CANTERBURY PIONEERS DAY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 10559, 18 December 1923, Page 3

CANTERBURY PIONEERS DAY.

7 3rd. ANNIVERSARY OF PROVINCE.

Sunday, December IG, was the 73rd anniversary of the arrival at Lyttelton of three of the first four ships bearius the Canterbury pi-' srims to their destination. The names of the three were the "Sir George Seymour," "Randolph," and ••charlotte Jan©," and the i™ "Creasy,' aimeil ou the 27th, Of course there were settlers before that time, and Mr John G'odlcy. one of the pilgrims, wrote -thai tney found "a jetty, immigration *barluciis, several \-ut?:uantial ho-uaea, two hotels, and a good road. Certainly :;o bod. of se.tleis ever found so much done to smooth thenpaths as ours will find." The weather was lovely, and the joy of tc»* 700 "pilgrims" boundless. Seven-ty-three years have passed since that day, and this year special pains were taken to mark the occasion by gathering together as many old settlers as possible. In Christchurch *tbe old settlers and their descendants were paid special honour, the celebration commencing on the Saturday. In Temuka the special feature of the day wa s morning service at St. Peter's AngLcan Church, which was organised by the Ma> o r and Borough Council and j was au-siided t>y many old settlei.j and the Mayor (Mr Gunnion) ana Councillors G. hi. Cartwright, W. F. Evans, D. Mclnnes, J. B. Sinclair, Geo. Haucox, A. H. Fenn, J. Burns and i>- <*■ Robins, and the Town Clerk, Mr E. B. Cooper. The pioneers gathered at the Post Office at 10.30 and in accordance with arrangements made were motored by owners of cars to the Church. THE SERVICE. There was a large congregation, the pioneers, Mayor and Council being accommodated on the north sifle and in front of the preacher. The

service was a niast impressive one. commencing with the hymn "Praise Thy Lord, the King of Heaven." The psalm chosen for the occasion wag the 90th, commencing "Lord, Thou hast been Our Refuge." The first lesson was the 31st chapter of Deuteronomy, and the second 7th Matthew. The Vicar (Rev. J. R. Herveyj took for his text Deuteronomy .3.1, verses 7 and S.—" And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unco him in the t.;iglu of all Israel: ''Be strong and of good courage. And the Lord. He it is that doth go before the*.. He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." As w t - read these words, the preacher, we can p.cture> Moses, aged and wise, (Standing beside Joshua, his hand placed, perhaps, affectionately on his shoulder. Before them are the assembled hosts of Israel. Joshua, ,young, noble, eager, is about to assume the task of leadership, and &s lie looks upon the people he feels that he is face to face with his new responsibility. But Moses tells him not to be dismayed, and assured him that he will hav e the never-failing support of the God of Israel. Moses, you will remember, was raised up in order to lead the people out of the house of bondage in Egypt. He wan further called to pres-de OYei - their destinies in the desert —the time of discipline, during which God prepared them for the responsibilities of Nationhood. Looking back, Moses remembens /the many deliverances —the many occasions on which.. God helped and guided His people—a pillar of cloud by day, a pillar of fire by night. So, he assures Jaihua, will He continue Ha mercies towards the house of Israel. As I meditated upon this scene, it geemed to me that Moses might represent the older generation, Joshua th G younger. You, early pioneers to this country, looking back over the years, will recall many deliverances —many occasions when God nas helped your planss, or been a sure refuge in trouble. And to the new generation, face to face with the responsibility of continuing the work so well begun by you, you repeat the strengthening words of Moses, "Be strong, and of a good courage..,, thy Lord doth go before Thee... He will not fail Thee noi forsake Thee." The pioneers who came to this country did not come merely to break fresh ground—did not come from motives of personal gain or ambition, to get rich quick. One great object was to establish here a far-flung unit of the Kingdom of God. Their flrs t care was to mak.e due provision for the worship of God. In Christchurch they selected the most valuable, most central site for a cathedral. To-day that building, with the life of the city revolving about it, bears witness to thei r grand ideal—that God must be- the centre of our individual and . 'social life. And as the earth, ref volving round the gun, receives from that source the blessing or light, so Christ, the Light of th. 6 world, would be a light to lighten every man. And as the crops, the vegetation, the flowers, spring- to life in response ta> the sun's warmth so,-with "God in the midst,"' human life must inevitably produce the j fruit of love, truth, right living. ! God in the midst—Emmanuel—God i with us —that was th© dominating i principle of the pioneers, J Their work was to lay the found- i ations. The fouqdation of a build- j Ing, you will remember, is the most \ important szTt of tbe structure, j Other parts are more or less* easen- \ tla!, some are .merely ornamental, j Jut,.if there is a, Saw in tfes fotta«te- J

! tion, the whole building is imperilled. Old churches, up and down the country, some of them crumbling to decay, are eloquent testimony to the ispiritual foundation which the early settlers sought to lay. They knew that there is no hope for a nation, no hope for its I permanence, no hope for its proper 'development, unless it is founded upon reverence fo r God's laws. They knew that "other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." The Psalmist tells us that "except the Lord build the hout e the r labour is vain that buil.d it." My friends, there are many who. are labouring in vain to-day. They are building up their l-.ves according to their own preconceived notions. They say they want to be free—tshape thei r lives according to their own pleasure. Now. we ar e assured by God'is word that 1 it is all so much time thrown away—that al. the activity of that life is utterly futile. God s name has not been invoked, Hi s co-operation has not been sought. "Except the Lord build the house their labour is

vain." It is the same with the power of government, with the ty.stem of education. God must direct all our doings, must inspire all our progress. To educate comes from a Latin word which means to "draw out," "to develop." It would appear that our educational authorities believed that to educate meant to "fill up."—to fill up w-th facts of hictory and geography. Unless our education system strives to develop the whole nature of the child, to call out the spiritual faculties of faith and love and truth, it is labouring in vain. Whatever it ia doing it i s not educating the child. This cannot be done without the recognition ahd help of God. Once more this was the ideal of the pioneers—not only to, build churches, but to establish schools where ell the work would be over-ruled by a spirit of prayer. And what message is there fo r you,' gathered in thi: Church this morning? I feel that now, through my lips, it is the younger generation addressing the older. In the ninetieth Psalm, which we sang this morning, Moses is mediating upon the old life' ia the wilderness. He is keenly aware of the shortness of human life. It is as th c grass tliat withers, as th sleep that pauses. Yet it bas not been in vain. He remembers work well done, by the help of God. That work will endure. He does not hesitate to commend his Lfe s work into the hands ofGod. "Prosper thou the work of our hands upon us, j ;,ro.-.ptr thou our handiwork." At \ the end of our life's work we shall not be able 'fd ' say'with Christ, "'lt is finished" —perfectly completed. [ We shall be conscious of many du- ! ties neglected, of many omfesions. i But I want you to know that your labour has not been in vain. Your j self-sacrifice, your endurance of ! hardship, your patienc e have not j been poured out in vain. Yonr la- j hours are built into out national i .life. They will endure. To-day you ! cc.jx ask God to accept yottr life's ; work, and you can pray that the | new generation may take up ypu r tasks and qontinue and complete them to the honour and praise of ; God. ! Th e musical part of the service i included the "Venite," "Te Deurn," < and the hymnn "Lord Divine, all j Love excelling," and "O Goti, our ' help." The sermon was a very fine j one, and the whole service was inspiring. It was good to see that | nearly all the pioneers were stilt able to walk and care for them- , selvois without help, and the few who could not do this were otherwise hale and hearty and In full possession of all their faculties. Thanks are due to the owners of cans.who so kindly motored the old folk from the Post Office to th*' , Church. i

THE PIONEERS. The following is a list of those to 'whom the Council extended invitations to attend the service, and almost all were presen t at it: Airay, Mrs John, 63; parents came to New Zealand in ship "Victory" in 185 S. Austin, Richard, 86; arrived at Lyttelton in ship "Crusader," on 31st December, 1874. Blyth, James, 86; arrived at Timan< i n the "Strathallan," in 1859. Barker, Mr and Mrs A. L. Ben bow, James (Rakaia). Brosnahan, John. Brown, Elijah, arrived at Brisbane in ship "Sunda," 1563; came to Timeru 1365. Brown, John, 77, arrived at Lyttelton in ship "Blue Jacket" in 1567, came to Temuka in 1869. Butler, George, 87; arrived in ship "Lancashire Witch," in October, 1863. Cain, Samuel, 75; arrived at Lyttelton in ship "Clontarf," on 6th January, 1859, came to Temuka. Campbell, Colin, SO; arrived in ship •'Tudor," in 1565. Cooper, John, 81; arrived at Wellington in "Star of India," Captain Henley, i n November, 1873. Davey, George, 72; arrived in New Zealand in ship "Hereford," in 1874. Day, Robert R., 94; arrived a t . Wellington in i=hip "Arab," in !S4l, came to Timaru in 1847. Edgar, George, 7S; arrived at Lyttletoc in ship "Tudor,"- in September, 18 65, and came to Temuka in 1867. Edwards, Thomac, senr., 84, arrived at Auckland in iship "Cornubia." in 1557; came to Temuka in 1863. Fiadlay, Jas., 73: arrived in Lyttelton ,in sh!p "Mermaid," in 1862, ra;.i .came to Temuka in 1565.

Fitzgerald, John; arrived at Lyttelton in the "Echunga." Frew, Alexander, 80; arrived at Port Chalmers in February, 1875, Gaffaney, Mrs M. • Gibbs, George, SO years; arrived at Lyttelton in ship "Zealandia," September 21, 1858. Gibson, Andrew, 83; arrived in Australia in 'Ship Saha Joha n in 1860, came to Temuk a in 1862. Goodall, Mrs, 62; parents came.out in the "Egmont," in 1856. Groundwater, Mrs, 81. Hayhurst, Mrs J. T. M. ( 62, arrived at Timaru in ship "Victory" in 1863. ; Hooper, Mrs F. I Hopkinson, William, 94; arrived at I Lyttelton in ship "Zealandia," I v September 21, 1858. i Lee, Mm Edward, SO; arrived r n ship "Victory," in March, 1866. Levens, George, 82; arrived at Lyttelton l n ship "Indiana," in ISSB, and came cverlacd to Temuka in 1559. Levens, Mrs George, 67; arrived at Lyttelton in the "St. Lawrence," in 1873. Marshall, Mrs E. Matthews, Orlando Orr; arrived at Lyttelton in ship "Matoaka," in ; 1867. j Maze, Mrs J. Nicholas, Mrs N. G. I Paterßon, Mrs (Winchester). ) Phillips, George, 76; arrived Timaru, in June, 1873, in sb/p "Peeress." Preddy, George. j Rcoke, M"s L. H., SO; arrived. ut. : . Lyttelton i n ship "Cressy," (one : . of the "nr9 t four" ships) in 1850 j Rutland, Walter George, 82; arrlv- j ed at Lyttelton in the ship "Glentanner," in 1857. Scott, Mrs J. (Winchester). Smart, George, 75; arrived in s.s. j "Atrato," in 1874. I Smart, Mrs Geo., 71; arived in s.s. .! "Atrato," in 1574. I Smart, John,sen., 74; arrived 'in ship "Merope" in 1873. Storey, Charles, 70; arrived at Lyt- j telton in ship "Canterbury," in i January, 1864. i Talbot, John; arrived at Lyttelton, ! in ship "Zealandia," on' 24th May, ; 1862. | Taylor, David, 69, arrived at Timaru "Merope" in 1575. } Taylor, Mrs David, 66, arrived at ' Timaru in the "Eastern Empire" in 1864. I Trezise, Thomas Henry Arthur, 77: arrived at Lyttelton in the shii» \ "Matoaka," in 1867. j Voyce, 11., S 3; arrived at Lyttelton \ in ship ''Crusader," in 1873, com- j ing to Temuka in 1874. j Wareing, Mrs Jos., -71; errived at i Timaru in mhip "Echunga," Dec- : ember 16, 1861. j Wareing, Joseph, 76; arrived a t Auckland i n "Surat," Oct., 1864. Williams, Mrs. Woodhead, Mns Eliza. Woodhead, Mrs xlgnes.