INVERCARGILL D.L.F. LITERARY AND DEBATING CLUB.

Otago Witness, Issue 2934, 8 June 1910, Page 106

INVERCARGILL D.L.F. LITERARY AND DEBATING CLUB.

Motto " Excelsior." The customary weekly meeting of the above club was held in the rooms, Y.M.C.A. Buildings, Tay street, on Wednesday, the Ist, at 8 p.m. In the absence of Shasta, the chair was occupied by Octava (vioe-president), who conducted the proceedings in a very efficient manner; but her capability is this direction is well known in southern D.L.F.-dom. The minutes of the two previous meetings were read and duly confirmed. Among those present I can recall the following, who, for various reasons, were very much in evidence: —Casino, Tennyson, Prospector's Double, The Helmsman, Willow Brook, Ralph M., Tommy Trotter, Luceda, Pakeha, Midgie, Octava, Rewa, and others. Two open meeting papers were read. "The Trials of a Schoolgirl," by Love Lies Bleeding, proved to be a very clever essay regarding the vicissitudes of school life as experienced by those who have no* yet attained their teens. L.L.B.'s attempt to interpret giddy school girlhood was, I have reason to believe, " writ sarcastic," and, despite the fact that I can find no fault with her orthograhpy, I am going to ask L.L.B. what relation she is to Artemus Ward or Josh Billings! " Friendship," by Marny&, proved to be a collection of gems selected at random, and furnished a very exhaustive anthology from the poetry of friendship. Whittier, Ben Jonson, Shakespeare, Jeremy Taylor, Emerson, Longfellow, and the egregious Anon, were all intelligently represented. The club thanks these two contributors for their kindly efforts on its behalf. The papers were listened to with rapt attention and highly appreciated. The evening was set apart for impromptu speeches, each member present being supplied with a slip of paper on. which to write a subject. The slips were then exchanged, and the oratorical display proceeded with. The first speaker was Willow Brook, his subject being " Old Nick." Although this appeared to be " a hard row to hoe," Willow Brook managed to hold the floor for fully Rv& minutes, and spoke fluently, indeed eloquently, fox that very prolonged space of time. We were all frightened that Willow Bk>©& would come . a cropper over this subject, but apparently h']s wide knowledge of 'Old Nick"' and his satellites stood this popular D.L.F. in goc4 stead. " Ways and Means of Selling t]k Invercargill Club's Social Tickets": I cannot now remember what I sa.jf / on the subject, but I hope these present ' 'lo. " Castles in the Air": Luceda dealt pbly with aerial constructions of an ambViious order. She said you require a very oon /jrtabte chair, glowing a late ho i r id nothing particular

to do, and theii yoa commence to. build—build >our castles in .lie air. "Is Dancing Good Exercise for Boys and Girls?" found a worthy exponent in The. Helmsman. The Helmsman understands dancing from A to Z—that is, theoretically; but I don't know how he'd ge't on if he were pushed out into the middle of the floor. But he gave a splendid speech, and, of course*, that's the- main thing. "Is Prohibition a Success in Invercargill'?" Tommy Trotter answered this question in tho negative; but I .am afraid Tommy Trotter's knowledge of Invercargill is very .slight. He's bean here about nine months, and, of course, knows absolutely nothing about the old regime. Also his logic was simply questionable. ■ "If the hotels were open," continued Tommy Trotter, " boys would be ashamed to go into the bars to drink," or something to that effect. His idea is—license, to save the rising generation. Tommy Trotter spoke with such conviction that his effort was indeed effective, and perhaps, all things considered, one of the best performances of the evening. " Give Your Candid Opinion of Tommy Trotter!" Casino gave -a very candid opinion, and the whole meeting acquiesced. " Love," by Midgie, was an attempt to bestir the comic muse, and not unsuccessful. Midgie. said 1 that love consisted largely of sham-fight. 3 and make-ups. The general impression was that Midgie was " right out on her own " on the topic—indeed another exemplification of the right comrade in the right place. " Silence is Golden": This fell to Ralph M., and he did his best to prove it. In fact, I've an idea Ralph M. will some day be a millionaire: you see, he understands golden silence so very well. "Is Tattersall's Wrong?—'Give Reasons." Octava, said it wasn't. Octava believes in sending the humble five bob occasionally with the hope of one day retaining the magnificent £so')9. She said you never can tell. I wish you sucoess, Octava; .you'll give uis a social when it comes to light, won't you, comrade? I think this concluded the speeches, which were, on the whole, of a very fair standard of excellence. Any way, we managed lo extract a great deal of amusement and. some instruction from the evening. After some discussions, in re the social, which will take place in the Victoria Hall on June 17, Octava declared the meeting closed. LAVEINTGRO, SecretaryAddress: Lavengro, 158 Liddel street, Invercargill.