Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GIBBORNE, MONDAY, DEO. 24, 1900 CHRISTMAS, 1900.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 9031, 24 December 1900, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GIBBORNE, MONDAY, DEO. 24, 1900 CHRISTMAS, 1900.

Nineteen hundred years have passed since the occurrence of that great event which has formed the centrepiece of the world's history, and was destined to have such a weighty influence upon the affairs of men and nations. Many festivals of the Church have vanished during these centuries, but this one remains, and the message of that first Christmas morning, "Peace on earth and good-will toward all men," still appeals with power to the minds and hearts of men. It is deeply to be regretted that the closing year of ■the century should see our nation still engaged in strife, but so far as the South African war is concerned we can lay our hands on our hearts and say that it was forced upon us, and that we had no other honorable alternative than to "see the thing through." The same may also be truthfully said of the warfare in China, in which ,in concert with the European Powers, England is engaged. It will be the prayer of all people this Christmas Day that the wars may speedily be terminated, and that the new century may bring in an era of peace. This is essentially the season of good-will, and though that characteristic of the British people has been splendidly manifest again and again during the past twelve months by the magnificent response that has been made to appeals for help on behalf of wounded soldiers, bereaved relatives of our Empire's heroes, the faminestricken people of India, and sufferers by fire and water in America, we have no doubt there will be no tightening of the purse-strings, but that) Englishmen everywhere, our readers not excepted, will find and take opportunity for the exercise of a good deal of private benevolence. It is such action that will make Christmas a hallowed day, a day of real enjoyment, according to its highest ideals. The closing century has been marked by wonderful scientific achievements tending to the greater comfort and prosperity of mankind, and its latter years, especially in -this country, have been attended with seasons of plenty. New Zealand, we should remember, is the product of the century, and in celebrating this last fesI tival of the hundred years we should not ' fail to be thankful for the great advance in material welfare which we and all ' civilised countries enjoy. Our sympathies should be extended to the fathers and mothers of those of our boys who have lost their lives in fighting for the prestige and honor of our country, and to those who are anxiously awaiting for their lads' return. Finally, we wish our readers, and they will wish one another, the time-honored, sincere, and hearty annual compliment — A MERRY CHRISTMAS and A HAPPY NEW YEAR.