SECOND RACE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 19, 23 January 1937, Page 18

SECOND RACE DAY

CROWDS AT TRENTHAM

CONSERVATIVE MANKIND

On the first day of the Wellington Racing: Club's Summer Meeting at Trentham a well-known Wellington citizen aroused a good deal of interest by appearing in a dove grey bowler hat, which he wore with a matching grey suit. Now if a woman appears at the races in a particularly unusual and becoming hat it may be confidently expected that numbers of similar hats will be seen at the very next day of the meeting—even though it occurs as soon as the following day. But (alas for conservative mankind!) even with a whole day intervening the same gentleman was still the only wearer of a grey bowler at the races yesterday. However, perhaps next spring. . . . It is not often hats come in for quite so much attention as they did yesterday at the races. With the blustery wind that prevailed they became the quite

unrivalled problem of the day. A few | women thought of the ingenious plan of wearing their hat elastic, intended to be worn under their hair, under their chins, but the great majority w.ent all day clutching their hats to their heads. Occasionally, when someone let go, her hat would escape and become the cynosure of all eyes as it sailed and gyrated through the air.

Apparently, however, it takes a great deal more than boisterous weather to affect the attendance of a race meeting, and yesterday being a public holiday, there was a particularly large crowd at Trentham. What was more, in spite of the wind everyone was in holiday moqd. Plenty of sunshine helped to make the wind more bearable, and the Port Nicholson Silver Band played bright music all day. His Excellency the Governor-General, accompanied by Sir Standish O'Grady Roche, Captain Stuart French, Major and Mrs. Arthur Purvis, and Captain and Mrs. Bradish - Ellames, attended, and was received by the president (Mr. Eric Riddiford) and Mrs. Riddiford. A smart black" and white ensemble and a wide black straw boater hat were worn by Mrs. Riddiford.

The frocking was somewhat nondescript, although there were quite a number of very smart ensembles. Pleating was much in favour. Mrs. Hellenthal, wife of the German Consul, was wearing a very smart navy blue wool georgette frock and short cape, with inchwide knife pleating forming a wide border on the cape and let into the skirt. Her hat was a shallow navy blue grosgrain straw bowler, and had a bow of navy blue net at the back and a ribbon rosette in front. She completed the ensemble with navy blue gloves, a white handbag, navy blue and white shoes, and a red, white, and blue posy. Another whose frock and coat featured inch-wide knife pleating was Mrs. Lan Reid. She was dressed all in cyclamen wool mar.ocain with a hat made of the same material. The frock had an almost entirely pleated skirt, and the fingerlength coat was pleated from the shoulder yoke, and pleating outlined the neckline. Wide bands of light brown fox fur edged the'sleeves. Her hat was very quaint, being made in skull-cap fashion with a stitched triangular piece attached, the base forming a brim, and a long bluish cyclamen quill stood straight up on one side. Mrs. Goff Thorne-George was wearing an attractive figured silk crepe skirt and coat. It was navy blue patterned with tiny white birds, and with it she wore an oyster figured crepe jumper blouse and a small navy blue felt hat. Her sister, Mrs. J. Saunders, was dressed in, a smart biscuit and brown check tailored coat and skirt, and her upturned stitched hat and her high-necked blouse were of heavy brown satin. A beautiful shade of pale hyacinth blue was worn by Lady Waleran. The coat, which was worn over a dress of the same colour, had a yoke collar and pockets of crosswise stitched wide knife pleats, and her hat was a tiny angora felt toque to match with a yellow quill on one side. There was a very large gathering for luncheon in th& stewards' luncheon room. Mr. and Mrs. Riddiford's guests were his Excellency, Major and Mrs.

Purvis, Sir Standish Roche, Captain Stuart French, Colonel Skeffington Smyth, Colonel Morrison Bell, Captain and Mrs. Bradish Ellames, Generaj Sir Norman MacMullen, the Rt. Hon. Sir Michael and Lady Myers, Lord and Lady Waleran, Mr. Abbott, Mr. and Mrs. T. H. Lowry, Mrs. Chapman, Mr. J. S. and Miss McLeod, Mr. A. S. Elworthy, Mr. and Mrs. G. M. Currie, Mr. and Mrs. E. J. Watt, Lord Balfour, Wing-Commander the Hon. R. A. Cochrane, Senator the Hon. A. J. and Mrs. McLachlan. Dr. and Mrs. Nigel Smith, Mr. McMillan, Miss Handyside, and Mr. and Mrs. Gaisford. Those entertained by the vice-presi-dent, Mr. C. W. Tringham, and Mrs. Tringham were Captain and Mrs. R. D. Oliver, Sir Charles Clifford, and Mr. Ferguson. Mr. Abbot's guests included Mr. and Mrs. J. Bull, Mr. and Mrs. G. D. Beatson, Mr. and Mrs. Howard Booth, Mr. F. O. Hamilton, Mr. and Mrs. H. P. McLachlan, Dr. and Mrs. Quinlan, and Miss Dynan. At the Ministers' table were the Hon. H. T. and Mrs. Armstrong, the Hon. R. and Mrs. Semple, the Hon. P. C. Webb, the Hon. F. and Mrs. Jones, and the Hon. W. and Mrs. Lee Martin. ( Among those noticed on the stands

were Mrs. W. H. Moss, Mrs. Duncan Menzies, Mrs. W. Young, and Miss Catherine Young, Mrs. E. S. Elgar, Mrs. C. W. Tringham. Mrs. Joel Hudson, Mrs. C. B. Trimnell and Miss Nancy Trimnell, Mrs. David Findlay, Lady Shirtclifle, Mrs. Frank Leckie, Mrs. Hughes Steele, Miss Kettle, Mrs. J. B. MacEwan, Miss Constance Morice, Mrs. H. P. F. Blundell, and the Misses Penelope and Barbara Blundell, Mrs. J. Pow, Mrs. W. E. Leicester, Mrs. L. C. Blundell, Mrs. Jack Blundell (Waipawa), Mrs Sinclair Thompson, Mrs. Wilfred Clarry, Miss Alys Nathan, Mrs. John Duncan, Mrs. Warwick Gregory, Mrs. A. L. Hempton and Miss Hempton, Mrs. D. Aitken, Mrs. Gordon Waddell, Miss Waddell, Mrs. M. G. Louisson (Christchurch), Mrs. Pat Borthwick (Masterton), Mrs. Garcia Webster, Mrs. C. Richardson, Mrs. Elgar (Featherston), Mrs. C. Turrell, Mrs. Westrupp, Mrs. M. Anderson, Mrs. Stanton Harcourt, Mr. and Mrs. Brian Keiller (Palmerston North), Miss Annette Harcourt, Mrs. Arthur Duncan, Mrs. W. H. Price, Mx-s. Gwen Tringham, Mrs. Frank Grear, Mrs. Harry Moss, Mrs. James Payne, Mrs. O'Leary, Mrs. Hayman and Miss Jill Hayman, Mrs. Lan Nairn, Mrs. Bruce Rennie, Mrs. Andrew Todd, Mrs. Clifford Moore, Mrs. Victor Lloyd, Mrs. James Crawford, Miss M. Loughnan, Mrs. J. W. G. Brodie, Mrs. Vincent Ward, Mrs. W. Watson, Mrs. Hamilton Gilmer, jun„ Miss Jjune Brodie, Mrs. Frank Reading and Miss Reading, Mrs. Vogel, Mrs. Gladstone (Hawke's Bay), Miss Riddiford (Featherston), Mrs.' J. Parker and the Misses Parker, Mrs. Cyril Blundell, Mrs. and Miss Paul (Scotland), Miss Margot Peacock, Mrs. Athol Murison, Mrs. A. W. McDonald (Palmerston North), Mrs. Orton (Wanganui), Miss Jean Hutchen, * Mrs. Creagh O'Connor, Mrs. James McParland, Mrs. D. C. Peacock, and Miss Jessie Peacock, Miss Luckie, Mrs. Ralph Sketch (Auckland), Miss Ranee Miller, Mrs. Clive Brown, Mrs. John Macdonald, Mrs. A. B. Sievwright, Mrs. Percy Thompson, Mrs. W. H. Piper, Miss Joan Fenwick, Mrs. Goodson, Mrs. Bray, Miss Lorna Bray, Mrs. Rosenberg, Miss Marjorie Curlett (Hastings), Mrs. P. A. O'Neill (Wanganui). Mrs. J. Cuthbertson, Mrs. C. W. Earle, Mrs. John Russell, Miss Thyra Gill, Miss P. Fitzgerald, Miss Joan Williams (Masterton), Miss Juliet Nathan, Miss Violet Hutchison, Mrs. Ralph Lowry (Hawke's Bay), Mrs. H. Hardcastle, Mrs. John Plimmer, Mrs. G. P. H. Davidson, Mrs. F. Bolt, Mrs. R.' Whyte, Mrs. George Currie (Wanganui), Mrs. W. A. Simpson, Mrs. David Madden and Miss Madden, Mrs. W. S. Perry, Mrs. V. H. Waters, Miss Elsmie Ward, Mrs. David Allan and Miss Harper Allan, Mrs. Graham Robertson and Miss Valerie Robertson, Miss Joyce Nathan, Miss Mollie Macassey, Miss Mary Neave, Miss Esme Whatley, Miss Sheila Wellwood, Mrs. Barton (Wanganui), Miss Betty Ellis, Miss Helen O'Leary-Fay, and Miss Jean Sutherland.