting, the great majority of the pioneers having passed away, but the political system they inaugurated lived on, and their name would remain indelible in our records for all time. He, like the Prime Minister, was glad to see Mrs Seddon, senior, there that day, and was ready to pay a tribute to | her late husband, whose greatness they all realised. In an eloquent peroration, Mr Hol-1 land said the shadows were beginning to lengthen even for those present that, afternoon, and the day was coming near when they too would join the great majority, but the foundation laid i by them and those who had gone before them would be builded on by the generations yet to come. The poet Gerald Massey’s splendid lines were recalJ led for them in this new land at every stage: “Where the vanguard camps to- • day, the rear shall rest to-mor-s row.” These words were stamped on the monument at Hokitika of the pio--1 necr whose hand pointed to the old • goldfields. The words were true of • all history. The sailing vessel was suc- > ceeded by the steamer, the motor and the flying machine. The conquest of ' the air to-day was making all things ' possible for man. As the future, built ' itself, however, the names of the pio- ’ ’neers would never be obliterated. They 5 were there to do honour to their mem- ' O ry, and they found pleasure in meet--1 ing their descendants. He joined with - the Prime Minister and the Mayor in ’ asking them most heartily to drink the ’ I toast of “The Pioneers.” (Cheers.) The toast was most enthusiastically I drunk, with musical honours.

Responding, Mr Hunmphrey Geancy said they had a sumptuous repast that day, and he wished none present would know the lack of a meal, but the miner of old, who went with his swag on his back into the bush, had known want and privation. He was a man to respect and to honour as a builder of the Empire, for the prospector’s spirit was the spirit which spread the British race across the face of the globe. Little did the diggers of sixty years ago loresee such a gathering and celebration as this Jubilee; but New Zealand was still only in its infancy, and we of to-day could scarce imagine the greatness of its destinies.

Mr B. Ballin said, that as a sixtyfiver he could only talk of his practical knowledge, but he asked where were all the men of those days. They were gone, but their work remained. He referred to such outstanding men as Hugh Cassidy and James Marshall. 'He had seen a hundredweight of gold from one claim; It was indeed a great

thing to have lived 65 years after eom ing here. It was a long stretch, and saw vast changes, such as the presence of fine motor roads here, where tnore used to be no roads at all. Mr John Jackson said that, as a native, he was proud to see a New Zealand born Mayor here and a New Zealand born Primo Minister. If they would do their duty by their prc-gmi-tors they would show New Zealanders could run New Zealand. He recalled Ralph Waldo Emerson’s lines, “Trust thyself!” every heart vibrated to that theme. He recalled the diggings on which he worked as a youth, and also Archdeacon York’s first sermon at Maori Creek. T’he robust people present were the descendants of very robust pioneers—it was a ease of the survival of the fittest. He <new the dangers of alluvial mining, and how, when a man was missed, they used to go and find him injured or dead, they would take him home, dead or alive; and even if they got drunk after a funeral, they took it all as it came. Nobody could live on hope like a miner could, let the claims duffer out as they would. He was proud to see the fine' Old People’s Home here, also to ac .. old Chinese diggers there, tor there was none more obliging in the early davs than the Chinaman. He thanked I them for the reception of to-day. Mr W. H. Parfitt, as a pioneer s son, was glad to see the pioneers enjoying themselves. They had roughed it in the early days, and deserved ease in their age. They would carry on the pioneer tradition here. He saw men and women there who had nursed him I as a baby, and bis regard for them all was akin' to that of a child for its parent- so that, when he sought advice, it was to them he went. Their progeny would keep the Coast on the map, and i perpetuate their loyalty and hospitality The Jubilee was a credit to the organisers, and he hoped that there would be another ten years hence. The Mayor said the company would he glad of an address from Mrs B. J. Seddon, who, amid cheers, came forward and said. “Fellow pioneers!—l am very pleased to be here. I am I pleased 'to join in this Celebration. In I the name of my late husband, I thank I you all for your tribute. It is many years since we came to the West Coast, and we rejoice that we are reassembled to do honour to it. Once again I thank you.” At the call of Mr James O’Brien, three hearty cheers were given for Mrs Seddon.

Messrs Candy and Green, of Kumara, also responded to the toast, and detailed the hradships of the early days, after which a memorable gathering concluded,