OUR FALLEN HEROES.

Temuka Leader, Issue 10468, 19 May 1923, Page 3

OUR FALLEN HEROES.

PRESENTATION OF MEMENTOES TO PARENTS AND NEAR RELATIVES OF MEN WHO FELL IN THE GREAT 7 WAR. MEMORABLE CEREMONY ;AT TEMUKA.

There was a large gathering in the Presbyterian Sunday School at Teuiuka on Thursday afternoon, when many of the parents and near relatives of the me u of this district who gave their lives in the Great War assembled at the invitation of the War Memorial Committee to receive mementoes of their loved ones. Parents and relatives had come from all parts of the district, and the assemblage was a unitiiie one.

The Mayor, Mr T. Guimion, presided. The proceedings were opened with the singing of the hym n : "Abide with Me," announced by the Rev. P. H. Pritchett and accompanied on the Piano by Mrs T. Buxton, after which the Rev. W. H. E. Abbey offered up an earnest prayer.

CHAIRMAN'S REMARKS. The Mayor, after welcoming all present, and expressing the. pleasure that so many had been able ..to attend, explained that he had to thank Mr George Davey for the suggestion that had led to the gathering. The mementoes and the gathering wer e the result of his thought. They had had many gatherings in connection with the war, but this was .the most memorable of them all. They had sent their boys away with pride to do their duty, and they had done it nobly. It was not necessary for him to dwell on that. a.s the Rev. C Macdonald and the Rev. Norris were to address them. He wished, however, to thank the C«niniittee that had undertaken and carried through the work in connection with the Memorial, and the little function of that day. A sum of money had been, set aside and vested in the Mayor and Town Clerk of th e borough for all time, to keep the Memorial in good repair and provide that every year o n ' Anzac Day, a laurel wreath should be placed on it. This would help to keep in remembrance the j boys who had given their lives j that, others might live, for it was i

only by their, sacrifice that they were there that day. Mementoes would be sent to those who could hot attend —some would be se-nt to England, some to Australia, and some to various parts of the Dominion. H e was very pleased' to ' see the Rev. A. H, Norris with them that afternoon. He had come all the way from Christchurch to hand the mementos to the parents of those who had fallen. The Mayor then invited the Rev. Chas. Macdonald to address them.

REV. CHAS. MACDONALD'S ADDRESS. The Rev. Chas. Macdonald said: It is now getting on for five years since the war was ended, and I am sure w e all hoped and thought thaVt long ere this the world would have returned to something like normal conditions. But a storm such as the war was, does not subside quickly, and things are far from being at rest. Some, perhaps, were inclined to ask "What did! we fight for?" "What was the good of it all?" "What have we to show for our losses and sufferings, and sacrifices?" "Would things have been so much worse if we had lost the war?" "Well, t without speculating how it would have'been in other parts of the world, there can be little doubt how it would have been here in New Zealand, and over there in Australia. We should simply have been a nation of slaves, under military rule, and that of the hardest kind. No man's farm, no man's business, no man's home, no man's life, Or liberty, would have bee n his own. So we thank those who fought for us and who ar e still in 'the land of the living. We are glad that so many of them have settled down into various occupations, and are becoming good and useful citizens. May they be long spared to live and thrive in the'land they saved. Then we have grea tpity for those who ar e still suffering from shock and wounds and other ailments. Though there has been a bit of a slump in our market I do not believe that any right-think-ing man or woman would grudge financial help, and liberal help, to those who have lost their limbs and ruined their constitutions in the service" of their country. In the great tangle our Government had to face it was not easy to mote out perfect justice to every one, and there have been cases of hardship, with consequent bitterness. Some of the maimed men have wished that they were sleeping with their comrades on Gallipoli, or under the poppy "in Flanders fields." We sincerely trust that justice will be done to them, and it is only justice, bare justice, that they should be helped in every possible way. As for the dead ( they are beyond the reach and the need ofcnir help. But we have done something to preserve their memory. We have appointed Anzac Day to commemorate their valour. We have erected monuments to prevent their names, falling into oblivion,

and we cherish the memory of them in our hearts. I remember seeing in the Wanganui cemetery the tombstone of the late John Ballance, bearing these words, "To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die." In that way our dead soldiers -will live long'. To-day we honour their parents, and at is only right and fitting that we should do. They toiled bard to bring up their boys

•decently and well and when «he call came they sent them forth to save their Empire. To them the loss is a personal thing such as it can he to no other,but human sympathy is precious and it will b e some comfort to look on these beautiful cards. Long may they hang on the walls to remind the bereaved fathers and mothers that their hoy died in the noblest of causes, to inspire the rising generations with high ideals, and to serve as tokens of gratitude from their fellow-citizens to those who sacrificed their all. "For greater love hath no man than this, that a man gav e his li.fe for his friend."

PRESENTATION OF MEMENTOES. The Rev. A. 11. Norris thanked the Mayor and his Committee for inviting him to attend. It was a great privilege to be asked to come to Temuka to ask th e relatives to accept these mementoes, He would like to read them a few words that he thought, would appeal to the hearts of the parents or relatives of the me n who fell in the Great War. He believed the time had come ? or was quickly coming, when the words of Our Lord would be fulfilled. "Your sorrow will be turned into joy." He believed tlie time was coming whe n the parents of those who laid down their lives in the war will feel no more bitterness, no more pain, but rather just pride and thankfulness that they had brought into the world and reared a hoy that was worthy to die the death of men that these men died. He believed that the beautiful words John Ruskin had written of the brave men who fell in the Crimea would be a comfort to them. This was what Joli n Ruskin wrote: "I will appeal at once to the testimony of those whom the war has cost, the dearest. Those also can never see sunrise, nor watch the climbing light gild the eastern Clouds, Without thinking what graves it has gilded first far down below, the earth-line; who never more shall see the crocus bloom in spring without thinking what dust it is that feeds the wild flowers of Balaclava. Ask them witness, and see if they will not reply that it is well with them and their's; that they would hav c it not otherwise; would not, if they might, receive back their gifts of love and life, nor take again the purple of their blood out of the Cross on the breast plate of England." The Rev. A. H. Norris then handed to the relatives and parents mementoes of their dear ones, the wording o n which was as follows: THE WAR MEMORIAL Erected in Victoria Park, Temuka, with the inscription ''Hallowed for ever be the memory of the men of this district who in the GREAT WAR fought for righteousness and freedom, and died the death of honour, 191-1-1918.

"Through th e storm and death agony they. hav e attained the vision of the Eternal." Their name liveth for evermore, Unveiled by His Excellency the Governor-General, Viseount J. R. Jellicoe, 0.M., G.C.8., G.C.V.0., 10th August, 1922 Contains among the names of men of this district, the name of The War Memorial Committee desires that this Memento will convey the Cominuity's sympathy and grateful respect to '» <-« ai; numbered among those who laid down their lives in defence of home, friends and Empire. "They sleep well under the soft gray skies, "After the f'S'ht. "The night is come upon them, and they lie, •'Wrapped closely from all earthly sound and sight "In God's still night." T. GUNNION, Mayor Chairman of Committee. E. B. COOPER, Town Clerk, Honorary Secretary.

(At the fop is an oval photograph of the Memorial between the Union Jack and the New Zealand flag, (printed in colours), and on either side of these are two N.Z. fern leaves. A plain border, in gold, with laurel leaves in the corners, surrounds the lettering which is in Missal and upright script type, and the whole is framed in oak. The size is about loins by 21ins). The Mayor thanked the parents and relatives for their presence thai afternoon. It liad been a great help to the Committee, and they appreciated it very highly.

Mr-Cain, on behalf of the parents and relatives, thanked the Mayor and Committee for their thoughtfulness in presenting them with the beautiful gifts they had received. He had mucii pleasure in moving a hearty vote of thanks to them for their labours and their thoughtfulness, not only in regard to these presentations, but throughout the war. (Applause) v

Mr Geo. Davey seconded the motion, saying he had much pleasure in doing so. They all thoroughly appreciated what had been done, and he specially referred to the enthusiasm and energy of the Chairman. (Applause).

PRESENTATION TO THE MAYOR

Mr W. G. Aspinall then came forward and said h e had been asked by parents and children to thank the chairman and his wife for their great services and to present the Mayor with a little address, in album form. • Th e album contained photographs of. the memorial and address, and the' signatures of - >*

! many of the parents and relatives and the committee. It was not its intrinsic value that makes it of worth, but the spirit of appreciation of worth that it contained For four years Mr Gunnicn had been chsirman of the Committee.. He had attended every meeting, never missed one, and then in the end had gone all over the district collecting subscriptions for the memorial, and had collected over £4OO. It would 1 be recognised that he had done a 1 man's work. Had it not been for him, they would probably have been in the position of other places, and had no war memorial yet. They had all done their best, but Mr Gminion had done the lion's share of the work, and he (Mr Aspinall) had great pleasure in presenting <him with a small souvenir of their appreciation of what, life had clone. They knew he would value if for the feeling it conveyed and they hoped he would hand it cloavii to his children. He wished to add a few words of praise regarding the Mayoress. If she had not helped him and kept up to the mark., he could not have done what he had. His friends wished them long life and happiness. (Applause.)

Mr Aspinall then handede the Album to Mr Gtuimop, the following being a copy of the address: — "THOMAS GUNNION, ESQ., M.B.E. Mayor of Temuka, "Dear Sir, —

"We, the undersigned parents and relatives of the men who achieved the supreme sacrifice in tbe late war, and whose names are perpetuated on the Memorial erected to their memory in the Temuka Domain, desire to express our sincere thanks for, and keenest appreciation of, your self-sacrificing labours in connection with the establishing, erecting and unveiling of the obelisk. We recognise the fact that you devoted many hours of keen thought and valuable time during the four years the War Memorial Committee was in existence and gave your evenings ungrudgingly to the many meetings involved, at which you were invaluably present. We realise that it was in a large measure due to your enthusiasm and whole-hearted devotion that the present handsome Monument stands as a lasting memorial to the memory of our dear

ones,. "In conclusion we desire to say that we sincerely- hone you may be spared for many years 'to look upon the erecting of the memorial as one of the most gratifying pieces of work anions th e many patriotic efforts that you have undertaken.." Mr Gunnion, who was much moved said they had taken him entirely'by surprise. It was quite unexpected, lie could only thank them enough. No words lof his could express appreciation of their kindness. What he had done during the war and since was only his duty, and he had tried to do his best. He thanked them again. He would prize their gift as long us he lived, and when he passed un he knew his children would treasure it. (Applause.) The album is bound in violet suede, and contains three photographs of the memorial; one of it as it stands in the domain, another depicts the unveiling ceremony, and the tluT the scene on A'nzac Day, the two latter pictures showing the beautiful wreaths laid o n the foot of the column. But, most valuable of all, are the signatures it contains of the relatives and parents of the boys in whose cause Mr Gunnion worked so earnestly.. The National Anthem was then sung, and the Ilev. Norris pronounced the benediction. AFTERNOON TEA.

A delicious tea provided by the ladies was then dispensed, and a hearty vote of' thanks to the ladies, proposed by Mr John Talbot, brought a memorable afternoon to a close.