FITNESS WEEK

Evening Post, Volume CXXVII, Issue 33, 9 February 1939, Page 15

FITNESS WEEK

FINANCIAL ASPECT

ACCUMULATED FUND

FULL PROGRAMME

"We want to do voluntarily what •ther nations in Europe are doing by rigid legislation," said.Mn M. F. Luckie (chairman) during a discussion on finance at a meeting of the Wellington Physical Fitness Committee yesterday. As' a result of admission charges, collections, and the amount of work that would be performed voluntarily, he said, it was expected that an amount over and above the total expenditure would be raised. "I can assure you, and through you the public," continued Mr. Luckie, "that the money will not be going into any special fund at all." They hoped to keep the aims and objects they had in view steadily before the public—mothers, boys, and young girls particularly—so that the lesson theyhoped to teach by the Fitness Week demonstration would not be forgotten. The money would be used from ! time to time to promote the objects of maintaining physical fitness. ■ The tentative programme was dealt with at length, and several adjustments were made. The women's meeting in the Concert Chamber of the Town Hall, scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, February 22, was deleted for the time being. The school athletic meeting, set down for Thursday afternoon, February 23, was also deleted, and will be replaced on the Friday by the eastern suburbs schools' athletic meeting at Hataitai Park. The meeting will commence at 9.30 a.m., and over two thousand children will participate. MASSED PARADE. The massed parade, which will mark the opening of the celebrations on Saturday, February 18, will be impressive. Among the bodies parading will be the Tramways Band, the Boys' Brigade, men's hockey representatives, Boy Scouts, New Zealand Fencing Society representatives, baseball players, commercial gymnasia, the Royal New Zealand Air Force Band, and V.M.C.A. representatives. Among the large number of floats which will take part in the procession will be some oh which yachts and rowing boats will be carried. Crews will march behind their respective floats. i The parade will start at 10.30 a.m. \ in Mercer Street. The route to bej followed will be along Jervois Quay to the main gates of the Queen's Wharf, Customhouse Quay, Willis Street, Manners Street, Courtenay Place, Kent Terrace, to the Dufferin Street entrance to the "Basin Reserve. The harriers by this time will be well on the. way to the Basin Reserve from Eastbourne. Their arrival, at the ground is scheduled for. 11.15, and they will carry the "torch of fitness" from the gates and place it on a pylon in front of the assembly. Until noon a very full programme of events will be carried out at the ground. The main feature will be a tSßlqid athletic:; meeting. fln '"addition1 basketball, tumbling, dancing; and military demonstrations will be provided. A nominal charge will be made for entrance to the ground. Plenty of variety characterises' the programme for the international concert at the Town Hall in the evening. "A NIGHT IN VENICE." Mr. J. Lewis dealt. fully with the programme for ~A Night t in Venice," a highly-spectacular, series, of events that: will be staged at Oriental Bay on. the afternoon and night of Wednesday, February 22. At 4 p.m. bands will assemble and march from Clyde Quay to the Oriental Bay- dressing sheds; one band will leave Clyde Quay by launch for a high-diving pontoon. Members of Wellington surf clubs and the St. John Ambulance Corps will march with the bands and be stationed at various points to safeguard the beaches. From 4.30 p.m. to 5 p.m. children will have half an hour's swimming and fun in the sea, under the con? trol of teachers and swimming instructors. Younger children . will play in - i special safety zone. The members of the Yacht Club, unier the' command of the commodore, will proceed to stations allotted to hem at 6.15 p.m. Their > manoeuvres will be completed not later than 7 p.m.,----jnd on the command being given crews will "dress ship." The yachts will 'hen anchor about 250 yards off shore. The commodore will hoist his recall pennant if he considers that the weather is becoming bad, and yachts will proceed immediately to their home moorings. During the evening the band on the water will play popular tunes. Rowing clubs will come on the scene at 7.15 p.m., and will stage a series of races at short intervals over a course from Point Jerningham to Clyde Quay, using the lane between the yachts and .pontoons. Fifteen minutes later speedboats will race between Point Jerningham and Clyde Quay, and on completion of the races spectator^ will be entertained with demonstrations of aquaplaning and comedy stunts. Decorated boats, brightly illuminated, and plenty of specialty "stunts" will make the demonstrations very impressive. The anti-aircraft mobile searchlight units will take up their positions at suitable contours on the cliff and be ready to operate at nightfall. , . From 7 p.m. until 8.30 p.m. there will be water polo matches by various swimming clubs, high diving, and, on pontoons comic wrestling matches, boxing, and physical culture displays will be provided. The demonstration will be interrupted by the appearance of "Father Neptune." Accompanied by his bodyguard and mermaids, he will come out of the water at the dressing sheds and wai present the Minister of Internal Affairs (the Hon. W. E. Parry) or the Mayor (Mr. T. C. A. Hislop) with a document charging the people of Wellington to get fit. After delivering his message and giving the town his 'blessing, he will disappear into the sea. On completion of this act there will be a procession of decorated canoes which will proceed across the bay. A parade of male and female swimmers will leave the baths at 8.30 p.m. and march in single file on the beach wall to the dressing sheds. Old-time and the latest swimming costumes will then be displayed. At the tail of the procession, and over the same route, a comic nonsensical parade will take place, staging "back to childhood" and other costumes. Community singing, folk dancing, and mass dancing with band accompaniment will follow till midnight. In event of unfavourable weather, the carnival will be postponed until Thursday, February 23. The committee is well pleased with the way in which arrangements are

progressing and is looking forward with the utmost confidence to the success of the week.