THE CIVIC RECEPTION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18706, 12 May 1924, Page 10

THE CIVIC RECEPTION.

A GENEROUS WELCOME. DOMINION'S DEBT * 3 'TO NAVY. "NEW ZEALAND MUST DO MORE." j PROTECTION OF TRADE ROUTES. | r There was a scene : of spontaneous en- j thusiasm at th&: Town Hall on Saturday when ; the civic ; reception to Vice-Admiral Field and Admiral Brand,; and _: the officers and men of the Special Service Squadron was held. The great;hall was filled' long before noon, ; and when :. the; admirals and '.! their flag officers mounted the platform, accompanied ,by ; the Mayor, Mr. J. H. Guhson, the Prime Minister, Mr. W. F. Massey, the Hon. C.; J. Parr, and members of the City Council, representatives of the Harbour Board and other local bodies, they were warmly greeted by rounds of applause. The ceremony was opened by the singing of the National Anthem, in which all those present, led by the Municipal Choir, joined. «< v '«.-• , -.j.':.; -- J The close association of the Royal Navy with New Zealand's foundation and subsequent development was the main topic running through the address of welcome delivered by the Mayor. He showed that it was-the Navy that brought the British Flag to ; New Zealand in 1769, and that in 1840 Captain Hobson, of -the Royal Navy, hoisted the flag in .this country. All our coasts and harbours had been explored and charted by ships of the Navy, and upon that work the ships of th,e mercantile -marine ; relied to-day. Coming to the present day, Mr. Gunson said we retained our close attachment to th« Royal Navy in ■■■ our revered Governor-General, Admiral of the Fleet, Lord Jellicoe. (Applause. ) ■'■ '' ' . ' ■' ' Having referred to the Washington Con--ference, the result of which, had' been to regulate more or _ less the power of the principal navies, ; the Mayor said that while conferences might equalise or restrict the tonnage and fighting power of ships, they , could' never equalise what to the British people was Britain's greatest asset—her man power. While' to-day we were proud of the Hood, we were prouder still, of all the men of all the ships of the Royal Navy. (Applause.) V This supremacy of the British sailor had been proved in Drake's time, in Nelson's time, and in the time of Lord*. Jellicoe, and they feft confident that the same superior skill was represented "in; the _ city's guests. "We realise' : that this visit is not a spectacular, demonstration or incitement to war, but an educative" mission, designed for the further extension of the British Empire and f development of its peaceful colonisation," said Mr. Gunson. > "We deem it a very, great honour to welcome Admiral ; Field, "his officers and; men, today. .We wish them a happy stay in* Auckland, ; and when the time comes for their ' departure they will bear away - our gratitude ' and 'our affection." (Applause;). "'■''"■ ;■ Tribute by Prime Minister.\ ; : ■; On rising, to speak '.'Mr.;'-'. Massey ,was given a rousing reception by the audience. He : supported . the Mayor in; the welcome extended i to naval visitors, and ,'■; expressed his regret that the ships had not 'been able ;to. reach New Zealand a few weeks earlier so that they could have seen what a New Zealand ■: summer was really ' like, but he found consolation in the fact that'the grey skies occasionally to be seen in this country were more to the liking of:"; the Navy owing to their resemblance of conditions in Home ;waters. ; The Prime Minister, said he was delighted that the j people ? in Britain "i had i seen -, fit to send the, j squadron on its; present mission, mentioning .that ? he; had had ' something ; to do ' with it, ; • as ' the '■'. last - - Empire .Conference passed a resolution favourable to \ such a ; project. • ■ . - ' . '. ,v- '~' ■■ \ ' "We have the pick, of the fleet in New Zealand. waters to-day," continued Mr. Massey. "I think it will do a* tremendous amount of good in strengthening the ties that bind us to the Empire, and the effect will be : particularly strong ■, on the ; children, who will never forget what they have seen. '. It will ( be an event ' in their lives because they are seeing " something of the might ; and power of the British Empire • and the sentiment that, has brought'it into being. ~ Nor will the tour of the ships be -lost on ' the ; officers; and men, for when they return ; home they ■ will realise ; that. they . have had .an insight into : the vast extent" and possibilities' of the ; Empire, and wherever ; they go; they 1 will.; be missionaries of Empire to all they;meet.",- ■ Another Cruiser Necessary. . ; After referring?' to" the great rand important part played by the Royal ■; Navy in building and maintaining the .Empire,; the ; Prime Minister said : : that while t , he would nOt say the Empire ; was not safe now;; -wo i dared not take ♦ risks, and j our> duty was to have a navy that would "be ready to t meet any - ; emergency. \ He ; then, called attention*- to the need for safeguarding; the trade routes, mentioning that during the j recent , war 21. ships trading to New Zealand were destroyed by " the enemy. /'lt was positively unfair for -the countries of the / Empire to expect , the United ;Kingdomi to continue \ to; support ; the navy t which; was.our protection. Now that the proposed Singapore, base 1 was riot being proceeded with in the meantime, the* authorities f at the Admiralty shad recommended that New ? Zealand; should maintain another/ship' of the type of the light cruiser Dunedin, , which ~ was.' about -; to,,' replace H.M.S. Chatham, 1 and had stated that by;doing/s*! v.;e; would j be doing ; our share. Mr. Massey took this opportunity of,, welcoming r the 1 officers: and "men; of * the Dunedin, and . mentioned that there ; .|was noi; ; a more ;;, up-to-date ship > of her class afloat than .this, vessel. The theme of his ;remarks was; that New Zealand should he prpnnred to take y its share of ; the navalburden. ,- ; ' • ■ ■; The Prime Minister's remarks, were frequently applauded. - ,-,- , , / " _', . '' ''. Overwhelmed 1 by .Welcome.- - Vice-Admiral *' Six ' Frederick L. -•, Field was cheered to the echo when he rose /.to? reply, the audience springing to their feet in their ; ; enthusiasm. ; : ;It, ; was difficult, he said—after a humorous introductionto respond to all the appreciative remarks that, had been madek about the Navy. /Probably the I ;audience did not realise what this sort of- generous welcome, meant to him and his comrades. It overwhelmed- them.' They were ; proud that the first Governor of New Zealand'was; a member of the Royal Navy. /They;were more than proud that the Dominion's /present Governor-General ? was their; much admired and revered; Admiral ' of the r Fleet Lord Jellicoe. (Cheers.) , It had boen a great honour, ~ in the ; voyage \ from Wellington, j to have had His Excellency's ! flag; hoisted I on the Hood. ' (Renewed cheering.) / ; , j " Protection of Our Trade. ; Coming to the question of naval policy, j Admiral Field thanked' the Government of New Zealand for the-patience with which they had listened to him, j and their sym- ! pathetic attention [ to his; advice, as /, one who had lately come from ■ the ; ;' Admiralty. '•■ Seeing that the scheme for? the Singapore base had for the time been stopped \ by | the British Government,; it was * of no use for New Zealand : to spend any more money in that direction. It was, / how- ! ever, of the greatest importance that New Zealanders s should feel that /their trade Would be safe if trouble arose. With Britain's reduced fleet it would +* be ' im- j possible =; ■ to prevent one * or two ) raiders' escaping; from ;• any .cordon . that might - be drawn. ' The ■? duty of ! the main fleet was j absolutely to contain and bring to action ; the main ; fleet Of i the enemy. /; Nothing - must interfere with that;i;?because ; the safety of the whole Empire depended upon; 't. Raiders would get out, and ; would

" ■ a .';"'".J^ 1 "'. '" l " ."I. 1 ." " >t<mm;*mmommmtimfuiitmmK,~™ ■ attack' the ? Dominion's traders ;as soon as 1 : they left the safety of their own shores. The least number of cruisers that New Zealand could feel" safe .?; with ? was ; three. He had asked "th©; Government to ■ consider i working ; np to ■; two j lights cruisers, because thel;- personnel would'; get ? far greater competition- and interest in their work,/and ?it would also be possible to exchange one of those ships for duty with one of the ships from Home.;- On this ; point - Mr. i Massey had * repeated f ■-■- almost exactly what he bad said to the Government.. - .. , r , j, , .;r. ; , In 1 thanking the, citizens for their welcome, the Admiral.said the ships of the Special Service;; Squadron had not been specially picked/for" the ; present tour. They were just two units of the Home Fleet— battle ; cruisers and the First Light Cruiser Squadron. Their present experience would teach * them \ a great deal about the work they might some day have to - do. Words failed him when he tried to say what they thought about the en-'-. ; thusiasm, the kindness, and the hospitality with which they had > been received. The enthusiasm shown , for the Empire £,would. not. only broaden their minds, ; but' would make them different men from what they, were when they"left Home. Though they., tried to do their duty as well as they could, the; appreciation of the Royal Navy which was, everywhere shown would ; up* lift them, arid give them an incentive to do better in the future, and so keep the good opinions which ■ had been so kindly expressed. The Admiral thanked ;' the local authorities for the ; preparations that had been made for the reception of the ships, remarking - that having the vessels alongside the wharf "would save an enormous amount of boat-work and trouble/ and particularly i congratulated Captain Sergeant on the / fine ■}' seamanship with which he had # brought the great Hood alongside. Finally, Sir Frederick , thanked the citizens for the great programme of entertainment which they had ' provided, and for the warmth of their welcome to the representatives of the Navy. (Enthusiastic cheers.) - .' , /■?■■ P ,-.••/' ' Rear-Admiral the Hon. Sir Hubert Brand was not named in the programme as a speaker, but the audience wished to hear him, and were not to be; denied. Sir Hubert began with banter about the unfair advantage taken in giving . him no time : for preparation/ arid then heartily endorsed Sir Frederick Field's acknowledgments of the citizens' welcome, flav- . ounng his address with flashes; ?of ■ humour. The officers and men; under his command, he said, had been ■' greatly impressed, not only •; by the beauty of this country,' but also by the intense patriotism, loyalty, and enthusiasm ; for/ the Mother' Country that had been i shown in every'port.- ■':''-'-': /.--.; 'i-'/.i. ':?■; The singing of " Rule Britannia -""*by the audience, led by the Municipal Choir, and accompanied by Mr. Manghan ; Barnett on ■ the grand organ, 'terminated? < a most hearty, gathering. .:,,.•".-■ j ■•', - HAKBOTJRS COMPARED. AUCKLAND AND WELLINGTON. THE .MEANING OP "50-50." \ ADMIRALS' 4 NEAT ' JOKES. ( There was pawky humour about the exordium of Admiral - Sir a Frederick \ Field to his ,speech at ; the civic - reception on Saturday. -Clearly, the admiral v foresaw ; an inevitable question, and meant Ito forestall it. "There was once a man," he began,'; "who invented a very fine rabbit sausage." The audience wondered what was coming, .;:arid;' there was . close = attention. The admiral went on to relate that the; pure, food association went to a judge, and reported 7 to/ ? him - T that they had seen 'a large number of horses/ going into that inventor's factory, and riot coming out. The judge sent for; the inventor, and told him he was being accused jr of - putting horse-flesh ' into his rabbit sausage. , "Well,.judge, just ■&[ little," he admitted. - "What exactly do you mean by a little?" was the' natural question that followed. "Well," said the manufacturer, "shall we i say fifty-fifty The judge was not satisfied, ; and , asked what was meant; by the arithmetical statement. / Oh,";- returned ■ the sausage-producer, '"one-horse to one - rabbit." / ;- ' v.y-y$- "-:■-/■ *${<•■■&;'■'■?% ■ : -p"-':i'-: i "I have told that story," went on Admiral Field, "in order that i you "', will understand what I mean when the question is .put [to me as to ; which ' is f the better, harbour, Auckland, ;or .Wellington. My answer would Ibe 'fifty-fifty.' If you have 1 the least doubt, you will know exactly what -I mean."' •;,.•.-., : j Admiral Sir Hubert Brand /capped his chief's story, when his turn came to speak, , by telling ,of the hearty reception the Light Cruiser Squadron ; had ! had in • Lytteltonand Christchurch, arid; remarking that it seemed that the naval representatives were "likely to ;be V even ' more ; severely treated ■in Auckland ; than in i- the South ■■ Island." "I entirely ; agree," he ; added, "with Admiral,;. Field's. description of; your beautiful ; harbour. I cannot ,very well rake up any story' that will equal ; his ' 'fifty-fifty' ' story to;compare the two harbours of;; Auckland and Lytteltorii " If I -.;, could, I;. think it iis probable that in- . stead sof a ; horse I would , put ;in '*.. an-ele- = phant." ; Needless; to say, the audience hugely enjoyed '; the two- neat comparisons/: tfAVAL MEN:, AT PLAY, , FOOTBALLERS -AN / GOLFERS--1 GAMES ON ' SATURDAY. / - A number , of; sports /specially] arranged for the ,- riayal/- visitors, * took ' place on Saturday!' ! '-f//>*-' ■:■■ ■■ !'•'/■.■'-''■'''■'■""'""';;/ v A team composed principally of ; midshipmen 'from/ the squadron : met a com- . bined v secondary schools' Rugby * team in a " curtain-raiser '* to the All Black trial ' ' match at Eden; Park. The naval playersi > made a good ; showing,, particularly in the ■ forwards, but •' though they : played with a goods zest, "they lacked the finish of'the; ; ;■ college; boys, who, thanks ; ? largely/ to 1 ' the! , better;; combination -in h their backs, won ' by 14* points to 0. Vln deference tto '.the ; visitors the match was; played C under '• old rules. ,'.'. "'-,,, T". , ■ fAn admirably contested Association .match was played .in the Domain, where■ a team from the squadron played against •Auckland/-:; The contest ended in a r drawn' ;. game, each side scoring three goals Nearly,6ooo spectators/attended, .and ,at the conclusion /of I-:'the match Mr. Massev, who was present ; throughout the game' ; with the Hon. C. J. Parr/handed a ban- ! ner to the captain of v the/ naval team. At a social gathering of "the teams in the evening, it was agreed on the suggestion of the naval men, that a further match , should take ■■ place definitely to settle ;who; should hold ; the trophy. //; / A good number of naval visitors played golf at the various links. ■ • '-^' Owing to inclement weather the tennis fixtures ;did not/take place, being s postponed till Wednesday. .--•/* ;->- ■ ,o J>, CALLS OF CEREMONY. ; PRECISION OF MARINES. 'j- . ' -■ ix, , 'Immediately ;on the berthing of the Hood on Saturday, calls of -•.■ ceremony ' were made. on Sir Frederick Field by the chairman of the Harbour. Board, ; Mr. H.; R. .Mackenzie, the Mayor, ; Mr.; J. H. Grinson;;: the-; officer-commanding the district, Colonel H. R. Potter, and ;|; Sir i Hubert Brand,, commanding the light <. cruiser squadron. Admiral Field • later - returned the calls. : '? The ceremonial; was^/carried i out wi|h! the ; precision for which the' Royal Marines ; are v noted. The guard saluted, the nam!I played, the bugles sounded, all to the ; second. . When Lord Jellicoe . left the Hood he was accorded -the' honours'.of:" i his rank <as Admiral of 'the Fleets and a'':', salute of il 21 s guns was % fired "n by ;/ the Delhi as His Excellency, > stepped s > to the wharf after calling'on Sir Hubert Brand.