THE OPENING OF PARLIAMENT.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 256, 5 November 1910, Page 8

THE OPENING OF PARLIAMENT.

. , DUKE OF CON;NAIJGHT'S ■■■■:•■.■■ ;; -.SPEECH. • ' ■ .. '■'; MESSAGE FROM THE KING: , V (Received N&v-. S, 6.20 a.nu); ' ;■:'' : , . . ■. , -CAPETOWN, Nov. 4. .. The inaiiguration of the first. Union tobk place this morning, j iin superb weather. The Duke of Con- ! anaught arid Viscount." Gladstone led ;fche procession from1 Government House, through :* the principal) thoroughfares, of the city, to Parlia- i jtnent House. The streets were lined , jivith troops and thronged with en- ■ rjbhusiasi&ic crowds. ',':■ " The, vice-regal. party reached Par- j tiament House,at noon, and were-re-V ©eived by the President of the Sen- ■; ate and the Speaker of the Assembly, and . proceeded, to the Assembly,, /Chamber. '. I : The .Duke of Connaught delivered ihis speech and the King's message., j Viscount Gladstone made the open|ng speech., after which Parliament' jn'et for business. / | Keuter reports the following as the : of the Duke of Connaught's • Bpeech :-'- f<Gentl6men of thel, Senate jand Gentlemeu of the House of As- ; sembly. On the twenty-first of Febru- ! ary last my beloved and deeply ! lamented brother, the^late King Edr ; .ivard. VII., in his speech to the Im- j jperial Parliament, dwelt on the establishment of .the Union of South ; "Africa and his desire that his son, 1 * ifehen Prince of Wales, should make ' an extended tour, through this Domin- : ion and open, in - his •-name, the first i Session of the new Parliament, buu, I by the inscrutable ordering of events, that purpose, charged with so d«ep interest and meaning for. all his subjects, both here and at Home, was, aiot to be fulfilled/ The sudden cala-j xaity which within a few weeks after- f trards bereaved the Empire Of its re- 1 vered Sovereign was thus felt with , particular severity by South Africa j herself, as it .broke the chain of close j and abiding forethought which had I linked my illustrious brother to the j tvelfare of this great territory^ and , (effaced at one blow all those well \ placed arrangements for doing .high j fionor to the birth of the South'l African Union Parliament which had i ■ iheld a prominent place in his • ; thoughts, even during the _ closing • < 'fiours of his life. I have it in com- : jnand from King George to convey to South Africa the expression of his keen and profound regret that he for ; the present has been deprived .of the gratification of coining amongst you in person. To have been here upon : this groat historic occasion would have been to his Majesty, and also to the Queen, ah inestimable pleasure, "but imperative pressing .duties, labors which at this time crowded upon his Majesty^ make it impossible for tli(s King to be absent from the ■ Mother Country... His Majesty there- j fore conferred upon me the honor of representing him to-day. He has bidden me assure you of his heartfelt gratitude for the warm sympathy extended by the whole of South Africa to him-elf and* family in the irrepar-, able loss they sustained. The King,

as you are well aware, is no stranger I to the Dominions -Beyond the Seas. His association with them is lifelong, and they hold a large place in his heart. His Majesty well knows that you have passed through fire, sorrow, trouble and" misunderstanding. Conflict brought calamity, upon the land, but all this is now peacefully buried with the past. He recognises, too, that here, as elsewhere, there must, always exist a marked divergence of political opinion.. Such diversions, indeed, of thought and action are of the essence of full, free, responsiblegovernment;—government _. which, you now enjoy. The King rejoices in the knowledge that the auspicious Union of the South African Dominions has j already made for the social and material progress of his people, and he feels assured • that all South Africans will work steadfastly andhonorably for the welfare of their great and beautiful country. His i Majesty's earnest prayer is that the Union, so happily achieved, may, under God's guidance, prove a lasting blessing tp you all, and that it may tend to the ever-increasing advantage and prosperity of South Africa and the British Empire. "Gentlemen of the Senate and Gentlemen of the House of Assembly: It affords me much pleasure to convey to you this message from the King. I now, in his name and in his behalf, declare this Parliament open." After delivering his speech the Duke of Gonnaught read the following telegram from the King:—"Although it has been ordained that I should not be with you on this great occasion, my thoughts and prayers! are to-day for South,_ Africa and for her lasting Union. I earnestly trusft that, for the sake of /the, people as a j whole, your great country may, by \ God's blessing, under wise guidance and statesmanship, . progress^ from year to year, ever-iiiereasing in wisdom, happiness, and prosperity." . THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL. Viscount Gladstone's speech was as] follows:—"The King has honored you. by, deputing the 'Duke of ConnaughV to open the 'session' of the'first .Parliament of the Union in the Mother City of South Africa, and deliver the speech to which we have just listened with keen appreciation. , You will no doubt desire, at the earliest opportunity,, to send a-fitting and grateful reply tp his Majesty. It is a matter for deep regret that the death of our beloved' Sovereign, Eiing Edward VII., prevented King George from being here in person on this historic occasion. It will be ever present in your minds that his late Majesty, who was so profoundly interested in the; welfare of South Africa, assented/to .the Act. of Union. That Act has laid the foundation of a new nationality in this great country, and under its provisions you ■ are now assembled in Parliament.' To establish, strengthen, and protect this nationality in the true spirit of the Act is the first duty of Parliament." The speech pointed to the necessity for the consolidation of the public services of the Colonies on a. uniform basis. Lord Gladstone announced that a Commission would be appointed to make recommendations for the, reorganisation arid readjustment of the public service. The report would be awaited before comprehensive legislation' was i>roposed. Some changes, however-, were urgently required, for which legislation would be submitted. A Commission would also be appointed to inquire into and recommend oh the. readjustment of Customs, the promotion of local industries, and cognate matters. The Governor-General referred to the necessity for gradually making uniform laws applying to the whole of•; ■ :the Union. Legislation would be introduced to deal with certain matters in which uniformity was urgently necessary; Measures would be submitted dealing with . audit; naturalisation, railways, harbors, posts and telegraphs, immigration, and stock and plant diseases. The problems of South African defence were engaging the earnest attention of the Government, who were also considering a scheme' for the establishment of a national South African University, which would be submitted in due course. The proposals . would be\ framed with full regard to the position and interests of the important institutions which for many years had successfully . labored in the. field of higher education. Viscount Gladstone pointed out that Ministers acted under the authority of the South Africa Act, giving the Government power to meet current expenditure out of the revenue of the Union from the late Union until two months after the meeting of' Parliament. The estimates,however, covered bhe period to March 31st, 1911. Variation was.rendered necessary by the proposal to terminate the financial year on March 31st'. The estimates bo March 31st, 1912, were also submitted; "The establishment of the. Union," Lord Gladstone said, "removed from the path'of South Africa many of the obstacles which retarded her progress and development in the past, and the new era now opening before you is rich in possibilities of great industrial a.nd agricultural expansion. It is my Eervent prayer that, in attaining »eace, security, / and material prosperity, your aspirations may also be xmstantly directed to the consummation of that complete national unity j issential to the high place which j South Africa is designed to take imong the self-governing Dominions >f the British Empire, and that in md with a spirit of moderation, forjearance, and wisdom you may renler the great work of Union a blessng to yourselves, your posterity, and 1 in enduring basis for the future poli- j jical, moral, and national welfare of , south Africa, and may the blessing ' >f Almighty . God rest on your : abors." HESSAGE FROM! THE IMPERIAL GOVERNMENT. The Governor-General received the ollowing message from the Earl of '; 3rewe to be read in Parliament:—• 'His Majesty's Government offer cor- : Hal greetings to the new Assembly : >n the threshold of its labors in the ervice of a. people now united by inissoluble ties. They cherish the con- ' dent assurance that it will discharge

the great responsibilities committed to its care with whole-hearted devotion to the public weal, and that it will alwaj's be the loyal guardian of the constitutional liberties of South Africa. I desire to add the warm expression of my own good wishes as Secretary of State for the Colonies."

THE STEWARDSHIP. The Duke of Connaught this afternoon cabled to the King as follows:— "I delivered your message, and in your name declared open the first Parliament of United South Africa. I also read your telegram of good wishes, which was received with, unbounded satisfaction. The welcome given to me as your representative is most enthusiastic. AH classes of the community have received me with the greatest cordiality. The historic proceedings to-day have been very impressive, and thefe is a general consensus of opinion that the new Parliament enters upon its responsible duties under the happiest auguries, and supported by the goodwill of all your subjects in South Africa."