District Centennial Questions

Manawatu Times, Volume 64, Issue 40, 17 February 1939, Page 3

District Centennial Questions

At Feilding last evening a meeting oi local body representatives comprising Zone E of the provincial Centennial organisation was held, the Mayor of Feilding (Mr. T. L. Seddon) as chairman of the zone committee, iwesiding. The Mayor submitted the following report:—

After the meeting of the zone committee which was held on November 9 last your representative attended a meeting of the Wellington Provincial Centennial Council on November 23 last.

I urged, as you will see from the minutes of that meeting, that the Mount Stewart memorial be retained as a provincial memorial but a resolution was carried that only one provincial memorial be erected in the province, your representative dissenting. A sub-commit-tee was set up to advise the provincial council on the type of memorial which should be erected and the best method of financing the cost.

Regarding the local centennial memorials, owing to the decision of the council to erect a provincial memorial on Petone beach I recommended that the proposed memorial ou Mount .Stewart be regarded as a district memorial for Manawatu. This recommendation found favour and was adopted. Approval was given to the following local Centennial memorials and the recommendations referred to tho national council:—

Feilding Borough Council: Pavilion at Kowhai Park estimated to cost £I2OO.

Marton Borough Council: A Centennial Park at an estimated cost of £llOO. A further meeting of the provincial Centennial council was held on January 27 last at which your representative was unable to be present. The council unanimously approved of the design of H. L. Massey Esq, for a memorial hall and bathing pavilion to commemorate the founding of the province by organised settlement. The estimated cost is £IO,OOO.

On the basis of contribution decided upon this zone is required to find £207. The provincial committee asks each zone to undertake to find its quota either by public subscription, by local body payments or a combination of both and desires to have, an assurance not later than the 22nd instant. This matter is for your consideration to-night and also the following matters some of which are mentioned in the letter sent by you to the town clerk. 1. Roll of early settlers. 2. Confirmation of the Marton Borough Council’s proposals. 3. Any further proposals for local Centennial memorials. 4. Mt. Stewart Memorial—method of raising the amount required. 5. Local Centennial celebrations. tf. Formation of local Centennial committees to take charge of arrangements financial and otherwise. It is clear from the Minister’s instructions that the marking of the Centennial by celebrations and memorials is not a matter solely for the local bodies. It is the desire of the Government that every section of the people through their community organisations and societies shall be associated with the observances and that as far as possible every individual will be given an opportunity of subscribing and/or assisting in some way with the Centennial celebrations and memorials. It will be evident to you that funds will be required for the following purposes:— (a) Contribution to the Provincial Centennial Memorial. (b) Contribution of the amount above the Government subsidy* (if granted) for the Mt. Stewart Memorial. (e) Local Centennial memorials. (d) Local Centennial celebrations. Ways and means of raising the required moneys will have to be discussed and I respectfully suggest that in order to minimise the cost the district should co-operate in the celebrations, say some function centring upon the unveiling of the Mt. Stewart Memorial. I also suggest that the formation of local Centennial committees should be undertaken at once.

“When we reflect that the exhibition and the celebrations in Wellington city itself will attract many people from this district I feel that our celebrations while they should be such as the occasion demands, nevertheless should be tempered with moderation,’’ concluded Mr. Seddon.

The Mayor went on to review the proceedings of the several meetings of the Wellington Provincial Centennial Mem orial Committee recalling that the original idea of three provincial memorials had been abandoned in favour of one memorial on Petone beach. He had pointed out that the district he represented did not have any interest in the Petone beach proposal, but was deeply interested in tho Mt. Stewart Memorial. In November last the Provincial Committee had approved of the Mt. Stewart Memorial proposal as a district Centennial memorial. Mr. Seddon went on to refer to the many factors considered by the provincial committee in dealing with the programme of the celebrations. Centennial stamps, coins and medals were to be issued and desigua had already been finalised. The Government subsidy granted to the Wellington Province for the celebrations was £30,000. “Well gentlemen, I think that is all the news I can give you.” concluded Mr. Seddon.

In answer to Mr. Purnell the Mayor said that the Feilding and Marton loca* memorials had been approved by the Wellington Provincial Centennial Committee and awaited the approval of tho national committee. To a further question by Mr. Purnell, Mr. Seddon said that he did not know what amount of the available subsidy of £30,000 had been applied for. Although nothing like the £30,000 had been applied for up to the present, Mr. Seddon felt that no more than the amount allocated to the province would be available. On tho motion of Messrs, rurnell and Reid the chairman’s report Ifras adopted. Early Settlers’ Roll. Themeeting proceeded to discuss the matter of the roll of early settlers, those present expressing some doubt as to what was intended, since the several districts within the zone were settled at different periods. It was agreed on the motion of Messrs. Dalrymple and Furnell to ask the Provincial Centennial

Committee to givo a definition of an I early settler. Marton’s Memorial, The meeting approved and the MarItou Borough Council’s local memorial of a park was approved. I Speaking for the Mangaweka Town j Board Mr. Mahoney said that it was doubtful if it would have any proposal to offer in the way of a local memorial. Mt. Stewart Memorial. Dealing with the Mt. Stewart Memorial which had been accepted as tho district memorial, Mr. Seddon said that recent publicity on the subject had been most misleading and discouraging to the promoters of the scheme.

Referring to the report of the proceedings of the Manawatu County Council ou a discussion on the Mt. Stewart Memorial proposal the chairman said that it was most misleading and appeared to him to amount to unaccountable ignorance and he hoped that the press would take steps to correct what

was an entirely incorrect statement_ of the position. All local bodies in the zone had been advised of the acceptance of the Mt. {Stewart Memorial and the position concerning this memorial proposal had been fully reported in the National Centennial Committee’s publications. The cost of the proposal was estimated at £3OOO and the subsidy would amount to £750, leaving the balance to be found by the local bodies interested. The money could be raised by public subscription and local body contributions. Cr. Purnell considered that the memorial proposal was to be commended but he anticipated difficulties in the matter of financing the project. Marton would be quite happy to find its quota. lie appreciated the difficulty of the Eangitikei County which extended from the

coast to the Waimariuo. That county had turned down its quota and other local bodies nearer home had also refused to make a contribution. There seemed no doubt that the money would not be forthcoming and it seemed that tho meeting should consider whether the proposal should be turned down in favour of a more modest scheme.

The chairman said that the question of financing the project had been a matter for concern because of the calls which were being made on local bodies not only for the Centennial exhibition but for local memorials and celebrations.

As far as the Manawatu County 1 Council was concerned, Mr. Drew said that the Mount Stewart memorial proposal did not come from the council, but from a district committee, and all along the question of finance had been uppermost. If the scheme could not be financed a less ambitious scheme would have to be considered.

The Oroua County Council was quite prepared to find its quota, said Cr. Campbell, but in view of the attitude of other local bodies, it appeared necessary to concentrate on a more modified memorial, lie regretted that district interests had not seen fit to fall in with the idea of commemorating the pioneers of the district.

Mr. Reid said that he had understood that the Mount Stewart proposal had been accorded a prominent place in the list of memorial schemes, but since then many local schemes had crept in and interest in the scheme which had been launched by the Sandon Old Pupils’ Association appeared to be waning. Many memorials had been erected and even those fo’r soldiers he put behind those designed to- perpetuate the memory of the pioneers of the country. He would like to see the scheme go on, but realised the financial obstacles, although lie felt that a direct appeal for subscriptions to ratepayers would bring response. The question was whether the zone committee was prepared to undertake the collection of £250 0 for the memorial. “I regretfully come to the conclusion that there is no hope of raising that sum, especially now that so manynew proposals had crept in,” said Mr. Seddon.

In further discussion, Mr. Seddon said that a proposal costing £SOO would be more within the means of the zone. With the Government subsidy of £2OO it would leave £OOO to be found.

Feilding and Marton Borough Councils, the Oroua County Council and the Mangaweka Town Board agreed to their allocations under a scheme costing £BOO. Mr. Drew did not think there would be any difficulty on the part of the Manawatu County Council in finding its quota. As far as the Rangitikei County Council was concerned, Mr. Dalrymple said it would not contribute, but ho did not think there would be any difficulty in raising the county’s quota by private subscription. He would like to have seen the original scheme gone on with, but his council was against contributing as a council.

On the motion of Messrs. Campbell and Purnell it was agreed to recommend the abandonment of the original Mount Stewart Memorial on the score of the impossibility of raising the required finance and to substitute a modified scheme to cost not more than £BOO, the Mount Stewart Memorial Committee to bo asked to offer suggestions. It was agreed to leave to individual districts tho question of local celebrations. In this connection the chairman said that it would be necessary for each district to set up its district memorial committee.

Provincial Memorial Contributions The chairman then referred to the contributions towards the cost of the provincial memorial at Petone and de-

sired to know the attitude of the local bodies concerned.

Mr. Purnell moved that the chairman propose to the provincial committee that the whole of the cost of the memorial be carried by Zone A and at the same time point out that the schemes generally were getting top-heavy, what with local memorials and celebrations. Having regard to tho obligations districts in Zone E were committed to, they should not be asked to contribute to a utilitariau memorial which would be of no benefit to the interests repre-

sented in Zone E. The motion was seconded by Mr. Dal -ymple and carried.

Those present at the meeting were: Messrs. K. W. Dalrymple (Rangitikei County Council), F. 11. Purnell (Mayor of Marton), D. W. Reid and A. K. Drew (Manawatu County Council), A. Campbell and R. L. Harding (Oroua County Council), G. B. Gregory and C. C. McDonald (Marton Borough Council), A. Milner and L. G. D. Mahoney (Mangaweka Town Board).