AMATEUR CONCERT.

Bruce Herald, Volume III, Issue 58, 18 May 1865, Page 9

AMATEUR CONCERT.

The third amateur concert in aid of the ; building fund of the Church of England Parsonage took place iii Smith and Co.'s Store on : the evening of Wednesday, 10th instant. The i evening was all that could be desired, and the I moonlight was most brilliant. Soon after ' seven o'clock the hall was comfortably filled) ; aboiit two hundred persons being present, in- ; eluding a large number of the Bruce Rifles in ; uniform. The room n r as well lighted, but be- : yond a background of flags on the stage there there was no attempt at decoration. Shortly i after the appointed time, Mrs Peter M'Gill ; took her seat at the pianoforte, and the full strength of the company appeared on the sta^e. The vocalists were Mrs Pettit, Mrs Roskrut>e, Mrs E. T. Gillon, Mr Hardy. Mr Tait, Mr Weidner, Dr Fergiisson, and Mr P. Grant (Conductor). The fine old glee, ' The Red Cross Knight,' was the first piece on the programme, and, allowing for the want of steadiness to be anticipated in the first piece, the way in which it was performed augured Well for what was to follow. Mr Hardy came next with a solo, 'The , Men of Merry England,' and this was followed by the sweet, pretty Echo Duett, which was excellently sung by Mrs Pettit and Mr F. Grant, and narrowly escaped an encore. Mrs Roskruge's solo, ' AuM Robin Grey,' was succeeded by ' The Minute Gun at Sea,' a favorite, duett, which lost none of its beauties in the hands of Messrs Tait and Grant. Mrs E; Gilloh, in the pretty tho' childish solo; 'The Merry Merry Sunshine,'received the first encore of the evening, and responded.^ it by repeating the song, after which the -; quar x tette, rendered so popular by the exquisite \ singing 6f the Christy Minstrels, ' Come where' 1 my Love lies Dreaming,' was sung by Mrs Roskruge, Mrs Pettit, Mr Tait, and Mr Grant;' and, as a matter of course, received the encore which it deserved. Dr Fergusson saiig ' Annie Lisle ' very sWeetly, and in the chorus the voices of the ladies in the distant camp., in with excellent effect. The duett, 'I Know a Bank ' was nicely sung by Mrs Gillon and Mrs Roskruge, although in one or two passages there was a little uncertainty apparent. Mrs Pettit sang ' Ever of Thee * very sweetly, and the first part of the programme concluded with the glee^ ' Lightly tread.' The second part opened with the glee. ' Glorious' Apollo,' in which all the performers' took pait. This was followed by a song which did not appear on the programme, but which, nevertheless, was one of the most amusing in-

cidents of the Evening. Mr J. Hardy appeared; and sang in an admirable manner the following original local song :— (Air— ' King of the Cdhnibtil Islands) I'm asked to sing a song to-night To minister to your delight, And here I am at your service quite; To. sing of Tokbmairirb. When first I saw its ferny hills, Its grassy glades, its crystal rills, It had no houses, roads, or mills, . No churches, doctors' shops, or pills; The men and women were but few, They nothing- of gold-washing knew, , The grubbing- hoe was then ttie 'pugh' First used in Tokomairiro. Chorus. \ The scene is changed, and I maintain, j For gold, for wool, for yellow grain, , 'Tis rightly called ' The Golden Plain ' By all in Tokomairiro. In those old times of which I tell, There's many here who know it well, 270 brcarding-hoiise and no hotel Was known in Tokomairiro. Whene'er we went oht for a spree, Instead of grog we swallowed tea, And Steel-mill flour-made scones had we; And wild pigs from the hill so free ; JBut now, if one wants food and rest, He'll find provisions of the best Where Capstick welcome's 'every guest That comes to Tokomairiro: C?io?'us— Yet steauity, I will maintain; &c. No portly peeler then was seetr, No Court House stood upon the green, No Grovius (you know who I mean) Was Judge in Tokomairiro. No Lawyer 1 Jones (you all know him), . Befoi-e him tongue-banged Henry Pirn, And no J.P. of aspect. grim Abused the lot in language dim', No 'Brucian Herald' then would print The yarn so long, with nothing in't But scandal-^-Gillon,.take a hint, For the sake of Tbkbmairiro. Chorus— -Yet after all, I will maintain; &c. But what to hie mbst strange appears, . (T6 mitigate the people's fears), There's Captain Jones's Volunteers, Who train in' Tokomairiro. They are a sturdy band and "true; Who bbast of Adjutant Perdue, Of gallant Tait, and Marryatt tod; Arid active warriors riot a few ; If Yankeedom should us invade; Bold Jones's banner would be displayed-, And show them of what stuff we're made I'm-sure Would Tokomairiro. Chorus— Yet after all; I will maintain, &c. It is, of coiirse, needless to say that Mr Hardy received a vociferous encore. Mr Grant came next, arid sang the ' Young llecruit' in first-rate style. He appeared in the uniform of the Bruce Rifles, and was rapturously encored; Mr Tait followed in ' Molly Asthore,' after which Mrs Gillon sang < Shells of Ocean ' very nicely. Mrs Pettit sang ' Let me Kiss him fjr his Mother' in an excellent and feeling manner, and was ably supported by the full chorus; Mrs Pettit and Mr Grant simu; the plaintive duett, ' What are the Wild Waves?' in a very pleasing way, and were succeeded by Mrs Koskruge in the beautiful solo, artistically rendered, ' I'll Follow Thee.', lOr Cuicott's well known glee, "'The Friar of Outers Grey,' was, we think, the best performed glee" of the evening, and Mrs Pettit, in the coquettish song, ' A Young Lady's Xo,' sang well, and received a deserved encore. Mr Weidner's fine bass voice told to advantage in the German song, 'Die Fahnenwacht' (Standard Bearer), which was enthusiastically redemarrded; Mrs Roskruge and Mr Tait next sang the duett, ' Tell me where do Fairies Dwell/ in capital style, and Dr Fergusson then struck up the familiar strain of ' Avid Lang Syne, 3 which was chorused by the audience. ' God Save the Quderi' followed, Mrs Pettit, Mrs Roskruge, and Mrs Gillon alternately taking the solo, and all present joining in the chorus. In the course of the evening Mr Tait sang a short original song, com^ posed for the occasion^ and throughout Mr Grant was indefatigable in his exertions as conductor. Mrs M'Gill also added not a little to the success of the entertainment by the admirable way in which the accompaniments were executed, and by the performance of several lively pieces of music in the intervals between the vocal portions of the evening's entertainment. We are sure that all present regretted that there are not more frequent opportunities for passing such a pleasant evening ; and we may add that, as well as being a pleasant evening to all concerned, it was a most profitable One for the object in aid of which the concert was given. The gross proceeds amounted to L3l 14s: The expenses were L 4 12s 3d, leaving a balance in favor of the building fund of L 27 Is 9d.