THE GOVERNOR IN OAMARU.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13198, 3 February 1905, Page 3

THE GOVERNOR IN OAMARU.

A SUCCESSFUL DAY. UNVEILING THE MEMORIAL TO FALLEN TROOPERS. (By Our Special Reporter.) Perfect weather attended yesterday the visit of his Excellency the Governor to Oamaru, and that town may be credited with having thoroughly risen to the occasion. Gay with bunting and enlivened with the presence of what appeared to be almost the whole population of tho district, the streets * presented an animated appearance. All fbe functions associated with his Excellency's visit passed off most successfully, thanks to excellent arrangements, and punctuality was an order of the day.. On the arrival by the first .express of his Excellency and his A.D.C. and secretary, accompanied hy Sir Joseph Ward, the party was met on the Oainaru station platform by the Hon. T, Y. Duncan, the Mayor (.Mr J. M. Brown), and -the councillor; of Oamaru, Mr Duncan Sutherland (chairman) and members of the Wnitaki County Council, -3lr Nicolson (Mayor) aiid tho councillors of HainpOen Borough,- Mr J.-Keid (of Elderslie), and Lieutenant-colonel Headland and staff, and others. All address of welcome having lieen received and replied to ny his Excellency, the party was driven to the Star and Garter Hotel, where a luncheon hau been arranged for. Tho route Irani the station through the main street was lined ■with Volunteers and Cadets, the advanceguard being- preceded by the North Otago Mount«l Rifles, under Lieutenant Orbell, and tho rearguard by the Waitaki Mounted Rifles, under Captain Creagh. At tho station the guard of honour was supplied by the Queen's Rifles, under Captain Forrester, and the Garrison Baud played the Rational Anthem. Tlio turnout of Volunteers was an excellent one, the parade stato being as follows: Oamaru Rifles, 27; Hamnden Rifles, 23; King's Rifles, 42; Queen's Rifles, 37; Rifle Cadets, 19; band, 27; five School Cadet Corps, 158; North Otago Mounted Rifles, 32; Waitaki .Mounted Rifles, 60. Lieu-tenant-colonel Headland was in-general command of tho infantry, and Colonel Nicholls of the mounted corps. THE LUNCHEON. At the luncheon at the Star and Garter Bomo 50 sat <bwn, and the function was a most pleasant one. A brief and appropriate toast list was gone through. The Mayor pr-osided, having the Governor and the Hon. T. Y. Duncan on his right, and Sir Joseph Ward 011 liis left. His Worship proposed tho toast of " The King," coupled with the name of Lord Plunket, to which his Excellency replied in felicitous terms, expressing tho hope that 110 would again be able to visit Oamaru later on. Mr Reid, of Elderslie, proposed "The Army, .Navy, and Volunteers," to whioh Lieutenantooloncl Headland- responded;. Mr D. Sutherland proposed the toast of "The Parliament of New Zealand," which Sir Joseph Ward, tlio Hon. T. Y. Duncan, and Mr T. Mackenzie, M.H.R., acknowledged. The Mayor of Timaru (Mr J. Craigie) made gome remarks complimentary to the people of Oamaru, and his Excellency's proposal of the health of the Mayor of Oamaru brought the function to a close. UNVEILING THE MEMORIAL.

The principal function of the day—the unveiling ot the Troopers' Memorial Statuo in Thames street—began punctually at 2 p.m., and was perfectly successful, ail arrangements being excellent. A very largo gathering assembled around the site of tho memorial, which presents a handsome appearance, and those wfco so desired could avail themselves of reserved seats provided. Thoso on the platform included, besides iiis Excellency, Sir Joseph Ward, the Hon. T. Y. Duncan, the Mayor oir J. M. Brown), tho Hon. G. Jones, Messrs T. Mackenzie (M.H.R.), and Duncan Sutherland. Tho Mayor (Mr Brown) opened proceedings by reading a telegram from the Premier expressing regret at inability to 110 present, and mentioned that ho had also apologies for absence from Colonel Robin, the Hons. W. Hall-Jones, C. H. Mills, J. Carroll, and J, M'Gowan, Colonel Pitt, Major Keddcll, Sir John Buckley, and Sir Henry Miller. In a happfly-wordctl speech he alluded to the events that, had rendered the sending away of contingents from the colony necessity, and said it was difficult now to learn with exactitude tho number of young men who left the North Otago district for the war in South. Africa, but there must- have been something like 250, and of that number 15 brave lads, whose names vcro engraven on the memorial beforo them, gave their lives for the Empire. He questioned very much if any of these -16 young men had ever even seen tho Motherland, and probably to them it-was but a grand tradition. He bad no fear whateverfont that if the young men of the colonics wore called on again to fight for the Empire they would come forward almost to a man. By voluntary contributions tho mothers and fathers of the North Otago district raised £1200, which was sent Home to the Patriotic-Fund in London to lie distributed among the wounded and among the widows and orphans created by the war. Tho ladies of Oamaru and of the neighbourhood raised a large' sum of money to assist in equipping the different contingents and in providing remounts far tlie' men, and: when the war was over and they had to welcome back their wounded, and knew of their dead, there rose a universal cry that something should he done to honour and perpetuate the memory of those brave fellows that nad given their lives in the struggle, and the result was the' monument to be that day unveiled. He could assure his Excellency that his Majesty had not in all his wide and vast dominions more loyal, more devoted, or more patriotic subjeots than tne people of Oamaru and North Otago.— (Applause.) Tho monument had cost the sum of £1618, aud the bulk of that, he might say. had been subscribed by ail classes of tlie community most, heartily. Ho bad to thank the Government for generously remitting the sum of £213 duty on tho mate-rial that had to be imported for the building of the memorial. For that lie tendered to Sir Joseph Ward the thanks of the Memorial Committee.—(Anplause.) Hi? Excellency then duly performed the ceremony of unveiling the memorial hy withdrawing the Union Jack covering the names, and a firing party from the Oamaru Rifles, fired three volleys, while " The Last Post" was sounded. His Excellency said he desired to thank those responsible for the invitation to be present, that day, and he assured them itgave him the greatest possible pleasure to attend such a ceremony. It. was. to his mind, perfectly appropriate that the representative of tlie head of the Empire should

take pnrt in paying a. -tribute' to ilic memory. of three wiio-died for,tho Empire. There was no. mistaking New - Zealand's pride in those whoUeft'her'shores? to fight for the Empire. Their national memorial, the Veterans' Home, was known far beyond this oolony, and, as to local memorials, there were several now'in tho colony, dnd lie ventured to say. that certainly no finer ono existed,than that' wljich he had,had the honour' of that day unveiling.—(Applause.) This memorial served more than' one purpose; it was not only a worthy tribute to those who fought and died in South Africa, it was not .only, an expression of sympathy to the bereaved—and that, he took it, did not only refer to the bereaved in this particular -instance, because there were sad hearts in almost every family in the Empire (lie hr 1 himself lost near relations' and friend;), — and this memorial was not only .1 worthy tribute to them, but also a' permanent reminder to those who posed by that in these times of quiet and ' prosperity they must-not forgot that the Aiigol of Peace was not finally come to them ; that the God of Battles still remained, and wars were, unfortunately, just as likely to occur again as they were two or three years ago. They must remember- that in South Africa hut some 500,000 men were fighting, whereas at the present moment between a million and a-quarter and a million and a-half combatants'! were waging bitter war in tlio samo hemisphere as that in which this colony was placed. He hoped this public expression of respect for those ready to die" for their oountry would excite greater interest than before in the navy, which was the pride, hope, and protection of them all in whatsoever part of tiie Empire they dwelt, and would cause thein to take every possible interest in the forces of the colony, for their Volunteer:; were a fine body of men, and he could not- over express his satisfaction at what he had seen - of the colony's Cadets. If they did that they would prepare themselves against war so well that they would help to prevent the curse of war from coming among them. He thanked them for the kind reception they had given "him, and for the great privilege accorded him in asking-him to uuveil, that fine memorial.—(Applause.) < Sir Joseph Ward, who was most cordially received, said the inspiriting remarks thathad fallen from the lips of his Excellency coming from the' representative of hi's Majesty King Edward' must do much to mould the character of the younger generation, particularly -in these young colonies, and many would no donbfc look back to this day as the day when a great incentive was implanted 111 thoir breasts to follow in the footsteps of those whose memory they were that day honouring, and as a day on which the bond of union with the Mother Country was more closely linked. Their ceremony was. more than a merely local ceremony, and its influence was far-reaching, and it showed the world -at large that among the deGcendants of the people of the three islands of the Motherland thorc was a rising generation in new lands prepared if necessary to go out as they had done before to, fight for the Union Jack. Was it not something to be proud pi that many of their brothers had last their lives.in the service'of.that nag? He had been glad to hear the Mayor refer to tho distinguished gentleman who led the Government of this country. Some people were ready to forget; 'but lie thought all men of all shades of opinion in New Zealand would be ready to say that when the occasion arose' it was necessary to have a strong, forceful, vigorous leader of publio opinion in New Zealand to - inspire the people, and, at the right moment, strike the iron while it was hot, and show't-hos'o who were contending against England that the old lion had her cubs behind her to assist her if need be.—(Applause.) It was a good thing to remember the efforts of public men who had done something to assist in moulding public opinion in a new country such as New Zealand. They desired peace, but if peace should have to give way to war, and if necessity arose that they should have to give, they would give freely. To tho friends and relatives of those that hadfallen, and whose memory they were perpetuating the consolation must l;e that the names of their fallen warriors wero written in tlio colony's history in a. language that would never be forgotten. In this most distant part- of tlio British Empire they felt it a- great honour indeed to assemble on such a memorable occasion as the present to join with the people of North Otago, who had done so wed in erecting, this memorial, which he hoped, as did they all, would perpetuate! for all time what was so nobly aehieved.—(Applause.) The Hon. Mr Duncan also spoke briefly, and referred in high terms to the quality of the troopers who left the colony for South Africa, and of their prowess in the field. He also thanked his Kxccllency the Governor and Sir Joseph' Ward for the trouble they had gono to in regard to the day's function, and for the compliment of their presence that day despite other fatiguing duties.' Mr Sutherland thanked those who had taken an active part in the day's ceremony— his Excollenoy for his kindness in being present to unveil the memorial, the members of the Ministry, and the military for an excellent display, and he also paid a compliment to Mr Forrester, the architect, and to Mr Crombie, the builder of the monument. Proceedings then terminated with hearty cheers for his Excellency, for Sir Joseph, the Mayor, and others. The monument, which has been carried out from a design submitted in competition by Messrs Bcrgamini and R»id, of Dunedin, with cortain modifications, is situated in Thames street, at its highest elevation and at its junction with Severn ai:d Coguet streets. It occupies the most commanding situation in the centre of the town, and is a conspicuous adornment to a twochain street, made wider at this point by the. junction of streets. It is, r. 0 placed that it must bo seen by every visitor to the town, and is a lasting trihute to the men of North Otago wlio gave their lives for the Empire in tlio South African war. The total cost of the monument is about £1650, and tho people of tho district have shown a generous spirit in thus so substantially perpetuating the memory of the honoured dead. The monument stands upon a. foundation of concrete, 22ft tin square, including two tiers of steps, each with a rise of Ift and a tread of 18in. The monument proper commences with a boldlysplf.yed base of Port Chalmers bluestone, 2ft 6in high, and on this 'rasts a square plinth of dressed Malmsbury (Victoria) stone. All the materials used frim this point upwards have been imported from the Old World—the granite from Aberdeen and Nor.way, and the marble from Carara (Italy). Starting from the top of the plinth'there is a curved second base of coursed axed granite 6ft high, finished at the bottom edge with a large O.G. moulding. The whole is surmounted by a frieze of statuary marble, carved 011 the front' and rear faces with representations of the shields of Great Britain and New Zealand, surmounted by an Imperial crown aud flanked c.ll either side by magazine rifles, entwined with foliage. The upper part of the monument consists of pedestals, columns, and - entablature 1 in the lonic style, the pedestals being worked in axed and polished granite. The columns, jj'ith paps, are of r«l granite, carved and' fluted, and their four panels, which are 7ft 6in high, are wrought out of full-sized slabs •of green Norwegian granite. The entablature, with pedestal for the figure, consists of several fine locks of marhle. ; and the whole is surmounted by a 9ft- figure of a trooper, with a rifle at the " Heady" position, excellently carved in fine statuary marble, in one piece. The bluestone base at- tlie south side, "(the real front) projects forming a platform for a recumbent lion, worked out of statuary marble, and liiis figure is utilised as a- drinking fountain, being provided with a marble basiii,. water supply, and' waste pipe. The total height of the monument from the grouud to ilio top of the figure is 40ft Sin. At tho four corners of the base tapered pedestals of Port. Chalmers bluestone have keen set to carry neat iron lamp-posts, with coppsrframed lanterns, the bays between being divided into three with cast iron stanchions, with lower rails of twisted iron, and festooned with cast iron ornamental chains, an opening being left- 011 the south side to give access to tlio fountain. On the green granito panel facing south there is the inscription and names or the men to whose memory the moßumcnt- -is erected, done in easily-read lettering, sunk and gilded as follows:— In honour of the men from North Otago who gave their lives for the Empire in the. South African war; 1893-1902; Captain R. G.: Tubman. Lieutenant- J. H. Pa rxor. Sergeant A. Aitkenhcad. Sergeant A. .M. lieitl. ~ Sergeant- J. C. "Power.' Corporal A. Firth. Corporal J. R, Lament. Trooper H. J. -Booth. Trooper J. Brace.' Trooper D. Clarke. - Trooper A. H. Macdonald. Trooper L. 11. -Marcks. Trooper T- M'Lew, Trooper G. J. Neish. Trooper T. Rodgers. ' Trooper W. H, Stock. The erection of the monument has been" carried out under the supervision of .Mr J. M.' Forrester, architect, by Mr John Crombie, contractor, who has performed his 'work admirably, the • various parts although sent ready for fixing from different parts; of the .world, having been put together most'accurately, ~ -. . .

/- INSPECTION OF CADETS." . His .Excellency's next call was to attend the Oamaru Public Gardens, the function there being in the nature of a garden party, and musio being supplied by the Oamaru Garrison, Citizens' and -Highland Tipo Bands. The tempting weather led a great number to attend the gardens, the beauty of which is unquestionable, and again everything passed off as successfully as could be desired.. His Excellency brought ' his duties to a close by presenting to the North School Cadets the shield presented by the Government for competition among Cadet corps in the South Island, and which a squad-from the Oamaru North School (under Captain T. ■ llegg) won, with the; creditable scoro of 711 out of 840. Prior to making the presentation, his Excellency inspected the Cadets of the schools of the North Otago Battalion numbering 158, who made a good display, and went through the march past and other manoeuvres most creditably. Colonel Lovcday was present, ■ with Major Burlinson as stuff officer, Major Lindsay: being in command. Tho- boys of the winning team were Sergeants Whyto, M'liityrc, and M'Donald, Corporals Sinclair and Lawson, Colour-sergeant Drennan, and Cadets Jack, Mnrice, Amies, and Macltie; and, in addition-to the shield, each boy receives a medal. His Excellency, in addressing the Cadets, said it was appropriate he should make such a presentation as this shield, as he 1 had, when a boy, been a cadet, and lie had been a member of several successful rifle teams. The Cadet movement he held i to be an excellent one for the colony, and one of the finest things of the kind it - possessed. It was gratifying to learn that in the North Otago district, moreover,, the - movement was progressing. Cadet- corps ■ were now to be found in Oamaru North, Middle, and South Schobls, and at Hampden, Palinerston. Otepopo, and Maheno, v and : -next year Cadet corns would, he underbo formed in eight other placcs in . the district, giving eight companies aud a ■ strength of 500, He hoped that project | would be successfully carricd out-, and that [ the parents of hoys would encourage and allow them to join the Cadet movement, i for which, ho was sure, t-hev would never he sorry.—(Applause.) Tho Mayor also congratulated the Cadets ;• 011 having brought the shield to North ' Otago,"'- ' Cheers for his Excellency and party by 1 t.ie Cadets brought the formal Dart, ot Hie • days proceedings to a close, and his Ex- , cellency and party left soon afterwards for ! Christchurch by the second express, Sir i Joseph Ward having returned south at an ! earlier hour. , Captain Muir, of Timaru, who was prer £ f? t a* l 'he unveiling ceremony saw a. conI s . l6 ® ab ' e amount of service with tho South • Australian Bushmen in South Africa. 110 is the proud possessor of both the Queen's • f medals. 011 the former medal . J ' e , has bars for engagements at Belfast and t Diamond Hill. l Among those, honoured, with a seat on the t platform, was a South African hero whoso ! view of the war was certainly that of the t seamy side.' He was an Imperial who, at the , time hostilities with the Boers broke out, ( haying served his throe years with the York- > J') 11 ' 6 East Riding Regiment, was spending I his reserve period on ono of Sir Thomas f Lipton s estates. Having obtained pormis- ! 9lon , he joined Thorneycroft.'s Horse, and, , under General Buller, went- through the j Natal campaign. It was at Spion Kop that, 3 our hero met with a series of hiehaps, losing i his right leg altogether and being shot in j the. faos, and in tho left side, the right £ knee, add the left- arm. In this engage- > ment his company lost 249 out of a strength , of 500,