THE MANAWATU SHOW.

Evening Post, Volume LXIV, Issue 119, 15 November 1902, Page 6 (Supplement)

THE MANAWATU SHOW.

THIRD AND FINAL DAY. (By Our Special Reporters.) PALMERSTON JS T ., Friday. There was an enormous gathering in the association's grounds this afternoon. It was astonishing where the people came from. But tnere they were, representative of all classes — the cockatoo farmer, the big squatter, citizen, settler, and tradesman, and their womenkind. The d,ay could not have been improved upon for the occasion. The brisk, warm wind which blew in the early morning had practically expended itseli by noon, and a dull sky served as a sunshade. The programme was confined solely to ring events, practically all the judging having been disposed of on the previous days. None of the stock, however, was permitted to leave the pens until the close of the show, and the exhibits were subject to inspection as they stood in their stalls ana pens. There were plenty of other attractions, about the grounds for sightseers. The Palmerston Band provided the musical programme, and in odd corners were to be found "cheapjacks" and showmen of various descriptions, merry-go-rounds, shooting-galleries, and itinerant photographers ready " for a trifle to "snapshot" any one who came along. The booths, ' luncheon and otherwise, appeared to do a roaring business, and the representatives of machinery, vehicles, and industries pushed trade with a fair measure of success, judging by the number of articles placarded as "sold." At 2 p.m. the great parade took place in the show-ring. I'ne grounds and stands were crowded with spectators at this time, and considerable interest was shown in the parade. First the cattle were walked out, winners leading ; then the horses — one of the finest shows, especially draughts, seen here; and finally the vehicles of all classes concerned in the driving competitions were driven round. A motor-car ran a solitary tiip to show its paces, and finally two sections of the Hawkes Bay Mounted Rifles gave an exhibition of riding and hurdling, including a feak by which a member rode one horse and led four others across jumps. Summing up the show as a whole, it must be pronounced to have been quite as successful in all respects as that of last year. The three days' experiment, which has now had a two .years' trial, has certainly realised the best anticipations, and mos>t of those who pxognosticated that the district could not stand it admit that they misjudged things. The stock shown this year certainly exhibited no signs of deterioration. The quality of some of it astonished visitors. The turn-out of horseflesh was almost remarkable. It had been said with respect to hacks that the district had been depleted of good hacks through the extensive purchases made during the late war, but the show in numbers and quality made in yesterday's parade was a sufficient answer. The idea of having competitive ring events on each of the three days was a happy one, and is calculated to help swell the annual receipts of the association. Had the first day been a fine one, it is- certain that the gate takings would have been large, for the military contests and dog trials were very interesting. Wet and disagreeable as the weather was, the gate takings were about equal to those of last year. The new exhibition hall proved exceedingly serviceable, and will be more so as time goes on and additions are made. The exhibits- in the various departments relegated to the hall were, as a whole, in advance of previous years, and may reasonably be expected to increase as time goes on. There are, .however, several classes which require working up, such, for instance, as cheese (in which this year there was absplutely no competition, although there are dozens of factories within easy reach), hams and bacon (only two competitors), farm produce (one exhibitor), etc. Visitors to the show from the South Island, from Australia, and from England all agreed in their praise of its highly . interesting nature. An English critic declared that the Palmerston show this year compared mos>t favourably with the shows of Great Britain. This critic was a military gentleman, and therefore was particularly interested ia the exhibition of horses. He admitted that he was "a bit disappointed" in the horses, because the weight-carrying hacks were not as massive in build as those he had been used to seeing in the Old Country. He would like to have seen more horses of the "charger" bpeod. To which a New Zealander replied, "Ah, but, you see, our lighter horses do all the work required of them just as effectively as your English chargers." And the Englishman agreed that he had observed that fact, and had been not a little astonished. The South Island and the Australian critics said that lie Palmerston show was made much more interesting for the general public owing to the ring competitions. "la fact," added our visitor, "i? is necessary to spend Thursday looking at the stock, so as to be free on Friday to look at the ring events. The perennial complaint of visitors from Wellington is that the mosb exciting ring competitions — the jumping for the Hunters' Challenge Cup and the woodchopping' contest — do not come off until after Wellingtonians have run away to catch the mail train. This is a grievance which the management should, by a little application of thought, be able to remove The takings for the three days amounted to £1210 13s, of which over £800 was taken to-day. The members of the Palmerston Fire Brigade Ambulance Association were in attendance on each day of the show, ready to lend aid in case of accident, but the mishaps were confined to "spills," and their services were jiot required. • In concluding the review of the show" of 1903, your representatives may be permitted to express their thanks to the officers of the Manawatu Association, the President (Mr. H. Gillies) and Secretary (Mr. J. C. Lane) in particular, for their assistance during a busy time. There was an unusually strong gallery of pressmen in attendance this year — over twenty — whd worked amicably with the officials, and were exceedingly pleased at the excellent accommodation which the association has now given them. THE RING COMPETITIONS. The greatest possible „ amount of interest was taken by the enormous crowd it) the ring events during the day, and thunderous applause greeted every bright piece of horsemanshp. .Shouts of laughter was the reward -oi the several horsemen who failed to clear the water-jump. The tandem-driving was of uneven quality. The winner, H. G. M'Carty, covered the figure-eight-shaped 270-yards course in 60sec. L. G-. West, who was second, also covered the course in one minute, but did not drive with his u.sual skill. There was a large entry for the driving competition, single horse or pony, and some fckilled woik was shown by J. D. Manson, 51sec) and E. Stevenson (51sec), who were awarded first and second places respectively. The leaping competition for ponies was ono of the mo&t interesting of the day's events. The large number of lads who took part in the contest were as keen in going for the jumps as the ponies, and some really good riding and jumping was shown. The result was— Frank Taferta's Grey Bob 1, W. H. Hartgill's John Bull 2, M. C. Symons' 3, K. Hankins' Huhia 4. There were numerous entries for the prizes for the best lady driver. Mrs.

James M'Kelvie (Feilding) won the event, with Mrs. Allan Strang (Palmerston) second, Mrs. F. S. M'Rae (Palmerston} third, Miss Blanche Robertson (Awahuri) fourth, and Miss Hilary Maunder (Marton) fifth. The usual grand parade of all cattle and horses in competition and on exhibition afforded an unusually interesting spectacle, the very fine quality of the animals winning applause and praise from competent critics. The parade was followed by a really fine exhibition of riding and jumping in sections of four by a squad of the Hawkes Bay Mounted Rifles. Then came the event of the day — the hunters' competition. The fate of the 30-guinea Challenge Cup, wbich was presented by the ladies of the Mana-wafeu and Rangitikei districts, ,hung in the balance. Three wins secures the cup, and Mrs. Sunderland's The Sinner had two wins to his credit, having won the event in 1890 and 1901. The Sinner competed yesterday, and though he jumped well, he was outclassed. There were 31 competitors, and some of tfie jumping was magnificent. James Coombes, of Feilding, won the event on his own- horse Duchess, the contest between Duchess and H. Hastall's Pickpocket (ridden by Julianson), which was placed second, being so close that the two horses had to be sent over the course three times before the decision was made. The third place was secured! by G. Riddiford's Black Watch, ridden by N. Wilson. The last event of all was the woodchopping competition, which was held under the rules of the New Zealand Axemen's Association. Six expert axemen, who had taken part in the Eltham contest last week, turned out for the event. Charlie Hutton, of Eltham, who won the event at last year's show, made the chips fly from the start, but H. Mitchell, of Normanby, got through his log. first, and won the £15 in smin 15sec. The second prize (£6) went to Hutton, the third (£3) to Goold, of Normanby, and the fourth (£1) to Casey, of Normanby. MISCELLANEOUS. The prize of £3 3s given by Messrs. Fitdes, Mitchell, and Co., of \Vellington. for dressed flax was won by W. Adams, Blenheim, Pascal Brothers, of Oroua Bridge, being second, and Liversay, Poppelwell and Co., of Waipukurau, third. Mr. John Newton and Son's trophy for most points in the sections for homemade bread, scones, and sweet cakes, was carried off by Mrs. G. T. Woodroofe, jun. Special prizes were giveij to Convent school pupils competing with adults in the fancy work classes, Miss Greta. Meehan getting a first for lacework, and Miss Muriel Hodgins for drawn thread work. Second honours in some of the saddle hor,«e events were gained by Wellington competitors. Lady Constance Knox's Bruno, for instance, was the runner-up in the light-weigJit hack competition, Mr. J. F. Mills's Rufus took second in weight-carrying cobs, and Miss Ethel Bannister's Pvavenswood. for lady's hack. I '