Mayor’s chain lost and found

THERE was a rumour in town last week. It was that the Mayoral Chain of Office was missing, or had been mislaid, or had been stolen. But it would appear that it was simply a matter of one hand not knowing what the other was doing, because the chain was actually in the possession of Werndle Jewellers, to which it had been delivered for engraving.

The rumour was a nasty shock for anyone who cares for the history of Vryheid/AbaQulusi. The chain’s loss would have been each and every resident’s loss because the chain belongs not to the mayors, not to the councils, but to the people of this municipality.

The chain was donated to the town by a Dr John A Kennedy in June 1925. Dr Kennedy is buried in Vryheid cemetery, dying in 1930. The chain is engraved to the effect that Dr Kennedy donated the chain to the town in June 1925 to commemorate the visit of the Prince of Wales to Vryheid.

Edward, the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII and then the Duke of Windsor), toured South Africa in 1925. His Natal leg of the tour ended in Vryheid on June 13, 1925, and it was here that he said,

“In this last town at which I set foot in Natal I want to say how grateful I am to the people of this province for the warm-hearted reception they have given me throughout. It has been a most interesting visit, of which I shall always cherish happy memories.”

The chain is a reminder of that event and of Vryheid’s history. It should never be lost.