Banquet to Hon. W. C. Walker.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 11757, 3 September 1901, Page 2

Banquet to Hon. W. C. Walker.

MINISTERIAL ADDRESSES. I PEB PRBB4 ASSOCIATION, I

Wellington, September 2. — A banquet tendered by "The Eighty'€lub " in honor of the Hod. "W. C. Walker was held to-night. The * company which numbered upwards of 100- inoluded the Right Hon. R. J. Seddon, Sir Joseph Ward, Hons. C. H. Mills, .J. McGowan, and J. Carroll. - 1&? Mr Seddon, responding to ttie toast of Parliament, said it had been asserted that it had cost the colony^ a million to send away tfie Contingents *to ISbuth Africa, but as a matter of fact the cost was only L 138,000. Be announced - that the Customs revenue, last month established a record, the amount being L 227,000 as against L 222,000 for the corresponding month last year. The Customs re venue for the five months of the financial year was L 893.000, as against- L904,000 for the corresponding five months of last year, despite the fact that last session Parliament had given away £150,000 in Custom 8 remissions. In face of these fignres there was no justification for croaking. Sir Joseph Ward said it w.ould be found that as time went on instead of there being any weakness in the fiuancial structure it rested on a very solid basis.

Hon. W. C. Walker was presented with a handsomely illuminated address and a number'ofsilv.er souvenirs. He said the payment of good salaries to teachers was at the root of sound education, and for the sake of all concerned it was necessary to put teachers on a proper andtsatisfactory footing in thb matter.