ANGLO-SAXON CLUB DINNER

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12457, 30 December 1903, Page 6

ANGLO-SAXON CLUB DINNER

PRESENTATION TO MAJOR-GENERAL BADEN.-POWELL. [FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.] London, November 20. Last Friday evening, at the Trocadero Restaurant, Piccadilly Circus, the members of the Anglo-Saxon Club gave a dinner/ the principal guest being Major-General Baden-Powell. One of the objects of the club is to "promote good fellowship and to extend hospitality and to bring and bind together all. the many branches of the Anglo-Saxon race." Last Friday was made quite a New Zealand night, the opportunity being taken of presenting the defender of Mafeking with a handsome escritoire of New Zealand native woods, and a casket of gold, silver, and greenstone, subscribed for by the people of Auckland, New Zealand. The Hon. W. Pember Reeves was in the chair. As the articles presented to MajorGeneral Baden-Powell wore of New Zealand workmanship, they were doubtless described before they were sent to England, so I need not repeat the description here. As for the dinner itself, everything was done in the well-known Trocadero style, and so was all that could be desired. After dinner the usual loyal toasts were duly honoured.

The Chairman said he rose to undertake one of the most pleasant duties that had ever fallen to his lot. It was to propose the health of Major-General Baden Powell, and at the same time to present him with two tokens of regard and admiration which had come across the world. In New Zealand a specially warm comer was kept in the heart for the major-general—(applause) —and a number of colonists of the pro- j vince of Auckland decided to send him the two tokens referred to— escritoire and a casket of a Kind appropriate to the colony and creditable to its workmanship. The presentation was the work of Mr. Seuffort, of Auckland, and the. whole plan had been carried out by Mr. Shackelford and Mr. Hooton, well-known and respected colonists of Auckland, who unquestionably had. the sympathy and cordial good feeling of the whole of Nfew Zealand from end to end. (Applause.) Passing on, Mr. Reeves said that before asking those present to drink the toast, and before asking the guest of the evening to accept the presentation, he must say a word or two about their honoured guest—the hero and the man of great capacity. He (the chairman) had often thought what an admirable colonist the general would have made. If as a young man he had gone to Australia or New Zealand, he (Mr. Reeves) could imagine the general becoming the owner of immense herds of cattle and sheep, teaching , bushmen a tiling or two in the art of rough-riding-before he had done. If his footsteps had been turned to New Zealand he would, • of course, as all native New Zealanders did, have been bound to take to politics. (Laughter.) In that case Mr. Reeves felt certain that he would have risen to be Leader of the Opposition, and he was not at all sure that he might not have taught his (Mr. Reeves') old friend Mr. Seddon, or given him a hint or two, in the ..art of Parliamentary tactics. (Loud laughter.) General Baden-Powell was a man of such varied talents that in any walk of life lie might have come to the front. Those who had known him in the north-west of India said that if he had devoted himself to sport he would have been the most famous pig-sticker in the annals of the chase in India. Others who had known him in amateur theatricals said

he was a first-rate actor. Mr. Reeves then presented the general with the escritoire and casket; he hoped they would ba taken as tokens of sincere esteem, affection, and admiration felt by the colonists of England from end to end. The escritoire was of New Zealand woods, and therefore representative of the colony ; the casket in front spoke for itself. The chairman proposed the , toast and asked the acceptance by the guest of the evening of the presentation. The toast having been duly honoured, and "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow" sung, Major-General Baden-Powell, who was received with round after round of applause, said he really felt it a difficult, task to return thanks adequately for the generous reception accorded to him by the club, for bringing so representative a gathering to meet him, including so many from the colony that was doing him honour. In spite of the wonderful attributes the chairman had ascribed to : him, it was very ffioult for him to express his thanks in a way befitting to the occasion. As for the generous reception accorded to him, and the grand tribute from New Zealand, he did not in any sense take it all for himself personally. He knew the men who were with him in South Africa were .being honoured. (Hear, hear.) Addressing those, present who represented New Zealand, General Baden-Powell said he had long had very strong ties to bind him to New Zealand in various ways, and they were increased by the handsome gifts sent him. He had a family connection with New Zealand; his brother had married a New Zealand lady, and within the last 48 hours he had become the uncle of a young New Zealander. (Applause.) That young New Zealander had been born in England, but it meant the same thing. (Laughter.) He (the speaker) had also ties of gratitude and affection with the colony. Since Mafeking lie had received continuous kind messages and presents from every sort and condition of men and women in New Zealand. Mr. Seddon himself had done him very great honour; the civil servants, the great cities,, and the small back settlements had done the same tiling. (Applause.) The Maoris had sent him a present which he valued more than anything else he had ever had ; with it they had sent a charming letter to say that the emblem had been the property of their fighting chief, that now under the White Queen they had no longer use for it, and that therefore they sent it to bring him good luck in fighting. From all parts of the colony he had had kind messages, and even now he had a very large correspondence with the girls and boys of New Zealand. So he had a tie of affection for the colony, although he had never yet seen it. Then, also, continued the general, he had very great admiration for the colony's manhood—for the men who had gone to South Africa; all colonists were there. But he did think the New Zealauders showed them the way. (Applause.) They were—well, it could not be summed up better —British gentlemen. They were plucky, they were brave, .'-hay were gentlemen all through. (Loud applause.) They did their duty because it was their duty, and not for any ulterior motives of reward. The reason he thought the New • landers went one better was because Englishmen, when they did their duty, exercised their prerogative to growl as much as they liked while doing it. But the New Zealauders did not grumble. They did their duty cheerfully. (Applause.) And they went to their death as cheerfully as they went to their duty. (Renewed applause.) Cheerfulness was a great point, and the New Zealanders' good example spread among the other colonists; they showed them how to do their duty as cheerfully as possible. When such men as this honoured one, it was an honour indeed, and he appreciated it highly. (Applause.) The toast of " New Zealand" was proposed by Sir John Cockburn, who referred to New Zealand and Australia as two thriving and friendly young nations upholding far away in the Pacific Ocean the best traditions of the Anglo-Saxon race. They were fortunate in their position, for the Pacific was now what the Mediterranean had once been—the central sea of the world. The speaker then referred to New > Zealand as an earthly paradise, inhabited by a happy race, a land of solemn, be- • witching, and fantastic beauty, where I Nature herself with folded hands seemed ! kneeling in silent devotion. ! The toast was duly honoured, and Mr. George Beetham rose to return thanks. He spoke of the admiration felt in the colony for the hero of Mafeking, even to the children. New Zealand was progressing and proving itself a worthy offshoot of the parent country. There was no part of the Empire where patriotism and love for the Old Country was more firmly implanted in the minds of the settlers. (Applause,)

Sir John Hall also responded. He said that in the colony they, had political parties. He hoped they always would have, because otherwise there would be lamentable stagnation of public opinion and public thought. But when a question of Empire, of flag, arose, there was no party in New Zealand. (Applause.) There was but one feelin"—that it was their duty to maintain the Empire to which they were so largely indebted, and to help keep the flag flying. That feeling found expression in the presentation of an , address •to Mr. Seddon, and he (Sir John), as the only Prime Minister who had been opposed to him, had Deen asked to present it. And in all his political life no act had given him (Sir John) greater pleasure. He did not pretend to say that Air. Seddon had created the patriotic feeling. No ; that feeling the old colonists had taken with them. (Loud applause.) And they had instilled it into their descendants. (Renewed applause.)

By the 'Frisco mail Mi*. J. W. Shackelford (Mayor of Grey Lynn), and Mr. J. p. Eooton, as representing the organisers of the Auckland testimonial to General Baden-Powell, received letters in reference to the presentation at th Anglo Saxon dinner, the Hon. TV. P. Reeves (AgentGeneral) writing to Mr. Shackelford and Mr. Graham Lloyd to Mr. Hooton. the following joint letter from General BadenPowell was also received by Messrs. Shackelford and Hooton: — "Dear Sirs,— wish to express to the citizens of Auckland, and to yourselves, my deep gratitude for the generous appreciation of such services as my force was able to render in South Africa; and also for the very handsome mementoes with which you have betokened that appreciation. Your Agent-General, the Hon. W. P. Reeves, presented me with the casket and the escritoire at a banquet given by the Anglo-Saxon Club, as arranged by Mr. Graham Lloyd last night. Many prominent New Zealanders honoured the occasion by their presence. I can only say briefly that such work as we did in South Africa is in no way worthy of the high recognition which you have accorded to it, but the generous good feeling which prompted the people of Auckland to send me these beautiful works. of art is strongly reciprocated by me, and, I am sure, by the South Africans and others with whom I was associated in eking. This feeling forms one of the mauy. ties which now happily exist between the colonies, and are all the stronger for being the natural unofficial outcome of a high mutual regard; for we, in South Africa, were all agreed as to the particular excellence of the New Zealanders as brave fighting men, who did their duty with marked cheeiiness as well as devotion. Therefore I feel that to be honoured by New Zealand is an honour of more than risufu value. And it is not only from Auckland, but from all parts of New Zealand, and all sections of society there, that I have received tokens of kindness and goodwill, for which I am deeply grateful. And these particuhu presents which you have sent to me, will, 1 need scarcely say, be treasured by me and by my family with the greatest affection and pride. lam delighted to find myself the possessor of so beautiful a casket, with its massive greenstone pedestal, and of so rare and unique a work of art as the inlaid escritoire of New Zealand woods. I beg to thank you, gentlemen, and through you. the people of Auckland, for your great kindness to me.— Yours very truly, R. S. S. Bad ex-Powell."