THE GYMKHANA.

Northern Advocate, 7 November 1934, Page 6

THE GYMKHANA.

(To the Editor.) Sir. —In his letter to the “Advocate” on the above Mr Trosidder in no way overstated the position, and it is to be hoped that those responsible for the organisation will take heed of his remarks, especially if the gymkhana on Labour Day is to become an annual event. Mr Tresidder, in stressing the extreme dangers to the general public,

deals with but one phase. There are, however, at least two other considerations which might engage the attention of the promoters. I refer first of all, to the amateur two-mile race. This could truly be called a classic event, and was one which captured the interest of the public! to such an extent that- a large number of people visited Kensington Park on that day- for no other reason thap to watch the runners, only to have the finish ruined for them by the foolish and thoughtless actions of a comparatively small section. I admit that the authorities of the A. and P. Society could hardly be blamed because a section of the public proved empty-headed—or, to be more charitable, shall we say allowed themselves to be carried away by excitement. The fact remains that some members of the public had paid to see something, and had a right to expect that everything possible should be done to see that they had a reasonable and uninterrupted view of the race. As a matter of fact nothing of a practical nature was done, and that was certainly not fair to them. As the same remarks might easily be applied to other cases, it must be clear that events must be so placed as to be in I full view of all members of the public j —in the centre of the ground. And then again, if it is intended to make I this Labour Day a real Whangarei Holiday—when parents will attend the park with their children —would it not be suitable to provide some forms of entertainment for the younger section of the community. Swings, merry-go-rounds, Punch and Judy Show—these might be engaged at small expense, and would assist in amusing the smaller ones, even if a slight extra charge had to be made. Sports, too, could be arranged for the tiny ones. These, of course, are merely suggestions which might, perhaps, form the nucleus of a very fine programme of entertainment. I trust that these remarks will be taken in the spirit in which they are offered, and will not hurt the feelings, of any. The officials of the A. and P. last Labour Day had a wonderful variety of entertainment to offer to a public which could not, for obvious reasons, take advantage of much of it. There was a tremendous amount of work involved, and the thanks of the community are due to those who ungrudgingly gave their time and energy. We in Whangarei are very free, and, in many cases, very unkind and unjust in our criticisms which are not always of a constructive nature. Hoping that herein there may be found something which may help to improve a really wonderful day’s outing. I am, etc., ONLOOKER.