THE NEW YEAR

Otago Witness, Issue 3330, 9 January 1918, Page 36

THE NEW YEAR

MESSAGES TO NEW ZEALANDERS

TRIBUTES TO SOLDIERS AND SAILORS.

WELLINGTON, December 3L Tho following message has been addressed- by their Excellencies to tho people of New Zealand : "We have now spent five years among you, and we feel that wo should like to take this opportunity of sending to all New Zea'anders, whether in. this dominion or abroad, our warmest good wishes for 1918. The past five years have for the greater part been times of stress and difficulty, calling for energy, resolution, and perseverance on the. part of every individual throughout the Empire. It is true that New Year's Day is but a milestone in the epoch of time, yet it is also a moment when our thoughts should turn to hopefulness for the future. Let us, therefore all, with quiet confidence, take courage for that which lies before us, stimulated as we are daily by the valiant deeds of our sailors and soldiers, who have borne the hardships for nearly three years and a-half bravely and cheerfully, and pray that the- victory for which we so earnestly long may, through an all-wise Providence, be attained during this new year which has just dawned. " (Signed) Liverpool * " Annette Liverpool.

PRIME MINISTER'S MESSAGE. The following New Year message has been issued by the Prime Minister:— -

"Fellow Citizens,—The year 1917 will be recorded in history as one of, the most eventful which the British people have ever exoerienced, taking the leading part in a struggle which dwarfs into insignificance all the wars in which at any time they have been engaged. They have known during the year both successes and disappointments. There have been 'times when victory appeared to be almost in sight, and there have been other times when the very foundations of the Empire seined to be shaken. They have seen one" of their most powerful allies broken by internal dissensions and cease to be a factor °f£ny importance in carrying on . the war. They have seen another nation —a people kindred to themselves—take up arms and make the necessary preparations for comma- into the war and for what may still be" a nrotracted contest. They have seen British troops take possession of Jerusalem—the sacred city,—and the Cross once again triumphant over the Crescent. " Now at the beginning of another year we see the British Army, representative of every country and every race in our great Empire, still fighting with unshaken confidence side by side with the gallant soldiers of France and Italy against the combined forces of the Central Powers. Slowly but steadily, in France and Flanders, they are driving the enemy back towards his own country, and we realise now that on the western front—and perhaps during the coming year—the decisive battle will be fought which we trust will restore peace to this war-weary world, and give liberty and security 'to its peoples. That is the position which we have to face and prepare to deal with accordingly. We have to remember, too, that unless this war is fought to a finish, and Germany is forced to acknowledge defeat, it will be a victory for 'the Central Powers, and any peace that may perhaps be arranged will bo temporary rather than permanent, last ing only long enough to allow Germany time to renew her strength and prepare to attack the liberty-loving nations of the world again. "That is what we are up_ against, and in our inmost souls, we know it. The patriotism of British citizens has stood successfully every test which has been applied to it in 'three years and five months of horrors for which tho Kaiser and his advisors are responsible. During these periods the best blood of Greater Britain has been poured out like water, but the end is not yet. Further and more severe tests may be necessary. Further and greater sacrifices may, and probably will, be required, but there will be no shirking or weakening on the part of the people as a whole. Whatever measures the loaders of the Empire think necessary to win the war will be cheerfully accepted. We know perfectly well that within our Imperial gates we have a proportion of pacifists and antimilitarists and others whose national sympathies are doubtful—some of them dangerous, some harmless, but all of them people who in a time like this are a hindrance rather than any service. Such people have to be taken care of, and, if necessary, dealt" with by a strong hand, while an overwhelming majority of loyalists join the march to victory and permanent peace, without which being attained there will bo no stopping nor shadow of turning. "We know there is only one course to follow, and that is to carry on until victory comes —'to carry on as British citizens, not in any half-hearted manner, but with a strong and steadfast detcrminatio,n which will overcome all difficulties and remove all obstacles to our progress. New Zealand, as no unimportant dominion, can, and will, continue to do its full duty to the Empire and to its gallant soldiers on the different fields and fronts.

"Both the soldiers and the sailors are doing their duty to us, and look to us for reinforcements and supplies. Nor must we allow them to look in vain, and if necessary our duty must be measured not in proportion to our population, but by what, along with our fellow citizens in other parts of

the world in a supremo and united effort, wo may bo able to accomplish. "Wo are passing through the greatest crisis tho British race has ever known. Let us- prove ourselves worthy of the heroic men who died on our behalf, whoso bones to-day lie in foreign soil, and also of the mothers who taught their sons to respond when the Empire called, even though they knew that sacrifices were certain, and that many would never again see their own country.

"Let us prove ourselves worthy of our gallant Allies, worthy of the pioneers of civilisation who laid tho foundation of our Empire and handedi down to us a sacred trust which at any cost must be preserved intact and passed on for the benefit of humanity even more valuable than when it came into our possession. "Our duty in this new year as citizens of the Empire and as citizens of New Zealand is to thank God and take courage to stand fast for freedom and liberty, and to carry on for victorv and peace. "W. F. Massey, "Prime Minister."

SIIR JOSEPH WARD'S MESSAGE

" COURAGE, DETERMINATION, HOPE, AND SACRIFICE."

The following is Sir Joseph Ward's New Year message to the people of New Zealand :

"Courage, determination, hope, and sacrifice. Let this be the. motto for the new year. The furnace fires of sacrifice must be kept at white heat by throwing on the flames every ounce of effort the nation is capable of supplying. Each individual is capable of doing something. Do it, however small the effort may appear. It will all count uip in the aggregate. Greater self-denial must be practised. There must be no funking. Action is the only thing that counts to-day. . "The year just concluded has not realised all that we hoped for, but despite the Russian defection andi the reverse, of the Italian Army, sufficient progress was made to show the whole world that there can be but one end to this awful war. America, by throwing her whole weight into the scale, has more than compensated for the disappointments of the past year, and the enemy knows that it is only a matter of time when she must be definitely defeated. That is why she is making such desperate efforts now to force a decision in the west — efforts that are certainly doomed to failure. "Without the courage of faith in our own strong arm; without hope that the outcome will spell a glorious peace for Great Britain and her Allies; and without the determination of sacrifice by each and every one of us, we could not hope for victory. But we have all these attributes, and we are strengthened in our purpose because- we know that with our nation there is strongly developed the spirit of equity and justice. We have faith in our cause and in ourselves and this gives us the inflexible will to make every sacrifice to bring about the desired end. The history of the nation is being written in the blood of our race. We should be craven all to allow such sacrifices to be made in vain. Let us then with the Motherland put forth all our mighty strength in the new year in a supreme effort to crush for ever a cruel foe, that in the conduct of the war has shown neither honesty of purpose nor one generous impulse. "Great Britain's record/ in the struggle has been a revelation to the Central Powers. A peace-loving nation, we were totally unr prepared on land for war, and that was the main factor in German calculations when she hurled her mighty strength and organisation built up over a period of 40 years, at heroic little Belgium, with a view to humbling France as a prelude to over-run-ning the continent of Europe and' then defeating Great Britain and gaining world supremacy. The scene has changed, and England has become the possessor of one of the largest armies in the world, second to none in courage, resourcefulness, and equipment. Her territories are an armed camp, with mighty factories turning out at record speed guns and all the requisite munitions of war, and the whole of her vast resources, material and human are concentrated with her Allies on the defeat of the enemy at her gates. Such a record of achievement has been previously unknown in the history of the world, and will stand for all time as an object lesson of what a free and democratic country is capable of when forced into war for her honour's sake. The spirit of the race is magnificent. Tho hearts of the people are staunch and true to their splendid traditions, and with qualities such as wo possess together with a determination to put even greater effort into the conflict, there can be no doubt as to the result. "To the people of New Zealand I would say that while this fair dominion, has done more than well, yet we have felt the stress of war less perhaps than any other portion of the British Empire. Thanks to the British Navy and our mercantile marine, our produce has been carried safely overseas throughout the war period, and the country, unfortunately largely due to the war, has prospered' beyond all expectations. The cost of living, though it has been one of our greatest troubles and anxieties, is lower here than in any other part of the British Empire. The only time that the war is brought poignantly homo is when someone near and dear to us meets- his fate on the field of battle — ' goes west,'' as the soldiers say. Our hearts go out in sympathy to the mothers, wives, sisters, brothers, and relatives of those who have made the great sacrifice; and we pray that the comfort which can alone come from the King of Kings may gradually alleviato their sorrow. Apart from this sad side, we have little to remind us here of the war. We go on our way in comparative security and peace. "I would like to remind the people, in appealing to them to put forth every effort in the coming year, that the horrors of war are ever present to tho dwellers in the Mother Country. At every railway station in London, 'throughout tho day and night, long queues of waiting ambulances are formed up, every train .from the Channel towns bringing their quota of wounded from the battle fronts. This more than anything else bring 3 home to the people there the stern realities of a brutal war. There are other ever-present factors as well, including the darkened streets at night and the searchlights that are constantly 'trained on the heavens for spying out the murdering pirates of the air, which prey on defenceless men, women, and children. "Wo have much to bo thankful for in this far-flung post of Empire, and surely it is pot too much to ask the people io be

patient, to be still more self-denying, and in all their actions to.have but one rn'd in view—the .winning- of the war by unmistakable and unquestioned victory. " Leo the new year bo a period of nobie sacrifice —the beginning of a year of courago and f-n'rh. No one can say when this awful struggle will end, but I am sure the people of Now Zealand share with me the fervent hope that this will be the last year of war. To the Now Zealand soldiers at home Mid abroad, and to the patriotic .citizens of the dominion, I wish every happiness and prosperity during the new year. May the alter-war problems which have to conie up for settlement provide in their solution" an effective system based upon the highest Christian principles that will make wars in the future unnecessary, and prevent the recurrence of such a crime against humanity as that in which the world has been plunged for nearly three years and a-half by the action of a ruthless autocrat. May the people, arid not the self-constituted monsters in the enemy countries, in the future be the constitutional rulers and framers of wise, humane, and democratic laws. "Let us all devoutly pray that the joybelle will soon proclaim the glad tidings of a glorious peace with for the British Empire and her Allies. "J. G. Ward, "Minister of .Finance. '