THE VETERANS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 18 June 1913, Page 5

THE VETERANS.

SOCIAL TO HAWERA COMRADES

;;j It was fitting (says the News) tjhat $he Veterans should play an important •part in the welcome -to" the battleship Itfew Zealand, and, from the. number who assembled •oh the breakwater, it was evident that the men who had seen'thfe -Niger and the other small ships of war which lay in the bay fifty ~qsd years ago, >vere not going to miss £he sight of "the'-great ship tliai re r -I>£S9eiited r Jialf-n-century,'s, progress> in ! nav£ll\varfare. ..lu t|ie evening, /over a! hundred veterans ..assembled ~in; the. Foresters' Hall, when, a social" was held, over which, Celonel Ellis presided, \ Teterans were pr<?fieht. from .all pvei: the province, /and . especially.' from* tiie' Hawera district, in the honor qf whose representatives'the>bcial;wasvheldV As one speaker remarked diiring the. evening, there were • no, --"scrubbers'. s amongst them—a-li were ; hardy ve.ter-, ans, though one, ■ who. lost a leg at Pipiriki, came on'wheels. ; The Rev. Mr Evans proposed the toast of the "Armyarid Navy," in a characteristic speech: well' punctuated with humorous anecdote. ' Captain Mills responded. "The .Parliament.-of. .Niew Zealand" was proposed by His ■■, the Mayor (Mr Gr.'W^Browne), who in his speech raised the question of the treat.nient of,-veteran.s by. Parliament. "'■■• /Mr.fl. J. H. Okey,: M:,P,; explained in reply.the action of: himself and his colleague', Mb AYiikinson,"over the Mili* tary Pension.Bill, which :his party- had passed.. ; PeriioniUly,. he alvvays .thought I that they had a!.:grea t deal to thank the veterans for,:and.he did not'think the.y^pung.men ftf'.^-hejpres.e'nt..day.Jully.' realised the debt .of .gratitude ■ they--owed. As :t-hey knew, the Government had passed:a measure- giving' the" vet-. erans a pensian. ; ."..,,. ; . '..,.'.- A .voice : . Some of them 1 v ..■' '>.'■■'-. He' had riot been satisfied with that measure. They knew that. He considered that the pension given to t the reterans should be a/recognition-alone sf the services they had rendered to bho eountryl ;(A'piplaus(?.)? If th^y were going to recognise the services "of tile veterans^., they. : could not pick and choose in-their-'recognition. His col-, league,, Mr ■ Wilkinson,''and. himself,', had done their best to -get- a Bill' passed in the-direction he had indicated. And' when ■ the decision was taken, they Kad/botJli voted -against their party.; \He believed, however,, that the present .Government nvere prepared to amend t}\& l?ill,. though he did not say they would" give the pension to every man.- Still,- Ije ■ thought; the1 pr6pt>rty be scored out altogether.. (Appranse.) On; his Return to rParli,ameii^j?,.:|hie;.intendedto • <isk for a return ,Qf^t|ie saving; to the fbld age pension expenditure. '■. Mr C. A. Wilkirispn-' M" ,Jf., also spoke in similar strain,'and- paid. ; a high tribute to'Mr Okey's services in • Paji--lia^nent on behalf' of the veterans. ? thqught the '■> ]vhole. matter of pensipns would be re-c6nsfder«?d, when an aceury ate .;estimat« of, the cost had / been,-,ob-taihed. He, believed ;thixt an amended measure ■■would! be broiight dpwp, gi%^ing thei pension' tp all.those men who had sen jed, their', \ .cq,iin^ry ; . Mr ." Wilkinson referred to the. enthusiastic^ mani^er in wh.ieh.^the. C(Ountry; L had. received the s^s.tem.pf universal training. .Speaking.of the navy, ,Mr v ..'iVilk.inso|i said a; na^val policy, might', shprfcit,'be -expectodj • and he ' hoped -the ; people of..New: Zealand would' give it their "Tbyal 'support^ "becailse he felt those .changes .would be in ;tlie. interests'-of. the Enisire -jJ^;\r;hoffe-.'- "ltv was :;«xittei^certain, -tkat New 'Zeiafci'nd- wmiW have.:,to:-da;:a ( ea-l : io(>re^,.irfcnaval. defei*^ Wnn it- Itacl"ever before dono. He looked to the ; day when tliero would b« a combined New 'Zealand. LAirstiMli'iiii. "and Canadian fleet, !alwnys subjef-t to the supreme control of the British Government. (Applause.) . , ,

To Captain Mace was. entrusted the honor of proposing the toast of "Our Hawera Comrades.", , Grea ; t difficulties had been experienced •in -getting together the men. but it had been done. Hawe.ra had a branch of the society, and it gave them very great pleasure to meet them that day. He hoped gatherings such as these would continue for manvi years to come. (Applause.) ■ .• * i . ■'■'■' The vice-president of the Hawera branch ;(Mr It. W. Foreman) replied that he might .say, for • himself, that lie left this district in '65, and that day lie had met many, old friends whom he had not seen since that day. \Vhen the war first broke out here, he 'had been too young to bear arms,.but later he bad done liis cliity-'to his country.. "And I may say," he concluded, "That, although. I have mfct the natives in any times. I never was as nervous then as T am now." (Applause and laughter.) Various other, toast, were honored. The singing of "A uld Lang Syne" terminated a notable gathering. ' :