THE GREAT WAR.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 12 June 1924, Page 10

THE GREAT WAR.

PERFORMED BY PRIME MINISTER.

LARGE'GATHERING OF CITIZENS.

The weather was beautifully line ior the unveiling and dedication of Hawera’s Memorial and Rol. of Honour yesterday afternoon. The Pirime Minister (Rt. Hon. W. F. Massey), who had been asked to perform the ceremony, arrived from Marton at about 2.45 p.m.. and by the hour appointed (3 p.m.) there was a very large concourse of people on Princes Street in front of the Memorial Arch. The military parade left the Winter Show buildings just before 3 o’clock and marched to the Memorial. Captain ]>. E. Bremner, M.C., was in charge of the parade, and officers of the local Defence Group and a number of reserve officers being present. The procession, headed by the hand, under Mr F. Ollerenshatf." consisted of veterans, returned soldiers.

enough. As these men fought that we and generations yet unborn might enjoy our great national privileges, which are our heritage, so should we consider it our duty to conserve these privileges and to make of our country the very best it is possible to make. We do not always remember as we enjoy all our national blessings and comforts what they cost those who won them for us. We have more to do than sing the praises of our dead heroes. There are peace battles yet to fight —battles for national honour, for righteousness for purity, for truth, and for God. ‘‘Peace hath her victories no less renowned than war.” We have as great a duty in time of peace as in war, and a harder, in some respects, for peace battles lack the glamour of war. It is the nation’s duty, and therefore the

Second Mounted Rifles, and B Company Ist Battalion Taranaki Regiment. After the Prime Minister, accompanied by his private secretary (Mr A. D. Thompson), Mr W. S. G 1 snn (member for Rangitikei), and Mr J. R. Corrigan (member for Patea), and the members of the Memorial Committee and ministers of religion, had taken their places on the platform the Na-. tional Anthem was sung. Addresses by the Mayor (Mr L. A. Bone) and Mr J. 11. Corrigan were followed by the hymn “Oh God Our Help in Ages "Past.” The Rev. W. J. Oxbrow read portions of scripture, after which the Rev. H. W. Monaghan, M.A., offered prayer. Mr E. Dixon (chairman of the Peace Memorial Committee) gave an address, which was followed by the singing of Kipling’s “Recessional.” The Prime Minister then delivered an inspiring address, at the end of which he unveiled the Arch. The hymn “Lead Kindly Light” was sung. A prayer of dedication was said by the Rev. E,. N. Goring, the benediction pronounced by Capt. TV". Seairle, and the ceremony concluded with the sounding of the “Last Post” by Staff Sergeant-Maior 'O. S. Mahoney (W. 0.1) N.Z.P.S, The Prime Minister was the guest of the Peace Memorial Committee at dinner privately at the Commercial Hotel.

duty of the individual, to foster a spirit of tolerance, and a, spirit of love, that should seek a service from us for our neighbours. As individuals we should strive to banish class hatred. To-day is the day of service. ’Every man is called to serve, if we are to become a truly great Empire and a greater nation than ever. If our Empire ig worth living for, and was worth dying for, as these men died for it, then let us who are here to-day realise our duty, and by service and thought for others, rather than for ourselves, bring about a better state for everyone, Wealth never makes for happiness. Service does. The warrior dies happy, proud that he has served his country. We would like to hope, and do pray, that wars will cease —that Avar will he impossible, and that projects of violence and Avar fare will be regarded amongst civilised nations Avith increasing aversion. Man is born to something higher and better and nobler than for war. Let our statesmen, then, lend all their efforts to bring about a world Avide peace. . Let them never rest until this is accomplished, so that memorials such as we are umailing to-day may never more be raised up. MR. CORRIGAN’S SPEECH. Mr. J. R. Corrigan, M.P., .said they were present that afternoon to perform an important ceremony —that of unveiling the memorial to the men Avho had given, their lives to their country. The memorial Avas a most suitable one and should be a lasting reminder to passers-by of their duty to their country. Loyalty to country Avars one of the first essentials, and the arch, being a. memorial to the dead, should urge the living towards the ideals of tine citizenship. Mr. Corrigan thanked the Prime Minister for coming to Hawera, for lie knew he was a very busy man. On occasions such as the present, party politics were buried, and they Avere all present in the interests of the country and Hawera. MR. DIXON’S SPEECH.

THE MAYOR’S ADDRESS. ! 1 His Worship the Mayor -(Mr. L. A. Bone), after briefly welcoming the Prime Minister, said; We are met here to-day to honour the dead; to remember the dead; to thank God that their sacrifice was not in vain. We remem-ber,to-day with gratitude the men Avho laid down their lives in the great cause of freedom, righteousness, and truth, and a cause that Ave kneAv amUfelt was just and honourable. And we remember also to-day Avith honour those men Avho returned to their land and their homes, having accomplished that Avhic-h they set their hands to. We unite in remembering and honouring to-day the living and the dead. We Avould once again, and again as the times come round, assemble together and unitedly and fervently offer up to Almighty God thanks for victory. We do not* Avant to forget the early days of the war, when the clarion call was heard and resounded in all parts of our great Empire. Hoav our sons responded and took up firms. We do not Avish ever to forget the noble way they rallied to that call. We do not want to forget the Avar, the days of parting as our troopships left our shores Avith the flower of our nation lining their bulwarks. We Avould not forget the Avar, the bloodshed, the strife, the misery, the terrible black days when hope weilnigh left our hearts. We Avould not forget the great days when victory crowned the efforts of the great Allied armies. We Avould not forget the homecoming of our brave men and Avomen, many of them marred, maimed and scarred Avith their honourable and victorious Avar service. We would not forget those who left their bones on distant Flanders soil and on other battlefields. Their names Avill go doAvn to history, inscribed not only on these tablets of marble, but on imperishable tablets of man’s memory and on the imperishable roll of the life beyond. No greater love hath any man than that he lay down his life for his brother. As we read on these tablets the names that are inscribed there Ave should feel in us an undying gratitude to them for the great sacrifice they were called upon to make. These men avlio died and those who returned fought to retain and to secure to us and future generations a great and wonderful heritage. What has our nation fought for in centuries gone bv?--freedom, liberty, justice, truth, and righteousness, and it Avas few these great ideals that our nation drew the sAvord to fight, after other efforts for peace lind failed. Our Empire, our national existence, depended on our fighting men, and it is a matter of history to-day how nobly they upheld the highest traditions of the great British race. Do av 6 remember these things in times of peace? It is so easy to forget, and Ave are inclined to forget. We lay a feAv Avreaths of floAA T ers on our soldiers’ graA'es. perhaps once a year, and think AA'6 have done our duty. But it is not so. Far from it. Gratitude is not

Mr E. Dixon, chairman of the Peace Memorial Committee, said lie wished that to pay a tribute to the people of Hawera- and district for the splendid way in which they had responded to the appeal for funds to build the arch. It avus not the only time that the people of Hawara had responded to an appeal, and but for the fact that there Avere difficulties in securing a site (the present one had a building upon it), HaAvera- Avould have been one of the first places in NeAv Zealand to erect a memorial. HaAA 7 era’s memorial was erected to those who had made the supreme sacrifice, and also in thanksgiving for those who had returned. The memorial Avas unique in this n-espect. They Avould be astonished to lind the number of memorials that were erected in various towns all over the country, but although the unveiling was not an uncommon ceremony, it coukl never be commonplace. Were the names upon the memorial the names of strangers it AA 7 oulcl be precious; how much more so should avg cherish our memorial upon Avhich were the names of brothers, husbands and friends. These gallant men belonged to a countless company Avhich shielded us in hours of danger. Those avlio had been on the raihvay station Avhen the boys AA-ere farewelled and kneAV that many Avould never return remembered Avith AA r hat feelings they heard of first one and then another Avho had made the supreme sacrifice. Those present remembered how our manhood responded ; how they came from toAvn, city and hamlet. But it Avas better to die for the Empire than never to have fought at all.

“Think, Avould avo wish that they had stayed When' all the rest the call obeyed, That thought- of self had held in thrall Their souls and shrunk them mean and small Nay! Rather thank the. Lord that they Rose to such heights of chivalry That- Avith the need these loyal souls Swung like a needle to its pole That set ling duty first They Avent at once as to a sacrament. People to-day, said Mr. Dixon, -were the debtors of those heroes. Our lives, our freedom, and our security for

UNVEILING OF MEMORIAL ARCH.

pursuing worthy ideals were their gift to us. Hoav could avo pay our debt. In emulation of their nobility iu making the utmost use of the peace their sacrifice had Avon. He hoped HaAvera’s memorial Avould be for untold days a shrine of thanksgiving, a beacon of honour, a milestone on the march that Avould take all peoples to the uplands of a nobler life. PRIME MINISTER'S SPEECH. Mr Massey said he Avanted to thank Mr Dixon and his Worship the Mayor for the A-ery hearty welcome given him on behalf of the people of Hawera, and he wanted to thank all concerned for the opportunity and privilege of taking part in the unveiling ceremony. He thought the memorial suitable and appropriate to the memory of those

men from this district who Avent a way to the Avar and came hack, and those avlio Avent aAvay and did not come hack —the men Avho died for freedom, King, country and Empire, and died in order that Ave might live in peace and happiness ; who died to saA-e the nation from the heel of a foreign despot. It Avas the memory of these men Avhich they Avere present to honour and perpetuate. He Avas not likely to forget the outbreak of the Great War. When the first cable message came to NeAV Zealand in the early days of August. 1914, announcing that Avar had been- declared betAveen the Allied Powers and the Central Powers, he Avas able to reply knowing that he had the whole of the people of NeAv Zealand behind him, that as far as NeAv Zealand was concerned alt that Ave had and all that Ave Avere was at the disposal of Britain for carrying to a successful issue the great Avar that had already commenced. He knew that the. cable message which he sent was backed up to the very letter by the people of New Zealand. As far as NeAv Zealand’s part with the war was concerned, over 100,000 men went from this little country, and when the Armistice came along and peace was declared Ave had another 10,000 men in camp and ready to go if required. Fortunately their seiwices' Avere not required. HoAvever, out of the 100,000 gallant men Avho Avent 17,000 never returned. Their remains rested to-day in the countries in Avhich the Avar was carried on, but although their bodies rested in peace their names Avould live for eA-er m the hearts of their fellow citizens and felloAv countrymen. They must not forget the part taken by the Empire of which Ave are a part. Prior to the Avar Ave Avere told by financiers and authorities on Avarfare tliat it would be quite impossible for any nation to carry on a war lasting more than six months. The Avar, however, Avas carried on for four years and four months, and during that period the Empire of Avhich Ave are a part passed through the ranks of its Army and Navy 8,000,000 men at a cost of £8,000,000,000. Nobody dreamt that the thing Avas possible, but the impossible happened. Continuing, Mr Massey said Ave should not forget the other parts of the Empire from Avhich so | little Avas expected. He Avas not referring to the Maoris, because they Avere just the same as ourselves, hut he was speaking of the natives of the islands of the Pacific and the inhabitants of India, who sent 1,000,000 men and huge sums of money. Then there Ayas the mercantile marine. If the officers and men in that service had not been loyal Ave would never have seen the Avar through. Further, he Avould ne\mr forget the part played by the women of New Zealand. He knew the splendid spirit and the extraordinary patriotic enthusiasm of the women of this country, many of Avhom offered as nurses and endured hardships equal to those endured by the soldiers. And those Avho Aver© not able to go stayed behind, and did their full duty here in pointing to their sons, brothers, and husbands, and telling them that their duty was AA'ith the men Avho Avere fighting. One million of the pick of the population of the British Empire never came back to their homes. These Avere the things Avhich Avere not to be forgotten and which would never be forgotten. Mr Massey then dreAv attention to the fact that, France suffered even more than Ave did as the result of her country being invaded by an unscrupulous enemy. He' had been over the battlefields, and he had seen the damage Avhich had been done. He had seen the toAvns and villages, Avhere it would be no exaggeration to say that not one stone was left standing upon another. Cathedrals and lactones levelled to the ground, machinery smashed, and everything stripped of metals such as brass, tin and lead, Avhich had been carted aAvay and put through the munition factories in Germany. When the Peace Conference Avas held he was appointed as president of a commission, the duties of Avhich amongst other things was to-enquire into the reported atrocities of the war. He never believed that human being could be capable of such actions as were committed in France and Bel- ■ gium. Heaven forbid that Ave should lever be called upon again to take part

in another Avar, but Ave must remember that in a, time of peace ave must still be prepared for Avar. He Avas in London during the last ceJebration of Armistice Day. English people were supposed to he light-hearted and possessed of short memories, but he Avould never forget that crowd of between 7,000,000 and 8,000,000 people Avho gathered together on that occasion. There Avas the procession led by the King, Avhen His Majesty laid a Avreath on the grave of the Unknown Warrior, and also the visit to the cenotaph. It seemed that the Avhole population of London was in the streets, and there was not a discordant note in the whole proceedings. The people Avere there to mourn, and they did it in a manner which he would never forget. If the people of the Empire Avere anything like the people in London, then the Empire would stand for all time.

New Zealanders stood very highly in the London people’s estimation, said Mr Massey, and he proceeded to tell of two girls Avho were" alloAved to stand in an open space at the gathering mentioned above simply because they! had told a policemen that they were New Zealanders and they heard that their Prime Minister Avas in the procession, ancl they wanted to take his photograph when he came along. Continuing, the Prime Minister pointed out that it was our duty to act as trustees for the men .who died and keep the Empire safe. There were 450,000,000 for whose safety Ave Avere responsible, and there was only one wav m Avhich it could he done. There were people who thought that the danger of war Avas over. Personally, he did not agree with that idea. Human beings Avere just the same to-day as they AA-ere 1000 years ago, and while there were peace forces in the Avorld to-day which Avere doing splendid Avork Ave could not afford to take risks. There was just one Avay in Avhich our country could he protected, and that Avas by sea power. New Zealanders saAV something of this during the recent visit of the fleet. These boats had to he kept going; in the past Britain had provided ships and sailors, but if the countries of the Empire were going to stand they would all have to do their part. A lot had been said about the Singapore base, and personally he thought a fatal mistake had been made in abandoning it. He had been told that these great ships Avere of little value unless thev had a base from Avhich they coulcl operate. We had not got a suitable base in the Pacific, and there was only one place for a good base—Singapore. Mr Massey concluded by again stressing tjie necessity for preparedness. The Prime Minister then performed the unveiling ceremony, stating that the arch AA'ould stand for centuries, reminding these Avho came after that we were loyal to our country and our men did not fail in the duties they AA'ere compelled to take up.

HISTORY OF THE ARCH. It Avas early in 1919 that a Avar memo mi 1 for Hawera. became a topic of general conversation, and in March of the same year the then Mayor (Mr E. Dixon) called a public meeting to decide what should be done in the matter. It Avas unanimously agreed that Hawera should have some sort of memorial, but just what form it should take was another matter. Some suggested a memorial park and some a cenotaph, but after consideration it Avas agreed that a memorial arch would be the best proposition from HaAvera’s point of view. Consequently on July 28 a further meeting Avas held, and a toAvn canvassing committee appointed. That committee carried out its duties thoroughly, keeping strictly to instructions that only the “straight-out giving” principle should be entertained. July and August AA'ere busy months for the canvassers, and the result of their labours Avas that the handsome sum of £2261 2s lOd Avas collected. It Avas some time before the erection of the arch was commenced, but in April of this year it was completed, the money collected having in the meantime earned interest amounting to £Bl4 4s 6d. As the contract price Avas £2542, there Avas a balance of £333 7s 4d in hand, but this amount is being expended in minor additions, such as concrete pavement round the base of the arch and electric lighting. The committee in Avhose hands the work of administration has been entrusted is as follows: Messrs E. Dixon (chairman), E. P. Cox, L. A. Bone, F. W. Gillander, H. L. Spratt, J. S. Murray, J. R. Corrigan, J. A. Duffill, W. S. Gibson, M. C. Crighton, E. H. Harrop, and R. S. Sage (honorary secretary). THE ARCH DESCRIBED. . The arch itself is classic in conception, and spans a carriage way 14ft Avide, giving access to the future town hall, municipal offices, and public library. Built mostly of Oamaru stone, the Avhole structure is 32ft Avide and 28ft high. The tAvo basements are built- of bluish grey granite, and each measures 9ft 6in by 7ft 4iu, being surmounted on the interior of the arch with four small columns of Takaka marble.

The architects for the Avork were Messrs Duffill and Gibson, and the contractors Messrs Walpole and Patterson, of Wanganui. The whole design is an admirable one, and the arch should prove an impressive apd suitable memorial which, Avhen taken in conjunction Avith the proposed municipal buildings and the Soldiers’ Club, Avill constitute a prominent feature in a dignified group. THE HONOURED DEAD.

The names of the men from the Hanera district who made the supreme sacrifice, and whose names appear on the arch, are as follow: ANDERSON, H. J. L, ANSTIS, C, BAILEY, p. E. BATTEN, L. C. BEAUMONT, T. A. G BEAUREPAIRE, L. I. BEEBY, T. BERNARD, A. C. BEVAN, W. H. G. BIRD, F. BISSETT, G. F. M. BOWDEN, E. R. BROUGH, J. P. BRYANT, H. BULLOCK, W. W. CAMPBELL, P. CAMPBELL, J. CATCHPOLL, A- C. CATCHPOLE, E. W. CLOSE, F. CLOSE, J. CLOTHIER, G. COAD, H. P. CORRIGAN, W. E. CRAWFORD, E. CRIGHTON, J. 41. DEWAR, H. DOHERTY, T. DOHERTY, W. DUNHAM, H. J. EWEN A. FLYNN, R, S. FODEN, W. R. FREI, J. GARDNER, J. H. gerrard; T. GILES, C. P. GODDARD. S. GRANTHAM, F. J. GREEN, J. GREIG, A. GREIG, R. W. GRIFFEN. E. A HARRIS. H. R. HARRISON, E. E.

HAYWARD, C. A. HEDLEY, C, A. HOGG, J. HOLDSTOCK, W. L. HOWIE, J. HUME, S, S, JENSEN, E. ' JOHNSON, H. J. JOHNSTONE, E. C. JOHNSTONE, A. E. KING, C. F. KNIGHT, N. R. LACEY, E. LANGDOX, C. LATHAM, W. J. R. LAVERY. M. J. LETHABY, A. J. LINN, J. R. LINN, H. C. LIVERMORE, P. S. MANSELL, F. MATTHEWS, J. MOOSMAN, L. J. MORGAN, G. O. -MORRISON, E. -MALLOY, M. W. MURPHY, M. MURPHY, P. MURPHY, R, MURRAY, J. MURRAY, TV. McGLADE, M. McGLASHAN. E, McLEAN, J. McNIVEN, H. G. OLDRIDGE, T. S. D O’REILLY, T. PALMER. D. A. parker; e. m. parrington, h. m. PARSLOW, A. V. PATERSON, D. PHILLIPS, G. PORTER, W. C. RAUCH, W. J. REID, A. RIDDLE, J. S. ROGERS, F. SALMON, A. L. SANDERS, O. SARGENT, G. E. SHRIMPTON, S. M. SHRIMPTON, A V SLIGHT, C. H.’ SMYTH, E. O. SQUIRE, A. R. STEFFERT, N E STRACK, K. J SYME, G. TARRANT, A. TARRANT, C. R. TAYLOR, C. TAYLOR, L. M. TELFER. H. TERLICH. J. THOMSON A WALLACE-! N. WASLEY, 'A. T WHITTINGTON, H. K WILLIAMS, A. O "WILLIAMS, F. ‘ WILLS, L. J: WILLS, A. A. WINKS, L. WOODFORD, P WRIGHT, L T YEARBURY. G. D. 10UNG, J. b.