CIVIC RECEPTION

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 78, 25 June 1943, Page 2

CIVIC RECEPTION

ABSENCE OF CHIEF JUSTICE Wellington, This Day. His reasons for not attending the civic reception to Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Freyberg at Wellington are explained by the Chief Justice (the Rt. Hon. Sir Michael Myers) in a letter to the editors of two Wellington papers. He writes: “I feel that an explanation is due to my fellow citizens for my absence from the civic reception on Tuesday to a most distinguished visitor whom it was the desire and delight of every citizen to honour. On Monday afternoon, as I had not received an invitation, though I knew others had, inquiries were made from the Town Clerk, which elicited that he had not sent me an invitation, and had not reserved seats, according to timehonoured custom, because of ‘instructions from higher up’ to that effect. However, he again saw the person who had so instructed him, and later telephoned that that person ‘will consider your request.’ “An invitation was delivered to me on Tuesday morning, but plainly in the circumstances I could not act upon it. “Ordinarily I should ignore the incident, but this particular gathering of citizens was one of which it may well be thought that the citizen holding the office that I hold should have attended. That is the sole reason for my asking that this explanation should be published.”

POSSIBLE SOUTH ISLAND VISIT

Christchurch, June 24. A promise to consider the request that Lieutenant-General Sir Bernard Freyberg should visit Christchurch when his itinerary is being prepared was given by the Prime Minister (Mr P. Fraser) in a telegram received by the Mayor (Mr E. H. Andrews) yesterday. The text of Mr Fraser’s telegram was: —“I shall be pleased to arrange for your request that General Freyberg should visit Christchurch to have full consideration when an itinerary is being prepared.”