The Southland Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. "Luceo Non Uro." TUESDAY, APRIL 10, 1934. LONG PUBLIC SERVICE

Southland Times, Issue 22295, 10 April 1934, Page 4

The Southland Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. "Luceo Non Uro." TUESDAY, APRIL 10, 1934. LONG PUBLIC SERVICE

As member for Wallace for twenty years, Mr J. C. Thomson established himself firmly in the regard o£ his fellow Southlanders, and even those who disagreed with him politically could not fail to pay tribute to his zeal and his capacity in furthering the interests of the province he was so proud to serve. Throughout his long service in public office, Mr Thomson was known as a fluent speaker and an effective debater, and while he was never fortunate enough to win the honour of holding a portfolio, in provincial matters he gave clear proof of administrative capacity. When the turn of the political wheel resulted in his departure from Parliament he did not drop out of public life, but serving the cause of education in Southland he gave his energy and experience to administrative duties on the Southland Education Board and the Board of Governors of the Southland High Schools, in both places doing work that was as valuable as it was unostentatious. In public affairs men know that gratitude is not theirs to command; but it says much for the fine qualities of Mr Thomson that he retained always the regard of his fellowmen and that those of the earlier generation remembered him always as a man who had done yeoman service for the province, and as a man who in the later years of his life was still keen in the discharge of public duties. He was active right up to his latest days, and those who served with him on

public bodies know that in spite of failing health he was earnest in his efforts to further the cause nearest his heart, the cause of education. A public life extending over thirty years is a severe test for any man, and Mr Thomson in fair days and dark was courageous and energetic. He will be remembered as one of the most eloquent speakers in Parliament in days when the House included many giants of debate, and those who were privileged to hear him in these later years could not help being impressed by the aptness and the dignity of his phrasing as well as by the effectiveness of the arguments he presented in such polished English. His passing has removed a figure prominent in Southland s public life, and one possessing qualities of which the province had reason to be proud.