ATTRACTIVE TIMARU.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17771, 1 November 1919, Page 6

ATTRACTIVE TIMARU.

SOME OF ITS FEATURES

CAROLINE BAY AS A PLAY. GROUND.

The aim almost always shines in Timaru. In the matter of climate it seems to bo one-of the* most favoured, spots in Now Zealand, and there is no cause tor surpriso $jfc' the fact that year by year it is beq'oming increasingly popular as a holiday aild health resort. Already, aocommoda- ■ tion has been booked far ohaad at many of the principal hotels, and now that tho shadows of war no longer exist there is every prospect thit the South Canterbury seaside resort will onjoy an unusually successful season and be thronged with visitors from all parts of the dominion. Timaru owes many of its attractions to Caroline Bay. Detractors of the town are frequently heard to say, " Oh, Caroline Bay makes-Timaru." But they forget that Timaru first nwdo Caroline Bay. Richly endowed with natural attractions, this tine bay was yet susceptibly to many improvements in the art of man working in harmony with Nature, has produced results whicn or© very picturesque and beautiful, arid which oall forth expressions of admiration from all who visit tho place. The borough council is to bo highly commended for the policy of steady progressivenesa which it has applied to • Caroline Bay —a policy whicih could with 'advantage be pursued in many other places, and notably in Dtmedin itself, and the local governing' authority must view with satisfaction the thousands of local people and visitors who annually make limaru their playground during portion of the summer months of the year. The terraced approaches to the beach have been made very beautiful by the provision of lawns and tastefully laid out garden plots, where brightly coloured "flowers " bloom throughout tho i summer. >Even the railway line has had its naked Utilitarianism softened and relieved by a health of lichens and climbing green plants, which prevent it from interfering in ftny way with the general scheme for beautifying the esplanade. Wherever it has -been possible to do so artificial attractions .have been added to thoso of nature, and in 'jmany unexpected placcp the eye rests upon features full of charm and delight. ; „Tho splendid bathing facilities which it 'affords aro undoubtedly the principal attraction of Caroline Bay. The invigor'ating pastime of surf-bathing may be indulged in pnder the safest and most enjoyable conditions, andk for the nervous ■ *party" who takes tia dip with some -decree of trepidation Timaru represents a heritable haven. Tho waters of tho Bay are considerably -warmer than thoso of the •piore exposed portions of the coast, and iif. tho beach has any drawback at all, it consists of the almost entire absence of /the great rolling 1 breakers which lend so r ihuoh zest and exhilaration to the sport of >s6a-bathing. Owing to the cold winds the Season has not yet commenced in earnest, 3jut its .opening? was heralded yesterday by the * mooring in positon of one of the ""rafts" which are so familiar to all frequenters of the bay. Carefully supervised jwrnommodation is provided on -.the. beach at a reasonable charge, and the i£he<ls which were. erected for this • pur%ose some years, ago are as well-built and as any of the kind in New f Zealand. : :It may be mentioned in passing »lhat bathing is now permitted on SunSjiiy mornings, but not in the afternoons. Next in importance as a means -of recreation are the beautifully situated teniais c<mrts which are irresistible in ■ their appeal to lovers of this increasingly popular rie. There is no more pleasant sight Timaru- than that of these four courts filled with "their full complement,of whitedlad players, all enjoying tho zest and rigour. of one of the finest games in the ■World. After engaging in a few sets the the players huriy off to cool |3own by means of a dip in the briny, feturning Shortly afterwards to renew hostilities like giants refreshed. _ The very moderate charge for each set is collected with scrupulous regularity by the attend-, ant, and as" a "means of revenue the tennis courts must be a valuable asset, for they ire in use all day - l#ng., &On the beach itself a wide expanse of clean sand provides an ample playground ior the children. Their pleasures are furrier enhanced by the pipvision of a number of- swings, see-saws, merry-go-rounds, the varied-paraph&nalia of juvenile en-# joyment. Although it is essentially a holiday resort for young people, Timaru possesses maiiy attractions for persons of omore mature years. They may rest on one of ■(lie many seats along the _ esplanade,- from' whioh a commanding view, is.to.beobtained, or they may walk to the Gardens, which are extensive and quite' attractive, although ; they have qjiviously come second to the Bay in tho matter of-expenditure. They may also mount <?n. one of. the motor omnibuses, which, aro the. exact prototypes of the London o'ne£, and' ride "to the pub- . urbs, where many attractively laid-out resi-' denoes, mostly ol the bungalow type, may he seen! • ' •

It is a pleasant thing when, the cool of the evening cbmes to sit on the balcony of one -of the- hotels overlooking the - bay, to feast the. eye on the beautiful pan'orama spread oixt before it, softened and mellowed in the' olosing'light of day, arid to see in the merging of the blue waters of the ooean .in-the deeper blue of the sky* , some hintf _o£ ,the merging ,of the finito in the Infinite. JRtK all theso attractions it is no wonder " that - Timaru is popula* with honeymoon-couples. -But it may be doubted whether 'they are, the best-qualified persons in the world to appreciate its beauties.

—-Germany's losses during the war work out as one man in CTery "thirty-five inhabitants Austria-Hungary, one in every , fifty; Russia,'one ;in every. 107 inhabitants. '