THE TOWN CLOCK

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8288, 17 September 1903, Page 2

THE TOWN CLOCK

<• THE STARTING CBRISMONY. After months of weary waiting, in wliidi much speculation was indulged i„ ~n t( , ( | lo many possibilities regarding the fate of the. town clock, and after t.ho t„ mT i, ilH „ 1<)mI long- as an earnest, of benefits to come its windows boarded over suggestive of a dieict. business place bearing* the iKi.tli.tic legend lo let, now has patience l, ;T ,i rewarded, and the realisation of our ex. pcctations is an accomplished fact. '('lie weather was far from templing, but' the residents, proud in the possession of the fini'f.t clock outside the four centres and the lnnW musical peal of bells in New Zealand nl sembled in force to see the machinery sit. in motion. The weatlier only served m provide, a topic upon whmli everyone eoaM wax eloquent, and criticisms thereon pmjerred m suitable terms tilled llio intervals in the proceedings. The crowd gatheied early that it- should lose nothing of 'th« ceremony, and as a prelude to tho real biriness, to paraphrase slightly Cowntr's wellknown lines, eminently appropriate. "fiinev, like the of a cloc/c, ran the tmvit, circuit, and was still at home." Tbeiv wnR scarcely a thought of the dinners that li.nl been left, in various degrees of preparation, nor did any housewives feel compunction :it having provided n cold joint as tho nice# do resistance of tho midday meal for such a cheerless day. The .Mayor had eallui thorn together, and on the Mayor's shoulders should rest the whole responsibility lur omissions m the administration of the domestic department. It had boon, intended that the occasion should be graced by the presence of such civic luminaries as Sir Joseph Ward, the Hon. George Jones, ,m,| the Hon. T. Y. Duncan, all of whom li.rl been more or less prominent in. securing tlio central figure for the occasion; ,bu(, J'jy'i.imcntary duties forbade, and those gentlemen. were compelled to content theiiiwlv.i with sending congratulations, combined with tho hope that tho timepiece's futuro conduct would be framed on lines liecuniir;,; in one upon whom rested such graw ;.ial sacred responsibility. The clock had 1. n put through several preliminary caimix yesterday, and everything promised im a great, success, the chime.* being cr.-atlv admired by t who chanced to (k.j them, a pleasure. which was elenied t■ i'• - sidents of the north end on acnount ni 'lie wind being unfavorable. Tin \|„ y „ r fc.j taken time by the forelock, which' wrr.,l only proper on such an occasion, with the result that on tho stroke of 11.45 tJi.- fiwiness was proceeded with, and those win) took tho usual quarter hour's g race w.-iv r once- disappointed. . the outset the Mayor read tlw ing telegrams received by him:—"lt afford mo (jreat pleasure to be pres.n,-. eltile interesting ceremony, but I ivnt 1 hat my Parliamentary duties render it iiujxivBiblo for mo to do so.—J, <;. "Sorry cannot be present. Gladly stand aside your favor, for you deserve ■May bells ring in a happv fiitinv for mart;, and district, and enable us to keen up to time.—-Geo. Jones." "Very H.rry neither Sir J. G. Ward nor myself (an be present at the starting of your dock to* Tf it could have been postpomd tu Wednesday next we both could have hem present. Hoping you will have a time and your ceremony will be a success with kind regards.—T. Y. Duncan." "Listening attentively, but cannot, hear tlifl clock. —Mitchklj, and Peattik." Strange noise heard from direction Oamaru. Can you explain.—Maks." "Discovery Antarctica. Strange peal of bells heard li.ie. " triiEAT Scott."

His Worship said he wns sorry tlint tli'' weather was so unpropitiotis for the ceremony, but he felt tiiat it. would not liavf been prop?!- to have started the clock with" out taking some nofcioc of the jrcneroiw Ji" 1 "- ner in which Mr Buckley had nssiMrd the tow irii this connection. The first t' ,Wl ' clock was presented to Oamaru by the Mayor (Mr Gilchrist), but after thirty y« ,(UI of service that timepiece Ims now been K tired from service. For many years maruvinns had waited patiently to fW 1 clock placed in the old post office towsf but they waited in vain. Hbwevor, an ,"f nortunity of securing an oißcinr limcp' l had been offered the town by Sir Ward. It had been his (the spwilcci-'fO ot|jj as Mayor to wait upon Sir J<wpb wit tlie Hon. George Jones in conn>■<-n":. local matters, and, after the Mink: '' at talked over t.ho Mibiects brou j t l!* 1 ' 1 ," him. ho had twitted thorn wifli »"'■ a town clock in Oamaru, whon | V,n j Bluff had one. After oonsidenilm Sir Joseph offered to build a towr ■<<« P." a town clock in afc a cost of f Oouncil would give £250 toward ; tli" 'j 11 ' aid n. chtme of, bells. He, on hAi ' ' the Council, offered to give tliat sum,

"" n too v the promise up when the brought before them. HowiSf&e- time came to providing the t&> wi * district had been thoroughly *00*?: appeals for patriotic funds, #f*L people responded so y jisi £***, felt, that another demand could mad" in the circumstances. Consent* P* thtf v had to put the matter aside time. When a further appeal was fe r r a0 ® the Government, Mr Buckley had 09 forward and guaranteed the £250 to(fS r t-> c lnck and chimes, and subsewas no mortcaca on the clock, as Stickler bld °jT en to x* their creditors yesterday. With s t „ the clock itself, he could say that .ecotd to cone in the world in point fc* 3 *thoash thsra nsicrut be larger 5 The' belk were the finest Mr Burton ff" r htini. and the clock was fitted n jioipenient that had been worked at for centories._ It-had been Hon-ed t* o years ago by Sir E. B. Den"z ' There was a brass plate to be put 1,8 where in the porch commemorating very handsome gift. Thanks j in which he had put the clock "fIK-rs W€ri? tlKr * " iven for I vir Joseph Ward. Etickler, in acknowledging the comnmeot 53; d" he was- very pleased to have ITtiie'opportunity 0 f giving the town the clock ami peal of bells which he "TTabout t° se t in motion. He wished the to ti regarded as a memorial to the i r r John* M'Lean, of Bedcastle, who f"i among them for so many years, £ who had been a well-known figure to % Oarnaru. He (the speaker) would be pbicvd indeed if the gift were known " the -M'Lean Clock." He now had much feasors "in starting the clock on its career was a lull in the proceedings in contpoueKe of the speakers having got some*L ahead of time. Calls for speeches were Bide up r ' n ttlose Councillors who had been Scfcy enough to obtain a. position on the Lt office steps—a privilege which was due a their exceeding punctuality, others of the n™- Fathers having to content themselves *iih jt-niinins their ears on the fringe of aj crowd. The natural antipathy of the SunciHor to speech-making was again demonstrated. and none could be found to rejg, t he audience with crisp and cheerful Lrcersation. ilr Frith suggested that a olfaction should be taken no, and though (U sMg cstion was obviously intended as a fcfc. & crowd thinned perceptibly. The fcrcr here explained, in regard to what Mr Bncklev had said, that the big bell was intobwl": '"Presented by Jotm M'Lean, Red"wien. the time came for polling the irjil "something went wrong with the «rfa." with the result that, although the jjjnes were set going, the striking bell rejjspi to work, and the hour was not sotffid- £ The trouble was caused by the comjjaiion. being unconsciously put out of gear ithe excitement of the moment, and we are oarsd that theailment is not chronic. Evice to this effect was adduced by the fact 4at everything went correctly at the stroke jfl. Jlr Burton made a hasty adjournment S the tower, and, after a short delay, the sonster fulfilled the functions for which the empaay had assembled, and the people farsed content in that the music of the Ms had fallen "at intervals upon the ear in oJeace sweet." Thus fittingly ended angler red-letter day in the history of Oaara.

THE CLOCK AND CHIMES. Tie clock is d-;-scribed as a qtiartertjiaiiasand hour-striking one, and is-fitted jitiltenrtson's doable three-legged, gravity sapement. It will go for eight days withiffi winding, but the chiming and striking require to be wound every second JiT. The clock is placed in its glass case aa'ji its own ctutaifcer two storeys (a dkiucsof 22ft! below the dials, and is conjKtd wfch t-Iw-m by a rod running through aebelirv to work a Best of bevel v.'i'eeJs rica turn the hands. The four dials of oral diss, for night- illiiiaination, are 7ft in faebr. The iron framework, or sashes, i the dials, which, also form the figures, is cost in half-clrc'es, each half weigh3cwt. The hands are of copper, ad ars oft 6in and 2ft 6m respectively—lie weight being about. Tlbs'the pair. They at souvenir "balanced by compensating jeijits that they will stand at any point, fcrniifit illumination, each dial is protid with two incandescent gas burners, aas each burner has it s own pilot jet, an somatic appartus on the clock will turn Is illumination on and off at any desired itt. At present it is proposed to turn it tin 11 p.m. The notes comprising the fas E. C. D. G, are the same as are used sialic v.:ut; at Cambridge and afterwards steed'at Westminster, and are known by it'itter name. The aggregate weight of foaming Wis is about-25c wt, and of the kiwr bill 22 tons. These are suspended i"ie chamber between that containing Ssciock proper and that in which are the ,ihi The cluck and also the- striking medaism are actuated by falling weights conicsi with steel wire rope working round fans. The weight working the hands and jasMum weighs Icwt, that working the dines 3cwt, while the one for the hour bell was between 4cwt and scwt. The strainj;'or breaking test of the stronger of the felmpe is 2Qoolbs, while that of the other 3*s or SCOIbs. The weight of the penMan. which vibrates every li second is Sent. suspended by a piece of thin steel :»ia btnad. The contrivance for compenstion for varving temperature consists of * tine ;uhi- inside an iron one on the peniiffln. rnd. This tube and the steel cables w the only things imported, all the meisanism of the clock having been made in establishment of Messrs Littlejohn and Jm, the makers, in Wellington, and the annus in the foundry there. The makers paontee that the time will not vary more &Bite seconds in a week, and they are >o be congratulated tipoo the successful wnpletion of their contract, as the appearBK of the whole has a neat., workmanlike balance. Mr C. Burton, the firm's re?tsi3tativf. h.Tg been most courteous durthe time he has been supervising the Xction of the clock in Oamaru, and to him •zrat measure of the success of the underSiiii is due. Compared with the dial of & Wellington clock, that of the Oamaru is one foot less in diameter.