SIR JOSEPH WARO IN ENGLAND,

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLIII, Issue XLIII, 16 September 1909, Page 1

SIR JOSEPH WARO IN ENGLAND,

A MEMORABLE GATHERING. THE LUNCHEON AT THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. /■ «-™^» (From Onr Own Correspondent.)" -V LONDON. 6th August. I ihink this function will beof snfficient interest to yon for me -to ' give the account hi -full, as the,, cables, on the subject will have been, necessarily, somewhat sctoty. Your Premier was entertained at luncheon at., the Honse of I Commons on-Frlday by'Mr J." Cathcart [ Wasoh, M.P. , an old: member of your Legislature, who had also as his guests i a - number '. of your fcolonial' representatives,' togethe<?\W'th-mahV.Mihisters, exMinisters, and leading members of Parliament. The specialobjeet. ?i the gathering was' the presentation to SirTJ6seph of the original signatures to. the, cablegram sent early- in the session by some 400M:'s P., thanking the New.Zealand Government for .the /offer of . a Dreadnought.' Mr Cathcart Wason presided^and was supported at the chief table by. Sir Joseph Ward, Lady Ward, Mr Asquith, Mr Balfour, Sr E. Grey, Mr McKenna, and Mr Sydney Buxton. The Chairman in proposing the health of "New Zealand, said he could not help thinking that when Sir Joseph sent, in a moment of anxiety, the telegram oi fering a Dreadnought, there. was hovering over him the greafc-'depairted; spirits of theT native race of New- Zealand, to whom war was sport, and. sport Avar. ; MR ASQUITH'S REMARKS. Mr Asquith, rising amidst cheers, spiel —Sir Joseph Ward/you will, I am sure, be relieved, to know; that this. is notman occasion for making speeches, df which, I dare say, yoii have had your fill since you have been in this country. But I am very glad to have -the. opportunity afforded us by ' the hospitality of . oiir friend and colleague, Mr Wason, to pre. sent to -you, as I do, on behalf of the signatories to this telegram, a .copy of ,whith' we Vppe may.' possibly ! Juid a place withiri, lho walls of your Parliament at' Wellington.- (Cheers.') ' I need not recall the; circumstances in tthich lhe telegram was'siht. They arei fresh in our minds, ahdthcy are indelibly graven in the minds and the memories' not- only of the- members of the House' of Commons, but of the Whole of the. people of this country. (Cheers:) In a time of some anxiety New Zealaud spontaneously, throiigh j*ou, tlie chief Minister, as their -mouthpiece, sent to: the people of this country the most welcome assurance of yonr willingness to tako your, part in sharing our common' burdens, and providing for our common Imperial interests. The .'peoplo of Great Britain aiid Ireland will never, forget Jthatsplendid ahd voluntary manifestation of lo yalty and affecttqu;on''the^]iart bf the people of New Zealand, and' we trust ypu will take this recognition back with youto 'Wellington as a permanent-memento I of that-most.interesting and historic occasion.: (Cheers.) . :-.-. j *„.''■ ■ :^MRBALFOUfe.- ''Aj ;T Mr Balfour, w'ho ■ was received with great cordiality, said :* Sir . Joseph .and Lady -Ward?— l think ."-.tiie-'' .ceremony, .which the Prime Minister . ha% * begun could hardly be complete, unless, in addi-..tion-to the telegram, which. we hope will .be hung up/in the .New ZealandiPsrJiaV 'ment as .i perpetual memorial of this great Imperial movement, I had an opportunity of carrying out that part of the .function which has been, entrusted to mc, which is to present an album containing the original signatories- to the telegram j which I hope will be kept as a perpetual memorial of this - great occurrence. I need, not add. anything to what the Prime Minister has sail, in regard to the effect or the way it *ves received in these islands. In my opinion, it was an eppch-making occurrence.' (Cheers.) As far as I am able to judge, it is an incident which will be looked back' to in future generations at ahy moment in which dur great Imperial interests may be endangered, as- showing, how .the spontaneous action of the great self-governing dominions of the King came forward on their own initiative, at once, without discussioii— (hear, hear]H-by' a momeh- j tary inspiration,, as it were, -its. to what ' was required of them by the public "neT cessities of the Empire,' and gave, a gift, generous and great, almost beyond com- 1 putation, in relation to their means, to j the common object of Imperial "defence. (Cheers.) * I may congratulate not mere, ly New Zealand, but. yourself, Sir Joseph, upon having been connected witb this iucideflt, which -has re-echoed, not merely within the ..relatively -narrow bounds of this island, but has produced its effect in every part .of the-Em-pire. (Cheers.) If I may add anything to what tho Prime Minister has , said, j it is lo offer my warmest congratulations to you^ that, it wa3 yoW fortune- to bear a great part in this Impt rial occurrence, and to haVeT been.- the mouthpiece of the great community, of Which ypu are the spokesman in dealing with an affair which reflects glory upon New Zealand, ahd is going to- have great and permanent effect* upon • the . security . and unity" of the Empire .(Cheers.) SIR JOSEPH WARD IN REPLY. Sir Joseph Ward, in reply, said that he was sure tho people-:6f New Zealand would prize! very, much the .compliment paid to them through him; In.. offering a Dreadnought, New Zealand had no de-sire'fbr-notoriety,'and sought ho' personal or local, ends. -Tfie offer was due entire. ly to the fact that thdy-had published from end to' end of their country communications indicating thai,. in. the judgment of the loading statesmen' ot-,. the heartof the Empire^ an .^effort, was being inade to -get alongside of the British Navy ,so.iar as its strength was concerned. The response made by 'bis - col-leagues-was unanimous, and Mie offer was unanimously connrmed by the.- pouse of Representatives.' 1 T*T'He'~wishedf ito express his indebtedness to. the members of the Government: party in New Zealand, and to -the Dppositipß-.as well, for the magnificent way in.'which they -showed that . their- one • desire was to help .the Old Country, even if in a small way, and .the.. dominions oversea. (Cheers.) He would-lixe tb'say ai. word regarding what "he believed r to be a mistaken impression as to. some o r f theTcolonics. He spoke prin. cipally'or. New . Zaland. They had m New Zealand their local politics, their local concerns, and their total difficulties.' To the Mother Country thes&might appear very small, bufcTthey were of immense- importance, to New' Zealand. But iin . ImpenaTj matters* itJ<.was 'different. They tooked\ npon. the 'OSean track between New "Zealand and vOld Country as they, might upon a road going to the interior of New Zealand, and they regard: ed-.it as' of .the bighestvcoriAqnence- that there should . b"e''po.*dbubt bf . thatT road being kept operL-'iCheers.) ' •"'■ - At.one.time, l^o T.belieVedy the_ oversea possessions were, looked, upon! in what wasTf amiliarlyTkiiiownTas Downing SJreel as T'excrescenaea iii ; times^ of T P^ee. . and very exifensiye excrescinces v in .'times oi wrfr. -They we're" xegaj-ded -rather as. 'a step-mother Teg&xdwl a' step-child. . Al tbat timej'Doivninfe' Street; -in -New Zea-land,-and throiighout'the Australian oolonitfer wa&a name hot to be con jurcd with, '..jiughter.j He waß glad to say that those old ideas had gone for. ever. (Cheers.) The.internal affairs of the Mother Country Ufey; looked at with the psspeeliv e *6f 13;d) .'miles. Theysawtjlft •V ,:rr Conntrvr was troubled over Bud!gct and.' other -iiatteis. (Laughter.) They watched it Ss tliey inight watch a man undergoing a dental operation. (Laughter.) .They observed a very clevei opera tifr ; they eaw the contortions of the_pereon. in- the. chair; amljihey.'wer^ Jn thi happy .position 4 pi Vo'aly \opßer_j--OB

(Laughter.) Matters of great, importance to' those in the L United "Kingdom naturally appeared blurred to "New Zea-' land; but when* they looked at Imperial questions he. |hought ■■ he -might say without presumption that they saw them 3 with a clearer perspective than the people in the United Kingdom. This'changein the relations' between the oversea do- ' minions and the great .-Bother Country hated, ; he thought, from the disasters of ihe South African' 'War. That was t *what ' brought, them into active and - closer ; touch with the 'Old. Land. ''('Cheers.'} e He did not wish to fringe on party noli- - tice; but from '.that time' the* people 'in* - New Zealand and Australia felt that/ V there was a common interest in .tlie. Em- *> pire, which was worth working for, ad- - vocating, and supporting in every way. 5 (aheers.i If • hii-migHti rvlttk- dfflerence -v " to the -Prime Minister,-. Adi&. a -TisortJ' on " the Defence. Conference/;- bo w-puld . say . * that he believed.' that at:-'the'.*nd* of it " "tnoy would have achieved something of a " definite character,' and, ; if thev sncceed- "! tid ' in. establishing a.' system,', elastic - "* thmieh.it might be in soine respect*, in " t which the oversea dominions t_ould,wprl-. v together wiih Ae Mother Country in .questions of - "defence, the neoessity- as 5 ihat of New Zealand would not.occur,in : • tlie future. jTfhey. did. not, desire to > ' remain in' a "pttsition , in; which' an' excep- > tionalstep, perhaps nusondetttood, was desired. Jlis, ow-lKbelijßf was that good 1 results -Would attend the conference, and b that ijlie Empire would,' in consequence, » sfind tfourJsqiiaret tjo any winds that *" blew. (Cheers). . He had, read with ex- ' treme interest -the statement made by Mr s Asquith in. the House of CommOhs^ahd 3 generally supported by Mr Balfour— --the • proposal to have colonial representation on the. lmperial Defence Committee. He * . b<*lieved. that would .be a good* thing; . but he weht further, and ..declared that 1 as the result of the. readjustment whieh '. niust take place in'the future' thejf would . 1 'find the necessity ' would; occur in tlm '■ country, -and- in the dominion^ oversea, I for some assembly to be established, m ' which the colonies would have reprtsenr tation, • and which . v.-oold- enable^ them r to assume,. what he kiiew was desired - bv New Zealand, their proper Tesponsi- \ bilities. as xegarded .Imperial defence. i' (C |fr Edward Grey then- proposed •■«*_, I health of the feet,- Mr Wason. He 1 served .that pie very presence of >«, ! Joseph .Ward, and peopl^ in his position 1 on such, an occaifojV did. soinethiiig to - 1 r.diust their. pw-*aK rt ""*'-.T., <■-:-» : ' € M! Wason %W the .WW*. . ; were afterwards photographed on -th» - [ terrace by Sir Benjamin- Stone.