“The Sleeping Beauty Awakens At Last!”

Northern Advocate, 2 July 1935, Page 4

“The Sleeping Beauty Awakens At Last!”

THE MAGIC PRINCE ENTHUSIASM

Winter Exhibition Opens Best For Years Promised

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE SHOW

A A fable has come to life. The well-known story of the Sleeping Beauty has its analogy in the Whangarei Winter Exhibition, which commenced its thirty-second display to>day. • Like the fabled princess, the Show, pricked with the poisoned needle of apathy, went to; sleep some years ago. Now, also in line with the fable, a Prince, in the guise of enthusiasm, has kissed the sickly princess, who has awakened after her long sleep. There has been a transformation, due entirely to enthusiasm, and this year s exhibition gives promise of being Whangarei’s best. It should definitely, establish for all time the Show, which, a few months ago was in danger of passing out altogether, New features have been thought of, new competitive classes included in the schedule, and an intensive canvass for,: entries has been undertaken. The result is a' list of entertainments' which must draw people from far and near, and a record number of competitors! in the various sections. The number of entries in each class has not b® en released, but, in Tall except two, they are said to have set new records. Vice-Regal Opening. The chief attraction of the week is the first visit to Whangarei of His Excellency, Lord Galwsy, Now Zoalsnci s new Governor-General. Specially invited to perform the opening ceremony tomorrow evening, Lord Galway arrives in Whangarei by car tomorrow. In the afternoon, His Excellency will be accorded a civic welcome, and later will visit the schools in the town. In the evening he will open the show and later be present at a conversazione in the Town, Hall. The fact that Lord Galway has consented to perform the ceremony at the, Show is an indication that the Whangarei Winter Exhibition is gaining the. same importance in the North as the j Waikato Show is in the Waikato, and district. j The importance of shows has often I been stressed, and it consists largely in advertising the district and its pro-, ducts. It also; serves educatively, not only to visitors and children, but also to Northern people themselves. - There are many activities and industries in the North of which even residents are ■unaware. The Show provides the opportunity for self-education. Outstanding Features. From the point of view of the public, the main features of the Show are the novel entertainments which have been arranged. In the past the apathy of the public in neglecting to visit the exhibition has been due to lack of entertainments. This year there will be no cause for complaint on that score. 'Highlights of the exhibition from that point Of view will be:— | This- evening.—Show opens _ to the . public, when a combined boxing and wrestling tourney will be staged. The ■ Broadwood and Whangarei Clubs will 1 wrestle: for the A. and P. Cup. Wednesday.—Opening ceremony by the Governor-General, Lord Galway, and an exhibition of tree-felling by Australian champions. Thursday.—Maori hakas and poi dancing competitions. Friday.—A special demonstration by one of the, Ngapuhi chiefs in the use of the taiaha, a weapon used by the | chiefs when they fought against each other. % * Saturday.—Wheelbarrow derby round the town in the afternoon, and a torchlight procession in the evening. The Maori Competitions. With a view to carrying on the renaissance in Maori aids and crafts, which was one of the main results of the Waitangi celebrations, the committee arranged a comprehensive list of native events and competitions. These will include haka and poi dances, and a section for native arts and crafts. These will be judged by Princess Te Puea, of the. Waikato. ■ The Northern Maoris have entered ■ into the competitions with splend|id enthusiasm and twelve teams have nominated for the hakas arM dances. One team has travelled 130 miles from Whatuwhiwhi in the Far North, to take part. In addition to appearing at the Show, the natives will ■ give Lord Galway a l Maori welcome at the Triangle on * Thursday morning. On that occasion, - the Maori song of welcome will be re--1 peated, as it was rendered at Wai- , tangi. . The performers will be in full native dress, a sight which has not been seen i in Whangarei for many years. » i Other Attractions. With the trade display space overflowing in the main building, the majority of the competitive sections are set out in the Drill Hall adjoining. Right through there are fine examples of the products of the town and district, with the citrus fruit outstanding. This substantiates the claim that Whangarei and surrounding districts are ideally suited to the culture of such 1 fruits. Seventeen Women’s Institutes are taking part in the section which has been arranged for them this year. The exhibits are not arranged in courts as at previous shows, but are set out in sec Jons. The exhibits include a wide variety of home-made products ranging from cookery to home-made clothing made from waste materials. The model section will undoubtedly 1 be one of the most popular attractions, j This is the first time that this class has been included and judging by the I support it has received it will not be j the last. It is certain that few people | have had any conception of the ex(cellent working and exhibition models j which are arranged also in the drill I hall. i The central feature of the display is j a large tank filled with water, in the I centre of which is a lighthouse ocj copied by a mechanical keeper. A j speed boat circles the tank, and run- ! ning round the shore is an electric railway complete with stations, sig-1 nals and other details of a railway j system. | Arapuni In Miniature. A model which will have particular interest to the people of the North at the present time is a working scale model of the Arapuni hydro-electric

works, supplied by the Public Works Department. This is housed m the lean-to. In view of the fact that the North Auckland Power Board win eventually draw its supply from this source, the model should win a great deal of attention. Prospective consumers will be able to see, in perfectv miniature, the point from which the power will operate their milking J 1 1?" chines and supply their household wants, will be drawn. „ Other Exhibits. There are a host of other sections attractive generally. The trade displays are very fine;, in the open area at the back of the big building is the tent in which all entertainments will be staged, and in conjunction are a variety of side-shows, which occupy all available space. _ • Attractively laid out in the drill hall are the other competitive classes—except poultry and pigeons, which are in the lean-to. The drill hall is full, the number of sections having been increased considerably on past years. One of the chief of the new sections is ,the competition for master bakers, which has drawn entries from as far south as Dunedin and Christchurch. There is too much to take in at one visit. The visitor naturally gravitates to that in which he is most interested, and possibly misses some other attractive feature. One could spend a lot of time with a great deal of profit, absorbing the varied features of this, Whangarei’s best show.