TIMARU CELEBRATIONS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 20101, 7 May 1935, Page 5

TIMARU CELEBRATIONS

In spite of an overcast sky and a biting southerly wind the people of Timaru assembled in large numbers at King George’s Place yesterday morning to take part in the King’s Jubilee Civic Thanksgiving service. The attendance was representative of all sections of the community and the occasion was as colourful as it was impresive. The Timaru Municipal Band under Lieut. W. H. Osborne. Timaru Highland Pipe Band under Drum Major W. Andrew and the Salvation Army band were present, the hymns being accompanied by the Municipal and Salvation Army Bands. D (Machine Gun) Company, First Battalion, Canterbury Regiment, under the command of Captain E. w. D. Unwin and Lieutenants R. J. Mason and H. E. Bungate paraded as did also the Legion of Frontiersmen under Lieutenant A. Rathbone. Returned Soldiers., Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, pupils from the Girls’ and Boys' High Schools, Timaru Technical High School and the four primary schools were also present. The service which was held under the auspices of the Timaru Ministers' Association, was conducted from a special staging erected in front of the Municipal Buildings. On the dais were the Mayor (Mr T. W. Satterthwaite) and the Mayoress, the Rev. J. D. McArthur and the Rev. J. Evans, who conducted the service, and the Rev. James Baird, who delivered an address, the Rev. Clyde Carr, M.P., representatives of churches, ex-mayors, Borough Councillors, local body members and representative and prominent citizens with their wives. Mayor’s Introduction. In opening the service the Mayor said that the day was a memorable one in Empire history. In procession King George and Queen Mary would go to St. Paul’s Cathedral where a service of I thanksgiving would be held. We in I

iaicvAxn.osl v liig w uc uciu. vvc ill New Zealand, the farthest outpost of Empire, would hold similar services, and Timaru which was a most loyal town, had its people assembled in large numbers in King George’s Place. The Place was very appropriately named after King George, and in the centre of it we had a memorial to the glorious reign of Queen Victoria the Good, the King’s grandmother. That day we felt, as Timaruvians, more united than ever as the great service at St. Paul’s would be attended by one of the King’s sons —one who would be conspicuous in it—who passed through that very Place a short time ago. Mr Satterthwaite said that King George’s reign had been a glorious one. He had followed in the footsteps of his father, Edward the Peacemaker, and we as his loyal subjects should be grateful for the precepts that had been passed on to us from the Throne of the British Empire. The Mayor concluded by reading the King’s message to the children of London, and said that the message would apply also to the children of New Zealand who were just as much to His Majesty as the young people of London. The National Anthem was then sung after which, on the call of the Mayor, three cheers were given for the King and Queen. An invocation was made by the Rev. J. Evans, followed by the Lord’s Prayer, the Municipal Band leading the gathering in the singing of the hymn “All People That on Earth Do Dwell.” In a Scripture reading the Rev. J. D. McArthur took Psalms 95 and 121, after which the hymn “O God, Our Help in Ages Past” was sung. Scripture readings, Joshua 1, verses 7, 8 and 9, and Revelations XXI, verses 10, 11, 23 and 24 were given by the Rev. J. D. McArthur followed by the hymn “Now Thank We All Our God” and prayers by the Rev. J. Evans. Inspiring Address. In an inspiring address the Rev. James Baird took as his text, a quotation from the Second Book of Chronicles: “And the people rested themselves on the words of Hezekiah, the King of Judah.” “The press tells from time to time of someone being honoured by his fellows. Perhaps he is the guest of honour at a dinner and with fine spontaneity one after another acknowledges in frank and moving terms the sterling worth and work of the man. That undoubtedly will be the spirit in which the peoples of the Empire will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the reign of that true and noble man the King. The silver jubilee of George V. is more than a formal occasion. It is an occasion when the admiration and confidence and devotion which the King has inspired and which has been growing through the years will swell like a tide and sweep millions of hearts through a whole Empire. When I commenced to reflect what I would say on this occasion my mind went instinctively to th passage in Second Chronicles which tells of a king end his people. I have read this text not merely because it has reference to a king and his people but because it describes the outstanding characteristics of a remarkable period of Jewish history. It was a period marked by no unique splendous or unbroken peace. It had its occasions of alarm and even humiliation. It was a time of difficult changes both in the religious and social life which disturbed many and of external difficulties and perils not always wisely handled. But through all its changes and reconstructions, amid all its con- : troversies, in the day of peace :md fear alike, one thing suffered no chan-e. It : was the confident trust reposed by the ; nation in the man who sat upon the ! throne. This king of theirs was the : 'mark man safe and sure.’ The people i were assured they could count on him I :

THANKSGIVING SERVICE The citizens of Timaru assembled in hundreds in King George’s Place yesterday morning to attend the thanksgiving service in commemoration of the Silver Jubilee of the reign of His Majesty King George V. The service was the only public celebration held in Timaru, but all sections of the community were represented, in spite of the fact that the weather was bitterly cold. There was also a paiade of military units, Returned Soldiers, Legion of Frontiersmen, Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, headed by the Municipal and Timaru Highland Pipe Bands. At some of the primary schools in the morning treeplanting ceremonies were held, while all the primary and secondary schools were represented at the public service, which was conducted from a dais erected in front of the Municipal Chambers. All the buildings in the vicinity were decorated for the occasion, the display of bunting providing a fittingbackground for the ceremony.

though the direct authority of the sovereign is less and indeed negligible against the popular will, there never was a time when the influence of the crown rises or falls more with the character of the wearer. There has been a growing thankfulness as the years have revealed the character and mind of the King and Queen. The King and Queen have so acted that a tradition of domestic honour and happiness, of social carefulness and sobriety, of public gravity, wisdom and beneficence is forever associated with their name. We know with grateful hearts that the King and Queen live their private lives and discharge their public office in goodness and simplicity before God and the people. It is not that we want a censor of morals on the throne. Secular and State authority can do little in these things and you cannot stir up conscience with a sceptre. But we do know what a mighty example and influence the throne can have on the morals and habits of an age. The throne of George V. has been in some sense a great white throne.

In accounting for the popularity of the present occupant of the throne a 1 very large place has to be given to that quality in him which may be called great heartedness. He is a true father of his people. Sympathy and service are the very breath of his daily life. The Greatest One that ever lived on this earth said: ‘But whosoever will be great among you let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you let him be your' servant.’ Our King allows himself little respite in the service of the people. He is known as a great toiler in the affairs of the State. In a day when most of us are insisting on fewer hours of work and larger leisure the King refuses to spare himself and this ideal of constant service is shared by the Prince of Wales and other members of the Royal Family. The King is very quick to respond to the thoughts and feelings of his subjects—eager to keep in touch with the sentiments of the ordinary people -whose welfare is his constant and chief concern. Is there a colliery disaster? The Royal message of sympathy is on its way to the homes of the widows and the fatherless. Is there a railway accident? Quickly come the kindly inquiries from Buckingham Palace. i s there a subject which has reached the century? The King delights to honour him with a message of goodwill. Is there a disaster in any part of the far-flung dominions? The Lung's message is speeding over the land and sea. It is this mark of sympathy that Las drawn all his subjects from the greatest and humblest to him. Deep calls to deep and some years ago when the King was prostrate, worn with fever and exhaustion, gallantly fighting for his life against the encroachments of severe critical illness remarkable and moving were the tokens of the people’s goodwill and affection. Example During War. “In the day of ordeal, the dark evil years 1914-18, this King won his way into the people’s heart forever. Those years cemented ties of affection and loyalty that never can be broken. After all the King means kin, that is, one of us, and a great achievement of George V. is that he has proved himself one | with his people. A chaplain at the Western Front in the Great War describes a typical incident. Here are his words: ‘We had just come out from the Somme battle—tired, weary, nerve strained to the point of sheer exhaustion. Wearily we marched along what was ironically called Happy Valley and the spirits of the men were at their lowest ebb. Suddenly the word flashed along the line “The King is here.” The news acted like magic on the worn troops. Heads were raised, eyes flashed, feet marched with quicker and firmer tread and happy laughter broke out. Unlike many army rumours the news was true and presently we marched past his Majesty at the salute. What struck us most was that he seemed to be one of us—Khaki-clad and wearing the helmet like the rest but as one glanced at his worn and saddened face, one realised that whatever our hardships might be, he bore a burden of responsibility of which we

The figure of this man stands in Jewish history unique in his measure of the people's confidence. He never shook that confidence. The people knew that behind the trappings of monarchy there was a man to be trusted. ‘The people rested themselves on the words of Hezekiah King of Judah.’ There are some men who redeem history from contempt and this King of Judah was one of them. You are left in no doubt as to what it was that gave him his renown. It was his personal character and this alone which made this ancient king sovereign over his people’s hearts, and gave him that place of ascendency which enabled one period of Jewish history to be written in terms of the personal worth of a ruler. Hezikiah held the hearts of his people because he commanded the sympathy of his people's conscience. Influence of the Crown. “I purposely set before you this concrete example of the kingship of character. The weighty business of kingship has undergone changes since the das’s of Hezekiah. In our Empire the throne rests by common consent on a wise expediency. There has come to pass in the British sovereign a beneficial substitution of influence for power. The authority of the King in the work of Government is without a doubt greater than perhaps we think, though with us it is indirect. But

knew nothing. As I looked into that grave and sorrowful face I seemed to see the whole tragedy of war, and in that moment of vision I loved the King.'

“I would pass on to anotner matter. It is often that in a constitutional monarchy the sovereign is a mere figurehead. That is a misconception. Theoretically it may be true that he is debarred from exercising his gifts of wisdom and judgment, and has to be content with merely being the mouth piece of the responsible minister of the Crown for the time being. In the normal course of things I suppose it works out that way. But in politics things are not always normal, and situations may arise, as they have arisen in the present reign, when the responsibility of a British king is very great. Any one with a knowledge of political history in Britain during the last 25 years knows that more than once a dilemma was reached in connection with certain legislative proposals. Controversy was extremely bitter; an impasse was reached; the ship of State was in dangerous waters. And in every case the man of the hour was the King who was not afraid to bring his influence to bear, demoistrating his great wisdom and sagacity. Our King is very wise, very sagacious politically, very astute. Leaders of all parties respect his wisdom and ability, look up to him, refer and defer to him. The King has a real place in the British Constitution.

“One could illustrate at length today the real guidance this King has given his successive Governments in relation to the foreign affairs,” continued Mr Baird. “No man knows better than he the subtleties of the European continent and he has been deeply in the counsels of every cabinet of 25 years on questions of foreign diplomacy. In recent year he has encouraged his ministers in their efforts to stabilise the peace of the world. His spirit is behind that fine idealism which has characterised Britain through all the negotiations for peace in recent times. I have said enough to show that the King has played a great and significant part in the crucial years through which the nation has passed. History will set a great value on his life work. Unity Amidst Diversity. “What a wonderful phenomenon in the world the British Empire is. The remarkable thing is the unity amidst so much diversity. If we were in London to-day and saw the representatives of every part of the Empire assembled, say in St. Paul’s or in the Abbey, one thing would strike us at once—the diversity, diversity of race, of culture, of national traditions. And the remarkable thing is that these peoples of many nations, tribes and tongues are seen to be, and see themselves to be, members of one vast body politic. One sentiment sways them all. One interest possesses them all. One description contains them all. Not less than one-fourth of the human race will be represented at the celebration of the King’s silver jubilee. Great the diversity but one single allegiance. What is it that holds the Empire together? The complete answer to that question could not be simple or brief. The force of imperial cohesion are many and various. But I submit to you to-day that there is one unifying factor which is of great and increasing value. I mean the monarchical sentiment throughout the Empire and its expression in an ardent personal loyalty. The throne is the symbol of Empire. It evokes a great and enthusiastic allegiance which is seen no where in the world besides. It seems to be the destiny of Britain to be a kingdom. And this King by his character and his works has exalted the throne in the nation and in the Empire. He has drawn to himself the loyalty and love of all his peoples and has thereby cemented the bonds of the Empire.

"The close of the Great War witnessed the collapse of many thrones which seemed as secure as the earth itself. Crowns which had symbolised political power and majesty were torn from the heads of kings by frenzied mobs of frenzied revolutionaries. But the close of the Great War witnessed also the throne of this Empire emerging from the blood-red mists of the world conflict enhaloed in a new splendour and buttressed by a popular enthusiasm on foundations more stable and permanent than history has ever known. The historian of the future age will certainly count among the prime reasons for this significant and arresting situation the fact that the King who sat upon the throne throughout these years was King George V. “It is our misfortune at this distance that we cannot feel the personal touch of the King. I have read where he has been described as the very embodiment of honor--, justice, candour, sympathetic understanding. simple fidelity and Christian humility.. With unaffected earrestness 1-e has consistently endeavoured to be forth/ of his Royal office. To-day he has his reward as the peoples of his great wide Empire pour their blessings on his Royal head:—God save the King; Long live the King.” The service was brought to a close .with the hymn "Praise to God Whose Bounteous Hand,” and the Benediction pronounced by the Rev. J. Evans.