TOWN & COUNTRY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XLII, Issue 4321, 17 December 1874, Page 2

TOWN & COUNTRY.

Fobestees’ Fe;th.—A grand Foresters’ fSte will be' held at Heathoote Valley on Dec. 26. GxMNASTfos. -■<-An entertainment will be given by M. Aireo and company on Deo. 19 and 2.1. Lyttelton Maxobaltx.—The election of Mayor takes place this evening at the Council Chambers at half-past six o’clock. It is stated that the honour will be conferred on Councillor Bouse. ■; • Inspection of Maohinbex.—A proclamation in the New Zealand Gazette, of Dec. 10, brings “The Inspection qf. Machinery Act 1874 ” into operation, in Auckland, Taranaki, Wellington, Marlborough, Canterbury, Otogq, and Westland. Mr' Joseph Noncarrow, has been appointed Chief Inspector of Machinery, for the colony. ,

: The Maxoe’s Poetbait.—Yesterday, the late Mayor, MrM.B, Hart, presented the City Council with a photograph of himself* taken by Mr Caul, apd Coloured in oils;by Mr Cambridge. Mr Mart is represented m his robes,: and' wearing the collar and chain Of office ; the likeness is striking and the colouring is artistically executed. This photograph, which is framed in gold, will be placed with the other portraits of Mayors which ornament the City Council Kaxapoi Wesiißxak SuxfDAX School Anniveesaex.—The anniversary of this school was hard been celebrated’yesterday by 4 pip-nie ,and a series of out-door sports,, in Mr Stanton’s paddock, but rain fell do heavily from an earlyjhopr in.the morning that the idea of carrying out the programme hadtobaabandoned. ehßdM/mvlilep;‘ not entirely;. disappointed m,, the!r ; teachers got them to assemble in the schoolroom, where they . s were regaled with refreshments, sweetmeats,' scrambles for nuts,. &c. They separated in the aft|rnoon after giving three hearty ohecri ‘for 1 their teachers arid friands w.h.o pro Tided the entertainment. . . } Madame Wikteb’s ■ Ooncebt.—The very wet weather which prevailed last evening had a depressing effect Upod the attendance at the Canterbury Music Hall, where Madame Winter gave a,grand concert of -Vocal andinstrumental music, which was, in point of* artistic skill, a sucoes*. The pianoforte solos of Madame Winter were greatly admired, a»d so was a flute sold % MtJ. Eowley - the dry humour which pervaded the readings of Mr Yule was highly rsshid by the audience; Mr Carder, wad was in good voice, sang well, and'a duet, “ I’ve wandered in dreams,” by Miss Winter arid Mr Carder elicited a hearty round of applause. AnNitebsaex SFbßTS.—Notwithstanding the unpleasant weather yesterday a considerable number of persoris Assembled on Latimer, square, and most of those who had obtained sites for refreshment booths made preparations for business. No doubt this was influenced by a hope that the,rain would cease after midday, hut this was not realised, and the sports committee* having met on- the; ground* wisely decided to postpone thb carrying out of the programme until Saturday next. On this becoming known, several of the refreshment caterers removed their goods, but one or two selected to do otherwise, and transacted a fair amount of business, for the general public increased in number, and despite the rain, did not disperse until late in the afternoon. Several boys’ raops were got up, and two gppd adult races were , also run. The first was a two-mile handicap, W. Pentecost,. 0. Hoodie, and Hewitt started from scratch, while J. Buchanan, James Beid, and Edmund Beid had each an allowance of two hundred yards. Edmund Beid led nearly the whole way, and won by quite one hundred yards, 0. Moodie coming in second. Pentecost, who had been left' considSrably astern, cried a go at the end of thejtagl half-mile, James Beid, Buchanan, and Hewitir also stopping before they ’had gone the full distance. The seborid, event was a mile race for £1 between two amateurs, named Jackson arid Mullin, which inis won by the latter, who came in first by about fifteen yards. The sports will commence at 12.80 p.m. on Saturday. The AnnivsESAEx Dax.—The rain yesterday proved most 1 unfavourable tothe enjoyment of the general holiday, which, as hitherto, was obserred thfoMhout the,province in commemoration of its twentyfourth anniversary. Prom early morning, heayy niii feli cessation till noon, after which occasional showers, many of them of long durationj prevailed. A more unpleasant day at this time of the year could scarcely be conceived,, anff it is only by going bock ten yean—to the time when the foundation stone of the Cathedral was hud—that anything like such weather oh Anniversary day can be found. The effect on the festivities arranged for public amusement was of course injurious, nearly the whole* of them being postponed, while in those cases where an attempt was made to proceed, with the programme the result was anything: but satisfactory. Only one event —the Eire' Brigade procession—was carried out in its integrity, the efforts made: in some other instances with the hope that the weather would improve after mid-day, having ultimately to. be dfbandoned. ' The public were necessarily much disappointed, but while indulging in feelings of this kind some comfort yras found in the reflection that' an important . section of the ' community—the fanners—would derive immense benefits from the fain. The drought which lasted up to Tuesday* had placed the crops in some jeopardy, and it became apparent that unless wet weather set in at an early date the erbps would have suffered in all oases, while to cultivators of light lands the result wduld have been disastrous. Under these circumstances, the disappointment from festivities being put a stojp to or suspended was not so much felt, arid, the day passed, off “rito Agreeably than might have been expected. A fair number of nags Were displayed irithe city, arid Mr Heaketh, ever ready to do hon Our to any public event, fired a salute of twanty-four guns—as marking the twenty-fourth atnriiver-. sary—from his small battery, which had been placed in position near the Bailway station.

“ Kaiapoi BoitovoK^KOtL,— T.le annual . meeting of this Council pft adjourned till to- ' day, at noon, in conujqttiJMteaf yesterday being »pqjmo holiday. ! s£tr f FpAhckco HAIL.—The mail, consisting, tif 3V Dags, arri#4d’in harbour yesterday mowing At,8.30 by the -ip.*. Luna; the mail was:itent through to Ohmtohurch by the 9.10 <m. train. Ltttbmok Borough Schools. The annual distribution of prizes lakes place this evening in 'the Colonists’ Hall; parents and friends of the children are invited to be present.

MAiVEEN.—Anaecident occurred on Tuesday morning it Modern. It appekrs that •om«-paMeagen being too late for theooach running to. ; meet-tho Malvern train, Mr Bedfern, the proprietor, Tuhaiy placed a trap at their disposal. ', When./in- the vicinity of ,the telegraph office, the horse, not .accustomed to rim id harness, suddenly'became restive, kiokedfdriously, and Shied off the road, overturning the trap, both shafts were broken, and the passengers were thrown out. MrEedfern, junr„, who was driving, received several! bruises, and Miss Bailey, besides being was sevSrely; shaken. The other passengers escaped unhurt, ; Picnic, Eangioea,— The I pio-nio and spprts intended to haveibeea held i at Bangiora yesterday, by the combined, Lodges of Good Templars, waS A a failure on! account of the exceedingly inclement weather. Nothing daunted, however, by the threatening; aspect of affairs in the morning, the members of the Order mustered in strong force at the Christchurch railway station-at 10.80 a.m., add, accompanied, by a hand of music, pro-! oeoded to Bangiora' by special train, stopping, at Eaiapoi to meet the brethren of the Lodge: at that place. On arriving at Bangiora they! yere met by the local contingent of the Order, and proceeded to tW testing ground, but the; rain continued to fall heavily, and the proErne of sports could not be carried nut. of them rrtuSmed home by special train at 2.30 o'clock. They had a dance at Gee’s assembly rooms id the evening.' - ; Waxtham. —The annual tea meeting of the Wesleyan Sunday: school was held in the Church last evening/' The weather was very wet, but the buildingTas< shell Med, and all seemed to enjoy the good things provided by Mesdames A. Scott, S.' Needham, Carter, D. Scott, Beese, Edmonds, Bastion, Triggs/the bachelors and other members of the congregation. The church was profusely decorated, and great taste had been displaced in the adjustment of evergreens,illuminated mottoes, &c. The, tables having been cleared away, the Bev if Boiler took the chair, and, after the singing of “Happy Greeting,” by the children, he called on the Bev G. Bond, who offered up prayer. The report was then read by the secretary (Mr Buie, junr.), from which it appears that there are,2ls scholars on the roll and 22 teachers. The tone of the report was encouraging. The children sung several pieces accompanied by the harmonium and the execution was good. Several of the girls fare recitations, which were well delivered; holt speeches wore given by the Beyl GBond and Messrs Cannon Garliok, and Ooomber.' ‘ Totes of thanks were accorded to the ladies, Messrs Bishop and Dyson, for training the scholars 'to sing,’ and to Mr Carter for his services in the decorations. At nine o’clock the chairman pronounced the benediction, closing a pleasant meeting.

The Nbw Zealand Mails.—The San •Francisco correspondent of the .New Zealand Ilerald, writing on Noy. 1(),, says: The Oyphrenes arrived here on the 29th of Oct{, with passengers from Sydney, New Zealand, and Honolulu. Amongst the arrivals from New ’ Zealand, via Sydney, were the Hon James O’Neill and the Hon Hussy Vivian. Mr O’Neill reports the colony of New Zealand to be in circumstances of extraordinary prosperity. • 1 Of coursri the Oyphrenes did not bring any New Zealand mail. Two telegrams 'bare been received here in reference to the tempprary mail service. The first, a notice to" the'United States Postal authoritiee, intimating a desire on the,part of your Government that no mails should be received for transmitto via San Francisse, ; The second telegram, received abPMf ton dpys «gO, withdrew' the first, and requested the Postal authorities to receive and, forward the .New Zealand mafi. as usual. It is therefore announced that the Oyphrenes will take passengers, cargo, and mails, for Auckland, at which port she proposal to pall. > .v American Ezhibition.—The Centennial Industrial Exhibition at Philadelphia in 1876, is likely to, be carried out after all. San Francisco correspondents of the Auckland journals state that New South Wales had arranged for a large display of the products and manufactures of that colony.. They urge the importance of New Zealand being well represented. “Your wool, flax, gum, and cabinet woods ought to be exhibited. If ever the phormium tenox is to become the great staple product of New Zealand, ypu .must look .to the States ris your legitimate market. America so far is nbt aflax-produoing country, The fibrous plants iindigeuous to it are of comparatively little value. - Had they the New Zealand flax, the people of this country would long ago have found some way of cleaning it and raising it to its proper .standard. There are many beautiful woods in this country; but I have seen hone that surpass the mottled kauri of your North Island, or,the rimu of the South. All your furniture woods, ought to be exhibited. Practically, - New Zealand is yet a terra incognita to the average American, , An exhibit of Seuffert’s cabinet work in Philadelphia would open the eyes of the Quakers, and lead to inquiries about the country which S reduced such beautiful workmanship. Even ere, in San Francisco, there is very little known as to the resources and, climate of New Zealand.”

English Opbba Company.—This company yesterday evening gave two distinct performances—a bill of operettas at the Theatre, and and a concert, at Spehsley’s Hall. Owing to the inclemency of the weather, and a powerful counter-attraction in the Eire Brigade procession, the Theatre was thinly attended, hut, notwithstanding this circumstance, the pieces were given with much spirit and effect. The concert-room was well filled, and the liberal programme was excellently carried out. Miss Alice May sang “ She wore a wreath of rowS/’ Robin Adair/’ “ The last rose of summer,” the whole of which were exquisitely sung, arid rapturously and persistently encored. Eor the first Miss May substituted “Andy Sawn,” a charming song .byMro. B. Allen j for, the second, “ Within a mile o’ Bdinboro’ toonand she repeated a verse of “The last rose of summer.” Miss Lambert sang “Love’s request” and “Maggie’s secret" very nicely, and for the first deceived a most pronounced encore, to which she Responded. Miss Florence Howe, also/had a fine encore for “Bearer and dearer,”.in the performance of which she displayed both taste ahd feeling. Miss Ada S. Taylor, who assisted, sang Wallace's “ Lily Bells” add Qahz’s “Nightingale's trill ” in ; the , artistic , style which characterises all her performances. Miss Lavinia Taylor, who also assisted, gave - two . concertina solos, the first a' fantasia on airs from “William : Tell,” and the second on old Soptoh airs. It is needless to say that both were brilliantly executed, and that! the applause of the audience was of the heartiest description. Mr Holism was in fine voice, displaying great purity of intonation in “ The anchor’s weighed,” and “ The Pilgrim of love,” for eaoh of which he received a recall. With Miss May, Mr Hallam sang a duet,' “ Ye Banks and Braes,” a novelty, in that it was performed without aooompanimeut. 1 Mr Templeton's first contribution was one of the operatic songs he sings best, "Tho’ fortune darkly o’er me frowns,” from Balfe’n “ Rose iof Castile,” and the. barcarole “Here upon my vessel’s deck ? ” both of which were warmly applauded, and the former re-demanded, and repeated. The, remaining items in the programme' were two songs by Messrs Price and Hobbs; “The Chough and Grow,” glee, by hfiss A. Taylor, Mr-and Mrs Bonham, and the .’company { and the Letter Scene from Offenbach’*. “Grand Duchess," by Misses Harris, Lester, Alice Johns, and Johnstone, and company, all of whom received encouraging applause. The' National Anthem was an appropriate finale. During the evening, Mr G.B. Allen and Mr B. Searell presided at the pianoforte. At thb Theatre, this evening, the oompaDY appearforthe i list time, prior to their departure for Dunedin. “Era Diavolo ” is announced for representation.

Deep Sea Fishing.— The cutter Nautilus, which was formerly owned by thslste Canterbury Deep Sea Fishing Company mid bought by Captain B. WqdA, has ‘bate purchased b/ Messrs Densen ana Co., of Otjligo. In addition to this, the purchase!*! haye obtaine'd all the trawling nets belonging to the late Governor's yacht. It is ’ the. owner's intention to trawl between Dunedin and Oamaru. v 1 Ellesmebe Obiceet v CtVß,— ln consequence of the cricket tournament now in progress, the usual fortnightly practice of this club fixed for to-day will be held on the 24th inst., when a match will be played—TJhdhr sft. Sin. versus Over 6ft. Sin. The club team proceeded to Akaroa yesterday for the purpose of playing a match with the local club, and will return to-day. They will play a match with Woolston on Saturday. Oddfellows’ Fete at Rangioea.—lt is to be. regretted that, in common ■ with their Good Templar friends, the first grand fete arranged to be carried but by the Oddfellows of Canterbury was a failure yesterday, so far as the weather was concerned. Arrangements had been made on an extensive scale for carrying out a programme of sports, comprising twenty events, for liberal prizes, and a booth and large luncheon tent were created in the Agricultural Show Grounds by Mr Conway, of the White Crane Hotel, Woodend. The members of the Loyal City of Norwich Lodge, Lyttelton, and others connected with the South Canterbury District, met the brethren of the City and other Lodges of the North Canterbury District at Christchurch in the morning, and despite the heavy tain which was falling at the time; and the gloomy prosElect of a thorough wet day, a'large number eft for Bangiora by. special train at 10.15 a.m. Herr Biinz’s band, which had been engaged.for the occasion, enlivened the journey by pMying a number of times. The members of the Kaiapoi Lodge were picked up on the way, and on arriving at Eangiora, the members of the Bangiora lodge met their brethren on the platform. A move was at once made for the paddock, where luncheon was partaken of, but as the weather showed no signs of clearing the sports were not commenced* Determined not to be altogether deprived of their day’s enjoyment, those who took part in the fete secured the use of the goods-shed at' the railway station, where dancing and other amusements were kept up during the afternoon. The whole party returned to Christchurch at 7.35 p.m. Arrangements are likely to be made by the committee for carrying out the sports on some -fatureday,whenit is to be hoped the weather will be more propitious.