STRATFORD.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 6797, 2 July 1885, Page 3

STRATFORD.

[from a correspondent.] July 14. — Caterers for the amusemont of the Stratford public should take a wrinkle from Mr. Mnlone and his confreres who had the management of lzst Friday's soiree in aid of the Roman Catholic church- The fact of there having been a good attendance and satisfactory financial result in spite of mud and rain, was largely owing to the spirited posters which adorned the local stores and other public places for a week or so previously. The bill was headed thus: — E HOA E HOA E HOA Are yon going to the Concert and Dance at the Stratford Town Hall on Friday? A practical answer in the affirmative was given by some eighty pleasure-seekers, and had the weather been fine the hull would have been crowded. Arriving a little late, I found a gentleman giving what I took to be a lyrical essay on ensilage, but which turned out to be a Bong in praise of a species of human f edder called sauerkraut. The singer even went so far as to recommend that the mess should supersede 1 oast beef and plum dough. I should like to ask this gentleman if he considers it the part of a patriot to take advantage of a public platform, with the eyes of the world upon him, to disseminate the pernicious doctrine of vegetarianism ? What 13 to become of Turanaki if beef goes out of fashion ? Overcome by this melancholy reflection I had to go and inspect the newlygravelled footpath which I found to extend right away to the hotel. I was recalled by the dulcet strains of the bagpipes, which carried fond memory back to boyhood's home on the braes 0' Usquebaugh. The "puir Southrun loons" did not appear to be suffering very much, indeed, later on, when the p'per struck up the Keelrow for a Highland schottische, the benighted Saxons seemed to enjoy it as keenly as any " brither Scot." Space will not permit my discussing the bill of fare in detail, but the programme throughout was well sustained and well received, and the dance which followed was prolonged until the kerosene " . . . Showed the matin to be near, And 'gan to pale its ineffectual light," The thanks of all are particularly due to the lady who presided at the piano during the evening. Just a word to the larrikins —I beg pardon, juvenile members of the community. Their behaviour on these occasions is, on the whole, that of gentlemen ; but is not the joke of throwing matches getting a trifle stale? Of course if a lady's dress would catch fire it would be a splendid lark ; but that does not seem to happen, so the practice might as well be d'scontinued. One useful result is likely to arise from the revival of spiritualism in the district. Our local cabinetmaker will probably have orders for extra-strong tables, to replace tboße broken by the spirits, who seem to bxve a "down" on furniture ; for not only tables, but chaiis and glasses, and, for the mutter of than, heads have often been damaged 'under their influence. Seriously, would it not be wiser for Mr. Crowhurst and other " truth-seekers" to refrain from publishing their experiments in this line until they have evolved so nething that will do mankind a little good, to counterbalance the harm that undoubtedly results as present? There are, even in this district, individuals the normal habitat of whose minds is not so far from tho border line between compos and ro.icompos, and the excitement induced by such proceed ings as those reported by Mr. C. is likely enough to shove them over the frontier. The worst of it is, a mania of this kind often takes a homicidal turn, and results in a tragedy like that on the Opunake road three yearn ago. Then one poor fellow is " coroner's 'quested," and another is tried for his life, but says the spirits have been at him and forced him to do it. So he is pronounced insane and shut up in an asylum, though why ho is thought less sane thun tho man who says the spirits force him to thump tables, I don't quite Bee. If spirits can control the will in one instance, there is r.o absolute reason why they cunpot ia another,