Lögberg-Heimskringla - 27.08.1970, Blaðsíða 4

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LÖGBERG-HEIMSKRINGLA, FIMMTUDAGINN 27. ÁGÚST 1970
Lögberg-Heimskringla
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A Toast To Canada
Delivered by his Honor, Richard S. Bowles Ihe Lieuienant-
Governor of Maniioba ai ihe Icelandic Festival ai Gimli,
Augusl
You invite me to propose
the toast to “Canada” at this
annual gathering because, of
course, I occupy at this point
of time — the high office of
Lieutenant-Govemor of Mani-
toba — and in this year of
Manitoba’s centenary it is fitt-
ing that such be done by that
office. But I would be less
than frank with you if I did
not confess my personal de-
light in being here and the
pleasure your invitation gives
me as an individual, apart
from my official capacity.
I am particularly happy to
be with you on the same oc-
casion as you welcome the
distinguished ambassador of
Iceland to Canada, His Excel-
lency Magnus V. Magnusson.
I remind him that he is one
of a long line of distinguished
Icelandic ambassadorial ap-
pointments, all men of great
human understanding, keenly
perceptive and altogether de-
lightful companions. His pre-
decessors have won our re-
spect and affection both for
themselves and their country.
So while His Excellency may
feel that he comes as a strang-
er, let me assure him that we
feel he comes as a welcome
member of the family. I look
forward to listening to him
propose the toast to Iceland
though I confess that my Ice-
landic is not what it would
have been had that former
Prime Minister of Canada,
Lester Pearson, carried out
his suggestion to abolish both
English and French as official
languages and establish Ice-
landic. He expected to cut in
half the debating time in the
commons.
It is to be expected that
any toast to Canada will have
words of praise for our coun-
try and our Canadian people.
On such a subject, praise
might sound better from the
lips of a non-Canadian. Per-
haps His Excellency should
spea'k to the toast to Canada
and I to the toast to Iceland.
For I could speak so fittingly
of the magnificent Icelandic
people who have made such
an outstanding contribution
3., 1970.
to Manitoba and Canada. And
while every Canadian may
have his own explanation of
why Icelanders are so pro-
minent in our province and
so successful in its business,
government and professional
affairs, all agree that one rea-
son is that they are people
who respect the art of learn-
ing. The Icelander is a man
of the mind. A man who
thinks. A man who ils trained
to think, and a man who re-
spects the virtue and creativ-
ity of other minds irrespective
of national or racial origin.
For no race or nation has
any monopoly on the search
for or the discovery of truth
— but Icelanders, each and
every one, are men who be-
lieve and practice the art of
the exercise of the mind, and
who sit at the feet of leam-
ing, wisdom and understand-
ing.
Not only are our Manito-
bans of Icelandic descent
"thinkers" they are also
"do'ers". T h o u g h t withoutí
action is not enough. So we
find them leaders in every
profession and every field of
community, govemment and
business enterprise. I submit
that when we find people who
ihink and ihen who act we
have found people who care.
And I suppose that two rea-
sons they care (that is, that
they are concemed about
others) are that every Ice-
lander has the heart of a
poet and is sensitive to the
pain of being a man.
And the other, that life was
not always easy for our early
Icelanders. When we read of
the hardships they faced with
such fortitude and the trials
they endured and the difficul-
ties they overcame' we wonder
if today we could equal them
were we subject to such a
severe testing.
If, as Seneca said, “The Gods
are only happy when they see
great men contending with
adversity,” then surely they
must have been delighted by
the struggles of our early
Icelanders.
But triumph they did and
they and their descendants
have woven into the fabric of
Canadian life the great vir-
tues of their national charac-
ter. For in this our land of
Canada, they found opportun-
ity. In that, the Icelander is
exactly the same as the Engl-
ish, the Scots, the Irish, the
French, the Ukrainian, the
German, eaeh found oppor-
tunity. And each seized op-
portunity to make a better
life.
My toast to Canada, then,
is really a toast to the land
that gave us a chance and to
our pioneers who seized that
chance to make a better life.
We Canadians ought recog-
nize those things which have
made us what we are and to
dedicate ourselves to those
things which will make us
what we want to be.
For our present well being
we ought not assume too
much credit to ourselves. We
are the inheritors of spiritual
insight whose sources rise in
the e a r 1 y Judiac-Christian
world. We are the benefici-
aries of the intellectual and
artistic riches fashioned in
early Greece and Rome. We
have been taught the skills,
crafts and knowledge bom
and nurtured in older civiliza-
tions and older nations with-
out which we could not enjoy
life as we know it today. We
here inherit a land of great
future from those who toiled
and s a v e d, sacrificed and
struggled to tame a wilder-
ness. Here they came to make
a new life and here to wrest
a better living from this rich
earth. Many came to a new
language and new customs,
forsaking the familiarity, sec-
urity and cömfort of the old,
here to face a greater chal-
íenge and here to share a
higher hope.
We cherish the infinite
variety brought by all our dif-
ferent ethnic groups that
make Canada the vigorous
country it is today.
Then in a toast to Canada
we ought remember the men
and women who left us for
a greater cause, those who
shall not grow old as we who
are left grow old, neither
shall age weary them, nor the
years condemn and at the go-
ing down of the sun and in
the morning we shall honor
and remember them.
For all, we are indebted to
those others in other lands
whose mind and work created
the greatness of the spiritual,
cultural and material heritage
we have adopted as our own;
and for what our fathers did
for us we should take no
credit to ourselves but re-
member and give thanks.
For I am persuaded that
Canada is smiled upon by
fortune and touched by the
hands of a greater destiny.
We are blessed with good
neighbors.
We are granted a bountiful
land stocked with the riches
and resources of an abundant
providence.
To whom much is given of
him is much expected. As we
move from this first to our
second century as a great pro-
vince in a great nation may
we speak in unity and in
strength.
That we may eam and keep
the respect of our sister
nations.
That we may not live for
ourselves alone.
That we may discharge our
responsibilities in this ’tvorld
of which we are a little part.
And that whether we be
English speaking Canadians,
French speaking Canadians,
Icelandic speaking Canadians
or newer Canadians of other
mother tongues, we speak as
one in heart; tha-t the scrip-
ture may be fulfilled that
"the laller splendour of this
house shall be "greater than
the former."
I propose the toast,
"Canada our country".
An Address
Delivered by Hon. Philip M. Petursson, Minister of Cultural
Affairs, Province of Manitoba at The Icelandic Festival
at Gimli, Aug. 3, 1970.
It has fallen to my happy
lot to appear here in behalf
of the Premier of the Pro ■
vince of Manitoba to bring
you his greetings and good
wishes on this 81st successive
festival sponsored by the Ice-
landic community in Mani-
toba.
The Premier is occupied with
the meeting of the Provincial
Premiers, which is being held
here during this particular
week-end and will continue
until Tuesday. The Provincial
Premiers will be discussing
problems common to them all,
and will be seeking to estab-
lish, even more firmly than
before, the common relation-
ships of all the provinces to
one another, and to the Fed-
eral Government. Mr. Schrey-
er, as host to that gathering
of Provincial Premiers, finds
that that is where his duty
lies today, not only to act as
host of this meeting, but also
to be able to be there to pre-
sent the views and the posi-
tion of Manitoba in inter-pro-
vincial and federal affairs. It
is an obligation that he could
not do otherwise than accept.
Hence, he called upon me to
take his place on this occasion
and bring you his greetings
and his good wishes.
This festival is one of many
being held throughout the
Province during this Centen-
nial year. But it is worthy of
note that this festival is of
the longest-standing of any of
the festivals that are being
held. Of all the ethnic or na-
tional festivals, this one has
had the longest continuous
history. This particular festi-
val being the 81st that has
been held in this Province, I
know that the Premier would
have given special recognition
to that fact.
He would have also given
recognition to the fact that of
the 100 years of the existence
of this Province as a part of
Canada, the destiny of the
Icelandic people here in the
Province has covered 95 years
of that period. Manitoba had
been in existence for 5 years
when the Icelandic people
settled here. Hence, 5 years
from now, the Centennial of
the Icelandic settlement on
the shores of Lake Winnipeg,
upon the very spot on which
we meet today, will be cele-
brated. This is a fact that will,
without doubt, be referred to
repeatedly during the coming
days. It is a fact that we, as
people of Icelandic back-
ground and origin, must pre-
pare to observe in a fitting
manner. I am sure that the
Premier would give such an
observance, and preparation
for it, every encouragement
and recognition.
In that certainty, I bring
you his greetmgs and his tes-
timony that we, and our fore-
bears, have proven to be
worthy citizens of a great
land.
Kæru vinir:
Að svo sögðu vil ég leyfa
mér að bæta örfáum orðum
á íslenzku við það, sem ég
hefi flutt á enskri tungu, í
virðingarskyni við hina góðu
gesti, sem hér eru staddir og
við alla Islendinga, sem hér
eru staddir á þessum sögulega
stað, og á þessum sögulegu
tímamótum.
Eins og ég gat um, var for-
sætisráðherranum það ómögu-
legt að vera hér í dag, vegna
annara embættisverka, og fól
hann því mér að f 1 y t j a
sínar kveðjur við þetta tæki-
færi og óska öllum hér stödd-
um allra heilla. Hann þekkir
sögu íslendinga í þessu fylki
frá fyrstu tíð og ber þeim
mikinn virðingarhug.
En um leið að ég flyt kveðju
herra forsætisráðherrans, vil
ég leyfa mér að bera hér fram
kveðju frá sjálfum mér, sem
fyrrverandi forseti Þjóðrækn-
isfélagsins, og með því, þakka
öllum sem þátt hafa tekið í
samvinnu og samtökum í þágu
íslenzkra mála, hvort sem hef-
ur verið á liðinni tíð eða á
nýafstöðnum dögum — og
þeir eru margir. — Og ekki
sízt vildi ég nefna þá sem
hafa séð um undirbúning og
framkvæmdir í sambandi við