CHRISTCHURCH NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 12544, 11 April 1904, Page 6

CHRISTCHURCH NEWS.

[lIV i'V.I.KGHATH. — OWN CORRESrOXDEKT.] CtmrSTCHURCIt, Saturday. GERMAN COUSINS. FitOM remarks made by Lord Ranfurly at the citizens' banquet on Thursday night, it appears that His Excellency and" the, Hon. H. F. Wigram (Mayor of Christckureh) are old friends, having known each other 30 years ago. in fact, added the Governor, Mr. Wigram was some sort of connection of his — a sort of second German cousin. THE FROZEN MEAT INDUSTRY. Sir Geo. Clifford, chairman of the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company, who presided at the banquet on the occasion of tiie opening of the company's new works, near Timaru, claimed that there was a certain fitness in his occupancy of the position. It was, he said, in 1847 that the first sheep were landed at desolate Port Underwood to stock the. first>heep station established in the South Island. The man who undertook the risks and perils and difficulties of that enterprise was his father. It is just 21 years since the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company's first works at Belfast were opened, and the foundation laid of the industry to which the colony owes so much. Till- SCOTTISH STANDARD. A curious instance of history repealing itself occurred at Lyttelton yesterday, when the Governor went down to say farewell to residents of the port. Many years ago the late Sir Geo. Grey was entertained at a banquet on he West Coast. Among the decorations of the hall was a Scottish standard upside down, the lion lying on his back and sprawling his legs into space. Sir Geo. Grey made some humorous allusion to the ■position of the lion, but a similar mistake went unnoticed by Lord Ranfurly at Lyttelton yesterday. The bluejackets'of the Tauranga. who had decorated the hall for the farewell function, had treated the Scotch standard in the same disrespectful fashion, either, as was humorously suggested, as a reflection on the loyalty of Lyttelton, or else on the nationality of the member for the district. Mr. Laurenson retorted that the Scottish lion might be put on his back, but he always came out on top. AN M.H.R.'S DILEMMA. At. the same function an unlicensed interpreter's mana received a rude shock. A Maori from Raupaki, in his own language, expressed (so it is presumed) the natives' regret at Lord Ranfurly's departure, the address being interpreted by a pakeun member of Iho Legislature. When His Excellency had finished his reply he glanced significantly at the interpreter, as a hint that his remarks should be translated to the Maori. Then the fat was in the fire, the legislator frankly confessed his inability to speak the native language, and explained that prior to the function he had ascertained from the Maori what he intended to say, and had given the Governor the benefit of that intention. Whether the native orator had adhered to the preconcerted speech or not he was unable to say, and he was equally unable to enliuhten tlie Maori as to the vice-regal reply. The member hi question, Mr. Geo. Laurenson, is promised by a member of the Cabinet a hot time when he gets into the Parliamentary lobbies again.