At the Domain the troops, of which some 5500 were on parade, marched past the saluting base, Colonel H. R. Potter, C.M.G., officer commanding the district, taking the salute. At the conclusion of the military function the Deputy-Mayor (Mr. A. J. Entrican) read the King’s message, after which a salute of twenty-one guns was fired. The returned soldiers were then entertained to lunch by the Peace Celebrations Committee.
At night the city was transformed into a carnival. Bonfires were lit, and the spirit of revelry was abroad, but owing to the coal shortage only limited illuminations were permitted.
The welcome accorded to the soldiers returning to New Zealand after hostilities had ceased was usually of a private character, being confined to relatives. The civic heads and other officials were present, and on behalf of the citizens welcomed the soldiers home. An exception to this, however, was made on the return of the Maori Battalion, numbering 1000 strong, on April 6th, 1919. The occasion was made a great festival by the natives, and representatives from every tribe in New Zealand were congregated at Auckland to take part in the welcome, which was conducted in accordance with Maori custom. The gathering was held in the Auckland Domain, and the day being a Sunday a great assemblage of the public collected there to take part in the welcome home. It was the greatest Maori ceremonial gathering which had been held in New Zealand since the Maori ceremonies attending the visit to Rotorua of the Duke and Duchess of York, in 1901. Native dances were performed, and speeches of welcome made by the chiefs of the various tribes. On behalf of the white people of New Zealand, the Maori soldiers were welcomed home by Sir James Allen, Minister for Defence, Mr. J. H. Gunson, Mayor of Auckland, Hon. Sir James Carroll, K.C.M.G., M.P., and others. After the formal reception, the Maoris partook of a feast in native fashion.
Shortly after the conclusion of hostilities a French mission, representative of the national, economic and commercial interests of France, with General Pau, the famous soldier, who had served in the war, at its head, visited New Zealand, and arrived at Auckland on December 27th, 1918. The object of the visit was to thank the Government and people for the services rendered by New Zealand in the war, and to study how inter-commercial relations could be extended. On the mission’s return to Auckland from the South, the members were accorded a civic reception on January 24th, the Mayor (Mr. J. H. Gunson) presiding.
During 1919 and 1920 two distinguished soldiers, who were intimately connected with the New Zealand forces which had served overseas, were given cordial welcome to Auckland. The first to arrive in the city was Brigadier-General G. S. Richardson, who had held the position of Commandant of the New Zealand Forces in England, during the period that the New Zealanders served in France. He reached Auckland on May 5th, 1919, and his reception was in the nature of a welcome home, as he had been connected with the New Zealand Forces for many years before the outbreak of hostilities.
General Sir William Riddell Birdwood, who commanded the Australian and New Zealand Division on Gallipoli, and gained a great reputation among the troops under his care, arrived in Auckland on July 6th, 1920. He was given an enthusiastic reception by returned soldiers and the general public. The city tendered him a reception at the Town Hall, at which the Mayor (Mr. J. H. Gunson) again presided.
The Soldiers’ Club was opened on September 13th, 1915, in rooms of the Y.M.C.A., which were loaned by the directors. As larger numbers of repatriated soldiers came back to Auckland, the accommodation at the Y.M.C.A. became insufficient, and new premises for the club were found in Albert Street, which were opened on 20th October, 1920.
The most serious epidemic of disease ever experienced in Auckland was the outbreak of influenza, which occurred in October, 1918. The account of the epidemic given in the “Auckland and Charitable Aid Board: a History” is the best account the writer has seen, and he therefore makes no apology for quoting from it. “Influenza in a somewhat unusual form was prevalent in the city from the early part of October ... but the worst phases dated from a fortnight after the arrival of the R.M.S. Niagara from Vancouver, on the 12th of the month.... On the berthing of the vessel in Auckland, twenty-eight men were removed to the Hospital and placed in an isolation ward. Within a few days the disease was communicated to members of the Hospital staff. Simultaneously it spread to the community.... The insufficiency of the ordinary hospital accommodation to meet the demands of such an extraordinary emergency were early apparent. Temporary hospitals were accordingly established at the Seddon Memorial Technical College, “Kilbryde” (Point Resolution), the Sailors’ Home, the Avondale racecourse buildings, Myers Kindergarten, the Y.W.C.A. hostel, Vermont Street schools, and St. Joseph’s schoolroom, Grey Lynn. The Auckland Racing Club’s buildings at Ellerslie were converted into a temporary convalescent home.... Rigorous measures were taken at the beginning of November to limit the spread of the disease. Business in the city was brought almost to a standstill. Places of amusement and worship, banks, schools, hotel bars, and many warehouses were closed; public meetings ... were forbidden; such facilities as the telegraphic, telephonic, railway and shipping services were curtailed, and all classes of the community united in the supreme work of meeting [combating] the scourge.... The visitation was at its height in the first two weeks of November.... By the middle of November it was evident that the progress of the disease had been stayed, and from that time onward it gradually diminished in severity until by the end of the month only isolated cases remained.”
The official statistics of the deaths for the Auckland registration district during the period of the epidemic was 1013, or 7.57 per thousand of the population. The largest number of deaths recorded in one day was 56.