COLONIAL PREMIERS IN ENGLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2779, 19 June 1907, Page 16

COLONIAL PREMIERS IN ENGLAND.

FREEDOM OF TELE CITY OF LONDON. SPLENDID RECEPTION. A GREAT HISTORIC OCCASION.

(Fbom Oub Own CoiuiEsroNDENT.) LONDON, April 19. It must hays Been only a very ignorant or unthinking person who could ha\e re- ; mained wholly unmoved by the occurrences lof Tuesday last For that day \ntually | witnessed the public consolidation of the Great British Empire. Perhaps it might | be more strictly accurate to say the public ! ! kecogn-ition of that consolidation. Thor© , 1 were few people who did not feel that ! 1 when those Prime Ministers of the great j and growing daughter States of the Em- j piro entered its marvellous metropolis to l>e formally onroll&cl &<5 rhe cii izens of that i mighty capital, and to be greeted with a I reception as splendid as any accorded to I royalty, a spectacle^ not only magnificent ! and scul-stirring, but also ineffaceably historic was being witnessed. THE PROCE3SION. London d-rcorat-ed itself in its customary fashion when distinguished greets are to be welcomed. That is not saying much, I admit. But london did its best with flags, and festoons of artificial flowers were | present in profusion, and if the spectacular! effect was not impre&ive. it u-a* at anjr rate ac good as that of any previous dis- ' {•l.iy- Proceasions and street decorations ?.r. 1 not in London's line. But at least ' thcio was one special feature and novelty j wh eh const'tuted a record — one of thoee records which all truo Britishers so greatly : pvzo, a record in eizc. Across Ludgate ' Cir us was stretched the biggest Union J.ick fla^ ever socn. It measured no less* ■ tjian 6Q?t in length and 40ft in breadth, I and its effect a,? it faced the colonial pro-" f cess'on. which approached from the we#t- f ward, must have been almost ane-ic&piringSf It constituted a huge mass of colour, and, j 1 one's solo regret was that thie record flag ; did not enjoy tho advantage of brilliant j io show it off to the best advan- r t<n;o. But the cun persistently refused to ' c-xhibit his face, preferring to keep behind j a tanopy of grey cloud. However, his absence was scarcely noticed. Everybcxl** ivab too much interested in the human and j j practical plia-si of the occasion to notice ; the lack of solar illumination. And. after it was in the vast crowds that lined 'the streets forming 1 the rcuto of the procession that the strongest feature of the occasion consisted. Loud^on'p cozens had ( • turned out in their vast number*, largely

no doubt, to "see tho srupw." But they also were keenly d-eeftroila to behold the men yho are "running' tl?e gre^is daughter nations of winch they read so rhuoJi, and by 'Jie cordial au4 yet discriminating warmth of their greeting* the^j demonslratcd clearly that they oouid differentiate one distinguished guesir frorf^ another, and could appreciate th& " poinfcj" of each. And this enthusiastio epoota/rikmis welcpme of the London citizen^ in tJta open streets formed d far more ' pleasapt and impressive greeting than wouki ha-v* been • con- : veyed by the most gorgeous of Continental displays. It was particularly agreeable, for inttance, to observe thai quita. the heaviest welcome of the day was offered . to th« Empire's nowest Prdmi^r — not long ago her uiost formidable foe— Qenefai B.tha, Prime Minister of tho TranaTaak This a.t least, showed that the tracUtitfaal gen*i'osity of Engliehmen, who apprSejprte and respect j the hero of that disastrous war, who is now King' Edward'^ loyal subject and the i Premier of a British colwiy. So Botha ! was cheered to ths eolsHj a* he drov* alone, ! accompanied by his sdter and danghter. | General Botha ie a fine, tall, stalwart-look- ! in^ man, with a verr [n^a*n£ expressi9n of countenance, bui hi« f%«e also wears itn ! immistohabie- air of re*<flu*ioD antl strength. His sister looks youny enough to be his 1 daughter, and is mor» than nice-looking; | while her niece, BothaJi daughter, is aa i tire+tv a girl as on« often sees even in j 1 Lcndon. Both were delightfully; dressed ; i t^i^ most critical f-&minin^ observer') could find r.o fault with any detail of their" attire. As for rh© proocoaioa iioclf, nothing could have been «imple« or less spectacular. The six Premiers and their relatives and seore-t^i-e* merely drove in six ordinarr carriages* with on f«cort of mounted police, fro»x> the Hotel Cetil to the Guildhall, goinpr aloh* th* Strand, Fle«t etroet, Li'dpate Hill. Qu^e« Vjcioria etrcet, and King- street to ekVCWidkall' entrance. " A? THE GIIIfeOH-ALL. j But it was insido the T«nerab!e building t that the interest of *h« day was to oul-rr.y-.ate. First in order came the reoep- j , tion by the Lord Mayor.- This too'? piece ( in the library, a spacious hall strongly i i resembling a Gothio chiiroh With its flua-'j . tored columns. pr>in^»d a«;h««,. and stainod I windows. At who! would have been the east end of a ehurcfe, upea a ra]«ed dais, s'tgod the* Lord Mayor, Sir. William TreI loar, in hi 3 full robes and can of state, j attended by the sheriff, city chamberlain, ! aldermen, common eoUnoillers, and other | [ civic di^nitarie6, all in B«rjjeoiw robes of • f scarlet purple,, or meaerkve blu*. Ranged ' | lengthways along the hall, jwsi in front of i ; the rows of stone ce^Mrms, w<re seats, of J j which the guests toolc gosftMtioa in order ( ■of arri\al. Th<> oore4ho»iou« reception of] ' pucsts beffan before noon, and I found it ■ j always interesting, a|jd POWOiimeß onter- , taininpr, to ealch th« s=««c««>ive arrivals, their demeanour, and th^ maßßjPr of their j welcome' by the guest§ already seated. This I did from an oxoellen.t " coign of vpntage"- mthio <ou<dfing^ reach of each | arriving visitor, who on passing, the corner I (•where I Etood had to turn to tlie If ft i an/1 march for quite a long • distance, be- I I twoen the two double rowf* of geate.d i people t» tiio giayoral djui

One of the earliest arrivals to arouse ihe public enthusiasm inside the reception iiall was Field-marshal Sir George White. Directly his name was stentoriously given forth by the usher at the entrance end there arose a vociferous outburst of cheering, which continued as the tall figure of the chief hero of the South African war marched with soldierly stride along the human vista to the dais where the repetition of his name by another official caused the etorm of cheers to break forth anew. Theß came several worthy people whose names were unfamiliar to the public in general, but who with commendable forethought had added on their cards tlie words "of New Zealand," which, being proolainied successively by the two official stehtora, instantly brought a somewhat mild, but quite distinctly marked, applausS. I did not observe that other localities were similarly complimented. Then came a tall, sljjpn, upright, grey-haired man with whos<3 appearance Sir F. Cerruthers-Gould's inimitable cartoons have rendered everybody familiar. Tho announcement, " The Right Hon, Arthur ' James Balfour," prodi>ced a veritable hurricane of applause aa the ex-Fiemier proceeded toward the daisTho Arehbjshop_ of Canterbury, in his scarlet convocation robes, looked the picture of good temper and of virtuous jollity. Tbo venerable Field-marshal, Lord Roberts, who beamed all over, had another of the great " receptions " of the day. ai his small, alert form passed along the hall amid cheers which appeared as if they Would never end. It was pleasant to not© how- faithful were the Lop-don oitizens to men who had served them so well, as did White and Roberts in the late war. .Evidently, too, they included the present member for <ho city, Mr Balfou-r, among thc«c whom they still delighted to honour. THE GUESTS OF THE DAY. At last bepan to enter the guests of the day— the Colonial Premiers. Here I may , break off to remark that th<» chief guesta j were attended by mopibers of the Recep- | tion Committee, all armed with gilt-tipped j sticks or wands of office. I could not quito make out how the number of sticks por guest was regulated. Some were attended by four, others by six, and a fej^ by eight sticks. The eight stickers cer- j tainly had an '' air " about them as if . they were not to be trifled with. But wnen the various Prime Ministers came in, their personalities absorbed tho public attention, and the attendant sticks were hardly teen. Sir Wilfrid Laurier had a well-deserved apd most enthusia-stio groefing. Apart from the important political purport of his \isit, everybody was glad : to ccc again his f}ne clean-cut face, so kindly end genial, vet ao full of intellect and power, and at the same time strangely ecolesiasticaj in tone I have not yet heard anyone remark the fact, but he is so remarkably like tho present Dean (Robinson) of Westminster — who was recently described as " the inott picturesque of all London's ecclesiastics " — that the two | might *ell pass for twin brothers. Of j Mr Moor, Premier of Natal, those ] assembled seemed to know little or nothing, and I was sorry not to hear more cheering, j at any rate for tho colony v.hich bo long . bore tha brunt of tho late war. But the public memory of anything that dee^ not glitter la often, &k>vt, £r Jameson re; felled ffi Prime . MlaifitfeE. % oC ikt_ Cape.

Colony a far warmer greeting than did hia confrere of Natal, and although Mr, Dea-kin, of Australia, and Sir Joseph- Ward} rof New Zealand 7 , were most cordially' welcomed, all other demonstrations, were) '• dwarfed by that with which our- late*-adver-sary, tho BoeV commander-in-chief!'. now the . [ Prime Minister of the British Trac^vaai ; Colony, Genera! Botha, wae received*.' Here the characteristically generoua» British' j feeling had to hare its full' sway", andf* j outlet. All who were present cteered 1 themselves hoarse and cla-pipd 1 till ' thoir" hand's wero sore. The entry of tha Transvaal Premier with his, s^3i;er and;, daughter was quite a dramatic* ' effecf. I First there wm a sudden hush of expectaj tion. Then came tlie fanfare of trumpeta which heralded the entrance of each of tho most distinguished guests. It was. known. who was coining, and as by one impulse all whj were present rose to their feefc» and the cheering wa3 tremendous. Tha General was attended by the city marshal? the cjtv trumpeters, and the six members of the Reception Committed. J«at outside he had been saluted by the King's. Colonials who formed the guard of honour, and many of whom ha<i foilgh* against him in the late war. When be reached! the dais ono of th« Srsi .to greet him after he hod paid his respecte to the Lord | Mayor and other chief civio dignita'rieji^Tias ■ his "old opponent in the field^ — Lord Roberta.' The two great eoldiers had not met "since the war, and their greeting of one another on this historic occasion waa w&tdte4 wifch j in'onse interest, as was only natural. The j inci-cten-t waa as nrj'^^»e as th« resi of th.& ramarkable occasion. • " * One point ought to be carefully borne iji , mind in oon«ide.ring tfio oeremopy upon ■ whose unique and historic character I ! have dwelt «o strongly. It might be remarked by those who toek only a ""superficial yiow of the base that «6 ma.nji Sovereigns end mighiy Potentates have been received' and entertained ■at tha Guildhall by London and London/c; Lord May^r that last Tuesday's prooeejdinga merely ranked anioag a- number of fimilar onea. But this would be quite an inaccurate and inadequate view of the occasion.' Never before has any Empire thus greeted) I and honoured and recognised th« Prime I Ministers of eoreri daughter nation*, each virtually indepei^Ont and autonomous, yet; all as essentially integral gerts and loyal constituents of the. Empire aa its metropolis and citizens. Moreover, th& position> was accentuated by tQe epccial featuS^ . ttt which I am about to. refer- the formal acceptance and enrolpietlt of the visiting j Premiers ad citizens of the City' of 'Lon,don itself, tho Empire's capita^— their enrolment, too, as men wbo have virtjiallsj; 6er\ed their apprenticeship and ddaft' tha work which qualifies them. for citizenship.. A STRIKING CEREMONY. The ceremony of admission was striking, quaint, and brief. A formal DTeetinjLoJ tha Common Council cf the City was convened? | at which the resolution admitting ' miers to the freedom of London waruoahi; . modsly confirmed, the procedure beingf i{l^C j when tho. Lord Mayor", had pui . tion whether all present were content t&sg thij should be _ Uon^ . the^ aldernjifij^ ancl couasiUors" ehouted in vigorous chorus. iM eingl© wQrd i*AU 1% -JChiA" was par^ictjjftly, iinr>fefeaive. Meanwjiila.. there were, to b»

, seen an_fer the great stained-glass windows ; the seven golden caskets containing the official document conferring the freedom of the cify, while above these hung on the • wall beneath the window were the seven addresses of welcome to the 6eyen Premiers. I may remark in passing that only «it of .ihpco were present, the seventh, the PremiSr of Newfoundland, not having : yet arrived. The others,, however, who ' -were assembled on the dais around the Lord Mayor, were now invited, by the City Chamberlain (Sir Joseph Dimsdale) to advance to the table and sign the declara- { tion exacted. of all freemen. Previously , to the actual signing; the town clerk was required to read aloud a declaration by the ... "compurgators" ' that the colonial Prime Ministers "are men of good name and - Came, that they do not desire the freedom of thw city' whereby to defraud the King or this city -«f any- rights, customs, or . advantages, bui -that they will pay their : ■cot and bear their lot." This * quaint j pledge elicited a good many amused smiles . from those to whom the' quaint language , was new. Then each of the Prime - Ministers' signed the , declaration that " he would be good and true to the Sovereign Lord. JKjng Edward VII, and that h be would be and faithful in various } other ways ho. Sovereign and,tbA,JLgrd^ • Mayor and -' j City of I]^^ i^ I l^tit . oame the presentation- or trie OasKetS, Tor A full description of which, and also an excellent, pictorial '-'representation, which -" I now append,. Lam indebted to the de- - signers ami makers^ the Goldsmiths and. ~ Silversmiths' Company of London.. " rThe caeket tol SiPfMfl? V| #*r& * is strikingly original in ite bold conception and freedom of design, and is of 18 carat gold, and takes the form of the globe, snnnount&i by a finely-modelled figure of Britannia, as lepresented on coins of the realm. The globe,- which contained the Serai) of Freedom of the City, rest^ on a framework particularly graceful in charac- j *er. The four supports are beautifully curved, their lower portions having New j Zealand ferns and foliage entwined round them. Pendant from the frame, to which they are attached by artistic scrolls, are four C3eutcheons, bearing the arms of four colonies enamelled in proper colours. The globe and frame stand upon an oval plateau of solid silver, richly gilt, rendered light and graceful by four supporting open arches, and on tho plateau beneath the globe appears the following inscription:— "Presented, with the Freedom of the City of London, to the Hon. Sir J. G Ward, K-C.M.G , New Zealand, by the Corporation of London, Guildhall, E.C. 16th April. 1907." The finely modelled figures of lions flanking the casket and its supports are representative of the power of unity, as exemplified !>y the Union of the Mother Country and her colonies. The obverse of the base has a background formed by the Union Jack and the Royal Standard, both in enamel, with . the full blawm of the arms of the City of London in the centre, the dragons being modelled in eilver, and the shield, crest, and motto enamelled in proper colours; . while on the reverse appear the arms of New Zealand, and on the ornament above the recipient's monogram, which is thus associated with the arms of the colony for which he acts. At each end of the plateau are given the arms of the two remaining colonies. ' T have taken, for the purposes of description tie particular casket constructed for , Sir Joseph Ward ; the other six were vjr- j tually identical, differing only in the names s and in come of the minor decorations, which > in each case were made typical of the particular colony concerned. ADDRESS OF WELCOME. The' address of welcome, which was read fjy the Recorder, who wore scarlet robes and full-bottomed wig. after setting forth the names and titles of the recipients, ran as follows:— ' "We the I/ord Mayor, Aldermen, and Oomjibns' of th« City of London in Common Counil assembled, for ourselves and on beha,li , of the neat civic «nd commercial interests j centred in -the capital of toe Empire, rejoice ( in. this opportunity of offering to you, as ; representing a vast portion of the Jiing s . aominlons beyond the geaa, a cordial welcome • on this most auspicious occsaion. We desire to' express the gratification it gives us to receive in this ancient Guidhall the Premiers ot the great self-governing colonies, and wa deem it especially appropriate that this , ancient corporation— the mother of locaJ self- • government throughout the Empire — looking j back on an tmbioken of more than j 700. years, should have this opportunity of greeting, through you, our brothers beyond the. sens, »nd of conveying to them the kindly : and fraternal feelings which fill our hearts to-day. You, who enjoy the same liberty as j ©urselves— liberty vrhich we all alike owe to i £he constitutional form of government under I wluch we have the happiness to live — will be , j}b]e to te^liaa the yita.l importance pf proSaoiing we growth ot those close and friendly , relations between the Mother Country and , &» colonies which jje ao e££easia4 t§ the »

welfare of the Empire, the maintenance of its commercial prosperity and the consolidation of its power and influence. We trust that the blessing of Almighty God may rest on ti-o important conference in which you are taking part, and that your deliberations may conduce' to the further development of this Empire and the strengthening of the tiea which bind ua together as a united and homogeneous people under the- rule of our beloved King. In conclusion we pray that you may long be spared \o aid in strengthening znd consolidating thia mighty Empire which has beon created by the courage and the patriotism of those who hare gone before us. By order of the court. THE DECLARATION. Then each of the colonial Promiers duly made and signed the following declaration : " I do solemnly 'declare that 1 will be good and true to our Sovereign Lord King Edward VII; that I will be <jbedient to the Mayor of thia city; that I will maintain the franchises and customs thereof, and will keep this city harmless in that which in me is; that i will also keep the King's peace in my own person ; that I will know no gatherings or conspiracies made against the King's peace, but ,7?M. JS® Tn tne ' Mayor thereof, or hinder it'''to my power ; •nd that all these points and articles I tniLonteliifoand*4ruly keep, according to the Hn^-dbßo&tfteijbbAtttdJKKiucky, to my power." ' " SPEECH BY SIR J. DIMSDALE. Next the Chamberlain (Sir Joseph Dimsdale), -who is a very fine orator, and whose voice penetrated to every corner of the vasWhaU, addressed the Premiers in the >?foilSwing eloquent terms: — • " On many occasions have the walls of this ancient and historic Guildhall echoed — and re-echoed — the cheers of the citizens of Londoa, when acclaiming the deeds of great men who have in their time done solid and lasting service to their country and their Sovereign. We, however, search in vain among the records of tho corporation for any parallel to the ceremony in which we ax© privileged to participate to-day. We assemble to do honour to the Premiers of our self-governing colonies — to do honour to some of Britain's sons, who have ungrudgingly devoted their lives, their abilities, and their energies to develop and consolidate the dominions of our Sovereign beyond the seas. " There is a story told of the Roman, matron Cornelia — the mother of the Gracchi— that, when asked by her friends to show them her jewels and treasures, she took them to her nursery and displayed her children. Surely, if Britain were asked the real cause of her greatness — the reason of her unique position, — and why she speaks with such weight and authority in the councils of the world, she would point with prido over the ocean waves to her colonies and dependences, which belt tho world, in whom she lives, flourishes, and triumphs "We have indeed a great and goodly heritage! but it entails corresponding responsibilities. Our flag flics in every clime — our .ships float upon every sea. Our beloved King-Emperor possesses a fifth of the surface of the globe. His sovereign power extends over a fifth of the entire population of the world. His subjects are of different religions and creed's — many have their distinctive modes and manners of life — many their special idiosyncrasies. Some are" bound to us by flesh and blood, some by mutual affection and csttem, while millions reoognieo that to live under British rule ensures true liberty and the administration of righteous laws with, rectitude, honour, and justice. Yet the members of this world-wide family, apparently of such divergent characteristics, are bound together with bars stronger than steel — cemented together closer than adamant. They know what love of country means. They are proud of the Empire of which they are members. They are proud to claim King Edward VII as their King and Emperor. "This happy consummation could never have been attained had not Greater Britain numbered among her sons statesmen of the highest order, who, by their influence and patriotism, have been instrumental in knitting 1 together these countries and peoples who now form the British Empire. These statesmen realised that an Empire could not only be enjoyed — it must be maintained. And to maintain it we must possess the same qualities and attributes as our forefathers who created it, and in its infancy defended it — courage, forethought, determination, patience, love of law and order. These,' among many, are traits which have been conspicuous throughout their anxious and successful labours. In no part of our King's dominions are these noble aims and aspirations more appreciated than iri tb4 City, of London, any the citizens welcome With pleasure this opportunity to testify their gratitude for the splendid services rendered by the statesmen we welt come to-day. We ask their acceptance of the highest" honour it is in our power to* tfifitfivxr-the £rc«i°JEß.of &<* City _of l£94<f&.

The freedom of the first city of the , greatest Empire in the world." j At this point the six caskets were preeented to the six Prime Ministers present, by Sir Joseph Dimsdale, who then went , on to say : — i " Truly are the prophetic words cf the poet Oowper fulfilled, which he placed in the lips of the bard when predicting the future of the deacendants of the warrior Queen Boadicea: Regions Cassar never knew Thy posterity shall sway, Where" his eagles never flew, None invincible as they. " We add to our roll of fame this day the names of those who we feel are destined to live in posterity. They will be placed | in juxtaposition tosome^of Britain's greatest i sons. Upon that roil are recorded the name>3 of statesmen, orators, men great in . literature, science, and art — heroes, Empire builders, philanthropists — but we feel that ! the additions we make to-day will enhance < the lustre and accentuate the brilliancy of a roll will be cherished and revered i by generations yet unborn. ! "I begf.^O ask you — on bshalf of the Lord | Mayor, jtlfe Court of Aldermen, and the j Court oJt Common Council — to accept these , caskets, containing the copies of your freedoms, and I venture to express the hope j that when you may sometimes look upon them and reread the copy of the freedom , contained therein, you will feel that, while thousands of miles may divide us, your ' hearts and ours beat in unison. j " With gratitude to an ail-wise Providence for inestimable blessings vouchsafed hitherto to our country and Empire, and ', with prayerfulneas that we may, in our generation, prove good and faithful stewards of the heritage committed to our keeping, may we hand it to our successors with its honour untarnished and ita powers for use- ' fulness and good to mankind unimpaired ; 1 may we continue to build up the 6upevstruc- , ture of our mighty Empire upon the firm and laeting foundation, so surely laid by , our forefathers — namely, religion, loyalty, j and pat riot ism." ) At tho conclusion of his speech, Sir j Joseph Ditnedale shook hands with each of ' the Premiers, saying, "I offer you tha,! right hand of fellowship, and greet you as a citizen, of London." MR DEAKIN'S REPLY. Mr Deakin, in an eloquent speech, replied on behalf of the Colonial Premiers: — He; was asflced, he said, by his colleagues to i say how deeply they prized the token of regard which they had just received. The ' magnificent gifts which they would carry away would be cherished because they bore j the imprint of the Motherland. — (Cheers.) ' But when they took, them away they would i only be taking their own again in the precious metal of which they were made. — \ (Laughter and cheers.) Did not, as the * City Chamberlain eaid, the great abiding j inexhaustible strength of the Empire lie in that interchange of service and memo- | rials? He would not attempt to do mere I than say that no welcome which he and j his colleagues could receive would be more j acceptable than the one that day. They i represented communities of free men, who j warmly cherished the undying ances»£ral ] n;emor»es which linked them to that historic hall and the people from whom they • sprang. They recognised with gratitude and affection the greatness of the honour be=>towcd on them, and the reaffirmation of those, ties of b'cod which that would , always constitute. They had be_en admitted | to the fellowship of the oldest and most , domestic form of association in rhis coun- j try for the purpeses of public affairs. Dur- I iruj many centuries that had widened and enlarged its secpo until it embraced all , those dominions which had been go eloquently describpd. They in the new ( countries of the Empire claimed to show ; off-shoots of that ancient body <itill vigorous, j and in tho full flush of youth, and they realised that, "grea.t and complex as were the institutions by which the people °* J Great Britain and the dominions bpyond , the eeas accomplished the work whit h lav ; before them, yet they still performed, and j must always perform, that work of local self-government of which the City Corporation was the parent. Upon that they must ahvavs rely, for it was the great genius of the Empire. — (Cheers.) The sevon addre-ses of welcome to the colonial Premiers were illuminated on vellum in fifteenth century style. The arms of each colony were shown in the centre of the border "at the top, while those of the City- of London appeared in a similar position at the foot, and at either side were water colour views of London bridge and the interior of the banqueting chamber of the Guildhall. The addresses were each contained in a Louis XV period English gojd fr.am6, the body being of Qanadiaii pine, end showing in J^old relief at the hea.d the City arms resting on the rose, shahs rock, and thistle. The certificate of freepoin placed in each of the caskets consisted of a handsome illu- i minated border containing the wording on } JSta. sjfe. %k 2S9& . j£ g£ $fe n ?

! appearing in a separate panel on the left, j a prominent feature beinc the City arms quarts: r-d with tho.se of the Lord Mayor at the head. On the rig,ht hand side, in , another p_nel, were shewn the arms of the i town, clerk and the city chamberlain, with the seal imprinted underneath. THE LUNCHEON. This point in the proceedings having been reachel, the announcement wa« made shortly after 2 p.m. that luncheon was ready. Accordingly the unofficial guests made their way to the Guildhall itself, and took their allotted places to await the entrance of the procession of notables. Meanwhile there was an opportunity of admiring the magnificent old nail with its [ splendid Go+hic architecture and rich stained-glass windows. It had heen beautifolly decorated with flowers, foliage, flags, etc , for the occasion, and not only the i entire spacious floor, but also the various J recessed galleries, -were occupied by table* duly laid for the .guests, who in all numbered very nearly 1000 persons, for attend- ! ance on whom the services of no fewer 1 than 450 waiters had been engaged. Soon i came the distant sound of a fanfare of i trumpets answered by another, and then ' there entered the official procession of civic, political, and colonial dignitaries* '• who marched right round the hall to the strains of 'Handel's well-known march i from his opera " Scipio," played by the , band of the Royal Artillery, finally taking j their places at the high table. The I luncheon followed, and was of the customary civic character, the menu, of course, beginning with turtle soup, without ■' which no London municipal banquet would be deemed to be in proper form. At a particular stage two barons of beef were brought in, smoking hot. to the strains , of " The roast beef of old England," each under the charge of a ccok in white robes ond white cap complete, but those two i barons occupied exalted seats in front of two tiny galleries up aloft, and ne\er | descended at all upon the festi\e board. j This was rather a disappointment to gome , of us, but I suppose it was all right. i And then came the speeches, all o[ which J were respectable and c-njoyably brief, and ' cne brilliant. The toasts wre only three in number— "The King," ''The Piemiers of the Self-£,-ov<?rr ing Colonies.'' and '"The Lord Mayor and Corporation." The first two were proposed by the Lord Mayor, the second being responded to by Sir Wilj frid Lauriei" in a. magnificent and historic oration ; the third was proposed by the i Prime Minister of England, Sir Henry Campbell-Bann-erman. I ' The Lord Major dwelt strongly on the I Imperial nature of the occasion, and on the strictly business-like object of the colonial Premiers' m^sion. In coupling • with the second toa-;t the name of Sir | Wilfrid Laurier, the Lord Mayor expressed I his conviction that everyone present hid ' heard of the " silver-tongued Laurier." I I cannot think that anyone who had | previously spoken in the Guildhall can posi sibly have had a more tremendous and 1 tuniultuously enthusiastic reception than j that accorded to the Canadian Promier on I his rising to reply. He struck a bold nole in I declaring that the present* wae the firbt of 'the great "Imperial Conferences" th.it were to lxs an institution of the Empiro. H*» then made a touching reference to the death of Mr Seddon, remarking that at th« last conference, while lie (Sir Wilfr.rt) was in very poor health and never expected ! to see E'ltjland again, there was among them at the same time one- who seemed to 1 be the inrarnation of rugged health and robust man hood -the lato Mr Seddon, of New Zealand. Yet Mr Seddon had been cv' oft" in the prime of life, v.hon he ' seemed to have in him rrany years of hard work. However, his pace was filled— and ! wpLI filled — by bis successor. Sir Joseph ! Ward. Sir Wilfrid remarked that some 1 people had expressed a fear that the prefent conference might prove a failuie. • "Failure!" cried Sir Wilfrid, vehemently, ' almost, passionately ; "failure there will not i be. Failure there shall not be. There shall ' be no such word as failure in connection with the Imperial Conference of 1907, which will demonstrate to the world and to ourselves that the British Empire is a living entity, and that the conference is one of the proudest triunrmhs in England's marveHous career." Sir Wilfrid pointed out that the occasion had no parallel in all the world's history. He illustrated his meaning by pointing to the simultaneous presence of General Botha and Dr Jameson, and 1 by referring to the fact that within co short a time of a devastating war England had dared to grant to the conquered country full citizenship of the British Empire, and as he himself (a French Canadian) reminded his hearers, the same thing had beon done formerly in the case of French Canada. " Only one nation in "the world could have dared to do such things," cried Sir Wilfrid, "and that nation is England; and co long as the British Empire^ i| maintained j upon these lines I venture to assert that it ! rests i-pon foundations firmer than the rock *__d_aß ejad.ur.abje as the ages.'

You may perhaps be able to imagine thY tremendous sensation created by thest fervid sentences as fervidly And passionately, delivered by a master of oratory. Yet 1 doubt it. It would need anybody to have been present at that historic scene in that venerable hall, with ita 700 years of history, with the memories of the past all around, and with the stirring and inspiring* feature of the present, all directly in evidence, to enable anyone to form a mental picture of that remarkable occasion. Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman proposed the toast, of "The Lord Mayor and Corporation of the City of London." The right hen gentlemen eai9 : "On occasions such' as this, when we have ao many distinguished guests whom the country wishes to honour, we have never looked in vain to the City\ of London to express the welcome which, we all desire to give. They do it ordinarily by their accustomed magnificent ho?pitality, but to-day the corporation has gone beyond that limit, and seeing in' these distinguished guests of ours and theirs men who are conspicuously and successfully maintaining in different quarters of thff world the name and fame and character of the British Empire, they have, as it. . were, taken them to their heart, and aApitted them to their ancient and hoflHrable>' privileges. On that account we aff-of vml are debtors in an unusual degree to tha, corporation for this timely, seasonable, and' reasonable acticn. Therefore, lam certain;' that you will cordially respond to the toast, J. and drink health and prosperity to th«. Corporation < f the City of London, and in particular that of the Lord Mayor, who so admirably presides over ite affairs.". The Lord Mayor briefly returned thanks, and the company .proceeded to the Art' Gallery and other spacious apartments in the Guildhall, where the gold caskets presented to the Premiers were on view. Among the New Zealand gueste present were three ex-Governor3 of New Zealand — viz., Lcrd Onslow, Lord Ranfurly, and Lord 1 Stannior-e ; the Prime Minioter of New, Zealand (Sir Joseph Ward), with Lady and Miss Ward and Mr Cyril Ward, the Soli-citor-3<Micral of New Ze '>r.d'(Dr Fitehett), with ' Mrs Fitchett; Mr .'^s Hislop (pri>a.te secretary to the New Zealand Prime Minister), the High Commissioner for New Zealand, and Mrs W. P. Reeves; Mr Justice Edwards, Mrs and Miss Edwards, Mr and Mrs James Mil!s, Mr and Mrs A--i R. Hislop. Mr T. H. Homer, Mr and Mr» Allan Hughes. It may perhaps be interesting to add. that for the luncheon were provided 400 quarts of turtle soup, 3401b of beef, 1000 mutton cutlets, 200 fowls, 100 dishes 08 salmon. 100 dishes of sole, 70 tongues, anoV 70 Perigord pies, besides vast quantities ofr sweets, etc. Everything was dished up o» silver, and there were 10,000 china plate* used !