THE LATE MR MASSEY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19346, 27 June 1925, Page 4

THE LATE MR MASSEY

PARLIAMENT’S TRIBUTE FINE EULOGY BY AIR COATES TRIBUTES BY MEMBERS (Per Press WELLINGTON, June Tn the House of Representatives yesterday, at the close of formal business the Prime Minister rose and moved: ‘ I hat this House desires to place on record its high sense of the devoted and distinguished services rendered to New Zealand and to the Empire bv the late Prime Alinister, the Right Hon. Wm. Ferguson Alassey, P.C., LL. D, and of the great loss the Dominion has sustained by his death and respectfully tenders to Airs Alassey and her family the assurance of its sincere sympathy with thorn in their bereavement.”

Asking the House to agree to the motion, Air Coates said: Tn Mr Alassey’s death the Dominion of New Zealand has lost its most honoured statesman ami the Empire one of its most devoted sons. Each of us will bear in gratclul memory his manly, straightforward and unselfish course of conduct in public life and his contempt for mean practices and devious wavs. His career, if it reflects anything at all, gives an annihilating answer to those trickvminded people with the demoralising gospel that, wiliness and r.rtifice ar-' the soundest passports to public confidcn.From the day ho entered Parliament till he died, no suspicion of bctraval of public interest was ever attached ‘to his name. He leaves behind him an unblemished record as a plain simple man who saw his duty clearly and did it fearlessly. He was as free from exultation in success as ho had been undaunted by adversity, and so ho gained and kept to the end the complete trust and confidence of all his followers. He had a firm faith in God and the Biitish Empire and was an Imperial]. ! through and through. In the limo of the Empire’s greatest danger h< had those in valuable qualities of fixed and immovable principles and unshakable determination to see the trouble through and an iron will. He believed that*:: was more vital for the Empire to be one than for the Dominions to be independent nations and ho said so at the time when it required courage to say it. Ihe Empire will long cherish his memory and will miss his rock-like firmness and faith. Tn Parliament, we shall always remember our personal association with the cheerful, happv. unassuming life of that great, kindiv man, staunch friend to his friends and without malice against his opponents. Among the thousands of messages received on the occasion of his demise, may I place on record that which came from the Prime Alinister of Great Britain, Mr Stanley Baldwin.

Ihis is neither the time nor place Io attempt to review the splendid record of Mr Alassey’s public service, e may have no misgivings that the historian of the future will assign tc our late departed ‘leader the true appraisement of the magnificent work performed by him during the stressful years of his Premiership. His cour ageous and virile leadership of the Dominion throughout the critical days of the Great War. his capable handling ol many difficult problems of the postwar period and the innumerable examples of humanitarian and social legislation which our Statute Book so eloquently bears testimony to, will all stand as monuments to the manliness and human side of this great man’s nature. As a Parliamentarian he was probably unequalled in our time and his death has left a gap in our official life that will be hard to fill Let us look for inspiration in the pt : formance of our public duty to the hi;*h and lofty principles that ever actuat- * 1 him who has gone, and may they : : ways serve as a guide tor the rim : and honest conduct of ouf public afl’;::. We who to-day feel his loss so acu; ly extend to his bereaved widow a. I

family, who are suffering heavier ; sonal grief, our heartfelt sympathy their sorrow. His virtues arc we ! scribed and sung by the poet in

following lines: “A man whom the lust of office .. not kill, * A man whom the spoils of office co’J i not buy. A man who possessed opinions and a will, A man who had honour, and would not lie— A big man, sun crowned, who lived above the fog In public duty ami in private thinking.” AIR WILFORD. Air Wilford, in seconding the moncn. said that during the 25 years in whi h he had sat in the House in opposition to Air Alassey he had many opportunities of bearing out what the Prime Alinister had said in moving the motion. On the day after Air Massey’s death he (Air Witford) had written his tribute to ihe late leader of the Government which had been published by most of the papers throughout the Dominion and he felt he, could do nothing better on this occasion than to again place on record what he then wrote as he could add nothing to it now. MR HOLLAND. Mr Holland, in supporting the motion, said he wished to join with the Prime Alinister and the Leader of the Opposition in extending 1o the relatives of the late Air Alassey his personal sympathy and that of thn par*. • of which he was leader. He wished to repeat what he said in his telegram 1 •» Sir Francis Bell at the time of Mr Alassey’s death and to again emphasise the fact that once the late Prime Minister had given his word there was never any departure from it. Although he always was an uncompromising opponent of what Labour stood for and a’ though politically they were as wide r the poles as under they had reached that stage in the conduct of Parliamentary business when they could rely on the word of Air Alassey absolutely, and for that great virtue they valued him. Timo like an ever rolling stream bears all its sons away, and standing, as it were at his open grave, they wished to join with all other sections of the community in extending to the relatives of the late Air Massey heartfelt sympathy with them in the hour of their affliction. After a number of other members had spoken, the Prime Afinister’s motion was carried and the House ad journed till 7.30 p.m. on Alonday as n mark of respect to the memory of the deceased statesman.