JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS

Manawatu Times, Volume LII, Issue 3539, 22 February 1927, Page 8

JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS

Apathy and General Lack el Interest That the forthcoming jubilee cicbra. tions were not being supported by the public of Palmerston North in the proper carnival spirit, and that the business men of the town were not giving their, whole-hearted support to the festivities was forcibly demonstrated by the organiser (Mr. H. E. Bennett) when speaking to the members" of the Rotary Club yesterday. The speaker scheduled for the day, Rotarian L. P. de Berry, was unable to be present. The jubilee, said Rotarian Bennett, was not entering the hearts of the business men of Palmerston North as it should. They should all be In it, but this certainly was not the case; and the' Rotary Club, he said, whose members were the leading business men of the town, was not giving the celebrations the, support and impetus that it should. The organiser, by himself, could do nothing: he could only make suggestions as to .which lines the various committees should follow. There were many who could give, but had not given, exhibits and entries for the many and varied phases of the celebrations, and if these continued to be conspicuous by their absence Palmerston North’s 50th anniversary would not be the gay carnival it should be. Jubilee Programme.

There were many ways in which the Rotarians as business men could help the preparations along—especially could they do so in entries for the procession, which would be one of the big features of the whole programme. Sunday’s religious celebrations would open the programme. Then, on Monday, the festivities would include a procession of new cars undecorated, and in the afternoon there would be the presentation of the various carnival queens, to be followed by a short programme of semi-comic events. Tuesday, the day of the children s sports, the school committees have well in, hand, and were affording the organiser no'~anxie,ty whatever. Wednesday was the day of the procession —and it was on this that the businessmen could concentrate. Besides the procession there would be several novelty events, with which the Hunt Club were giving 1 invaluable assistance, tug-of-war and Highland; dancing. At night there would be the crowning of the carnival queen, and the finals of the tug-of-war. Thursday, said the organiser, was a lean day, but, if only the carnival spirit germ would break loose, the night could be made the one night to be remembered above all others in the celebrations. The masquerade and lantern parade could be made an outstanding feature —and, the cost for participation . would be ridiculously low while the fireworks at the Show. grounds, would, of course, be a great attraction. After the display, which would last only between fine and aquarter and one and a-half hours, there would be dancing on the lawn or in the big hall at the Showgrounds, the music to be supplied by the band. What was wanted, sai& Rotarian Bennett, was the spirit of revelry the people of Nice put into their annual carnival. - ~ Friday had been taken over by the municipal and military authorities; the Duke of York, who was to arrive on Thursday evening, was reviewing the military and the school children in the Square on Friday morning, and the rest of the day’s programme was in the hands of the Old Identities Committee. A bullock and a pig were to be cooked in the old Maori style—which Rotarian Bennett briefly described. A big hole was dug, ip which boulders were filing after the necessary fuel had been put in; it took about five hours to get these boulders (which when placed in the pit were silghtly damp) piping hot. Over the boulders, fern fronds a«d willow branches were heaped, and, in turn, on these were placed the meat for consumption, suitably flavoured with a judicious application of thyme and onions. Fern fronds and willow branches were again placed over the meat, the whole being covered with sacks and the soil which had been removed from the hole. It took about 21 hours to cook the meat, which, when ready, was a meal , fit for a king. "If the, jubilee celebrations mis-fire,” said Rotarian Bennett in conclusion, "the whole town, and, with them, you businessmen will feel slighted. It is an opportunity to put your best foot forward and do your visitors proud. If only we could get the right carnival spirit into the proceedings our jubilee will be a success, but with the present lack of interest being displayed, one has to be an optimist indeed to fdel sure that Palmerston North’s fiftieth anniversary will be celebrated as it should be.” Mayor Appeals to Men of Town. When jubilee matters were before the Borough Council last evening, the Mayor stated if the Council wished to make the celebrations worthy of the town it was the duty of councillors to get behind the jubilee executive wholeheartedly. "I would also make the same appeal to the men of Palmerston North,” continued Mr. Nathan, “because there is- a distinct absence of men from the various movements in connection with the celebrations.” Be. ferring, to “Old Identities Day,” he stated that this was going to be a great success and many inquiries had been received from the town’s pioneers in connection therewith. Cr. Edwards agreed with the Mayor and added that the ladles were continually asking where the men were.