BAPTIST CHURCH.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXV, Issue 132, 5 June 1891, Page 2

BAPTIST CHURCH.

_ Atthesooialtea in connection with the B ipfcist sale of work last night, the silver wedding of the Rev. T. and Mrs Bray was celebrated, a considerable number being present. After tea, Mrs Barker read the following adress, written by Mrs Bray : •• I think I may be pardoned for wishing to make a little speeoh on my silver wedding day. I also feel that a few words of explanation are necessary. About nine months ago, when we first deoided to start a building fund, I felt rather depressed, knowing there was so little I could do towards it. A friend, however, suggested an idea by whioh I could ask my friends for one shilling eaoh, a very moderate sum, whioh few could refuse. This entailed a good deal of letter writing, whioh means a great deal to me, aa some ot you know, but I must say the work ha 9 been a labour of love, resulting bo far in the small sum of jK7 6s, whioh I am able W. hand to the Treasurer to-night. I had hoped that it would be a far larger sum, but I have a " happy thought '" of how the same can be considerably augmented, and the piece of work at the same time muoh enlarged —if &ioh' peraoa here to night will kindly forward to me a shilling, arid their initials worked on a piece of silk. or satin, this will add to the number of my friends, and already I have represented on the pieoe of work the iuitials of mauy of those both in England and New Zealand nearest and dearest to mo, to all of whom . I am moat grateful for their ready response to my request. I must say that had it not been for Mrs Barker's kind cosoperation this pieoe of nrork would present a far more untiuished appearauco tnan it does. I desire to take this opportunity to testify to the Lord's goodness to my husband and myself during twenty-five happy years of married life. We have felb it to be our greatest privilege to be able to take all our trials and difficulties to the Lord. I want, dear friends, that all our hearts may be enoouraged when we think of His great goodness to us in the past, that we may indeed be glad in the Lord and rejoice. May you all, as well as ourselves, as we go forth from this day, feel the bleasedneas of beiug able to cast all our oare upon Him who careth for us— no less a personage than Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever. Mr ttobertson Baid he had great pleasure on behalf of the congregation in asking Mr Bray to aooept a small gilt from the members of the ohuroh oonsistiug of a handsome silver butter diah and knife, with their heart? congratulations on his Bilver wedding day Mr Pettit, as one of the officers of the ohuroh, offered to Mr and Mrs Bray the most kindly wiflheß of tho oongregntion on this ocoasion. They all highly appreciated their pastor, and felt tbat in him they had a kind friend and a wise adviser, and hoped that he and Mrs Bray might long be spared to carry on their good work amongst them Thoßov. T. Bray, on behalf of himself and wife, expressed his grateful thanks to them all for their expression of love and sympathy and his gratification on hearing the remarks that had fallen from some of them with regard to the manner in whioh he fulfilled his duties as pastor, and hoped that he might oontinue to be helpful to them. His wife, unfortunately, was unable, through ill health, to take any aotive part in the work of the ohuroh, but he could assure them she had its interests at heart, and, together with him, she wished to be helpful to all around them. He might mention that he had received that morning another handsome present, consist*) ingot a silver hot water jag bearing the inscription, "Presented by the Baptist Ohuroh, Riohmond, June 4, 1891," and the initials " T,8. " on one side and " O.B. " on the other. Several frienda from Riohmond ware present, and to them and all his dear frienda he tendered his own and his wife's hearty thanks for their sympathy and affdotion, Mr Snodgrass offered his hearty oongratulations to Mr and Mrs Bray on the occasion. He had been much impressed by the efforts made by Mrs Bray towards raising money for the building fund, and he had muoh pleasure in asking her to accept £5 from himself and Mrs Suodgraas. Ho thought that Mrs iimy in her weak condition put many stronger ones to shame, Tho Ray. T. Bray having again' expressed liis hearty thanks, wedding oike was handed round by the young ladies present, while Miss Dee played the Wedding Maroh, after whioh the worthy pastor and his wife received the individual congratulations of those present. During the evening a oon* siderable amount of business was done at the stalls, and a collection waß made in aid of the building fund. During the course of the evening addresses were delivered by the Revs. P. W.lsitt and T. Bray, and Messrs Hodder and Pettit. Miss Dee presided at the organ aud performed her share of the I duties of tho evening admirably.

Sir Edwin Arnold does not oeaae to wonder at the universal refinement and politeness of the Japanese. " Where else," he aeks, " does thero exißb euoh a oonspiraoy to be agreeable * such a widespread oompaot to render the diOlouU affairs of life as smooth and graceful as oiroumatanoos permit ; suoh fair decrees of flue behaviour fixed aud aooepted by all ■ suoh universal restraint of the coarser impulses of speeoh and aofc; euoh pretty pioturofiqueness of daily existence; auoh lively love of nature j suoh sincere delight in beautiful and artistio things ; euoh frank ' enjoyment of the enjoyable ; auoh tenderness ' to little ohildren ; suoh reverence fo»- parents ' and old persons ; suoh oourtesy to strangers; ( suoh willingness to please and to be pleased?" ' It is, we are assured, an absolute faoi that there is no oath, or (oul interjeolionary word '. in the Japanese language, ' \ In writing oa Madame Patey'a first oon- i oert in Auokland, the Herald saya:~Thon < followed what was undoubtedly the gem of I the evening— probably the gem of the ooni i qert seaßon— the air, " 0 ltest in the I<ord.," J from Mendelssohn s grand oratario "Elijah." I Mudamo JP atey ou stepping on the stage was \ received with warm, applause, And after the \ opening nocoa of the aooompaniment had c been pluyed, her beautifully-rounded and ex- i pressive contralto voice rang out through i the hall, and as she proceeded, the deep \ devotional feeling with which shein vested the i grand musio of the aomposer enthralled c the audience and held them spellbound, i But what a burst of applause broke out when \ she oouoluded 1 The whole audienoe seemed c to be suddenly elootrifted into life. The \ inevitable encore followed, and was persisted s in, and Madame Patey kindly io3p6uded by t repeating the whole air from first to last with i all the expaessive force and sweetness which i qharaoieriaed the first performance* and! she i was again applauded to the echo, ■ - ' , . « A wan suspeoted of having printed inde- a oent inscriptions on the ohuroh and Masonio d Hall at Waipawa has been thoroughly tarred a by Borne of the iudigaant townspeople, .; The b oase is likely to be Brought ia to Qourt, > s The Sydney: ' ■JEm^, states .that ■ M^it % George Grey!ff progress th^iighUiistrft^ia $ hue be^r^fe '^terfeoti triutapk" VHe "htehadj£ fi reoeplidn suoh as has never' been, given hW^ tj to any man or woman siuoo 6i,. befor^the jy time of Oaptain Cook— suoh iw has n^w '*$ boea agoor.de4 iti wyftl.ty or Yi<&#>&M|y^fp iv