ZEALAND TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

37

A.—No. 1.

her royal love and protection for you; it will not be long before lie arrives. O, my friends, I prav that peace may grow in this land like the everlasting green of your native forests, and I pray that God will ever pour His choicest blessings on you all.

Address from the Municipality of Kaiapoi. To His Excellency Sir Georue Ferguson Bowen, Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over Her Majesty's Colony of New Zealand and its Dependencies, and \ ice-Admiral of the same. We, the Mayor and Councillors of the Borough of Kaiapoi, beg to take this opportunity of your Excellency's first visit to the Province of Canterbury to express on behalf of ourselves and burgesses our hearty congratulations and welcome. We beg to assure your Excellency that our loyalty and attachment to the throne of our beloved Queen, of whom you are the chosen Representative, are most hearty and sincere. We trust that your Excellency's visit to this portion of the Colony may be accompanied with much pleasure and satisfaction as to its progress and welfare, and hope that your great abilities and wise administration may be long continued for the benefit of ourselves and the rest of Her Majesty's subjects.

His Excellency's Reply. To the Mayor and Corporation of Kaiapoi,—■ I have already received so many addresses of welcome since my arrival in this Province that it is somewhat difficult for me to vary the expression of my thanks for the loyal spirit in which they are all conceived towards our gracious and beloved Queen, and for the kindly feeling which they all evince towards my family and myself. Permit me to say that I am much gratified by the particularly English aspect of your district, and of Canterbury generally. It reminds me of a midland county in old England. And yet only twenty years ago, solitude reigned over the spot where your prosperous homesteads stand, while the land around them, now the scene of your busy industry, and rich with the promise of an abundant harvest, lay waste and silent. I rejoice to observe growing up he^e, by the side of and in cordial harmony with the pastoral settlers (who have done so much for the exploration and improvement: of the country), a " territorial democracy" (to quote the apt phrase of one of the most brilliant of English statesmen), bound over to the cause of order and good government by that heavy recognizance, the ownership of land. The valuable properties of prudence and moderation are usually fostered by the possession of fixed property, however small, and by that independence which is the legitimate reward of honorable industry.

Address from the Inhabitants of Rangiora. Her Majesty's loyal and faithful subjects of Rangiora and its neighbourhood, desire to express their sense of the honour conferred upon them by your Excellency's brief visit. They are grateful to your Excellency for affording them an opportunity, the first which has yet occurred, enabling them to give expression to their attachment to Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen, and their respect and esteem for your Excellency. They trust that under your wise and impartial Government the troubles which exist in portions of the North Island may soon be terminated, and that not only a profound peace be established but a cordial unity of the races be brought about. They feel confident that your Excellency's visit to the outlying districts of the Province may be accepted as evidence of the great concern on the part of your Excellency for their requirements. They sincerely trust, that on the occasion of your Excellency's next visit to the Province, they may have the gratification of offering a hearty welcome to Lady Bowen.

His Excellency's Reply. Mr. Brown, and Gentlemen of Bangioba, — I thank the inhabitants of'Rangiora and its neighbourhood for this expression of their loyal attachment to the Queen, and their goodwill to myself as Her Majesty's Representative. I assure you that you only do me justice in attributing to me the most.sincerc and abiding interest in every portion of this Colony. As the Crown has been described as the golden symbol of the unity of the Empire, so the Governor may be described as a bond of union beween the different races, classes, and districts of the country over which he presides. The friendly relations which you maintain with your Maori neighbours are very honorable to you. I earnestly hope with you, that, by the blessing of Providence peace may be restored in the North Island, and that there, as here, a cordial understanding between both races may ultimately be established. In conclusion, gentlemen, I again thank you for your loyal address, and for your hearty welcome.

Addhess from the Bishop and Clergy of the Diocese of Christchurcii. To His Excellency Sir George Ferguson Bowen, Knight of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George, Governor and Commander-in-Chief in and over the Islands! of New Zealand. May it please Your Excellency,— On behalf of the Bishop and Clergy of the Diocese of Christchurcii, and of the branch of the United Church of England and Ireland in New Zealand, we desire to give your Excellency a hearty welcome on the occasion of jour first visit to the Province of Canterbury. We welcome you amongst us as the Representative of our Sovereign Lady the Queen, whom, in common with our fellowsubjects in all her wide-spread dominions, we venerate with an enthusiastic loyalty, and on whom we fervently pray that our Heavenly Father may be pleased to bestow health and long life, and the continuance of those many blessings which have hitherto made her people happy, and her reign 10