ANZAC DAY PARADE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23338, 5 May 1939, Page 12

ANZAC DAY PARADE

COMPLAINT ATWANQANUI QUESTION OF COLOUR PARTY [by telegraph— ; o i wx corkf.spoS*l)ext] WANGANUI, Thursday "I would suggest that the Board of Governors take this matter up with the principal," said the president of the Wanganui Returned Soldiers' Association, Mr. W. H. Caiman, in a statement issued to-day, expressing his resentment at the "decision of the principal of the Wanganui Technical College, Mr. 1. E..Newton, concerning the supply of a Colour party for the civic Anzac Day parade. In his statement Mr. Cannan explained the arrangements for Anzac Day, stating that the original plan was for'the Technical College to supply the Colour party. When this was refused the Colour party was supplied by the Collegiate School. , "I wrote to the prinicpaf of the Wanganui Technical College," said Mr. Cannan, "extending an invitation to him from the Returned Soldiers' Association to parade with his cadet unit in uniform over the full route of march with us, to do honour to the fallen. 1 also requested that a Colour party be furnished to carry the regimental Colours home again. Surely Mr. Newton must have realised the groat privilege and honour that was offered to his school. "However, his reply was that lie had already intimated to the City Council that the whole school would parade; which meant, he stated, that the cadet unit would not parade separately, or in uniform.-Ho did offer a Colour party in uniform of six "boys, which offer I Could not accept without a unit to Support them. . "In my reply to Mr. Newton I said t was disappointed and asked him to reconsider his decision, as a number of the hoys' fathers were keen to see mv offer accepted. I pointed out to him that the City Council had concurred with our arrangements. _ "The reply of the principal Was that he regretted that the offer of a small Colour party was not acceptable He said the parade of the school would be less impressive without the cadet unit, and mentioned that the absence of country pupils would deplete the school strength." ' • Mr. Cannan paid a tribute to the showing of the Collegiate School cadets and said: "I regret very much that the Technical College Boys were denied that privilege. They did everything they could to come on parade as a cadet unit, but the right was denied to them." ___