HOLIDAY TRIP TO CANTERBURY.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 9651, 18 March 1893, Page 2

HOLIDAY TRIP TO CANTERBURY.

[by a taranaki resident.] It is some time since I last wrote, but the fact is that a round of enjoyment has left me little time for writing. Since my last letter, however, Christchurch has been visited by one of the severest storms that that celebrated individual, t>e oldest inhabitant, can remember. It came up suddenly in the afternoon, and very soon hats were flying in all diiections, fences were blown down, trees were levelled, and some of these in falling carri* d away the telegraph and telephone wires. One of the wires in connection with the Fire Brigade station '.vns broken, and consequently an alarm was given and the fire belle rang out. Luckily whet the engines we c got out, which was very promptly their services were not required. Had a fire really started durin; tho storm it must havo spread with great rapidity. Tho Cathodrul itself suffered, for the handsome gilt cmbb on top of tne spire was twisted round by the force of the gale. When tho spiru waß re-built after tho earthquake in 1888 this cross, instead of being emboddeii in solid maßonry, was left free to swing, there being a long ahaf t with a heavy weight to balance it and keep it in pos; tion. With this arrangemont it was a comparatively easy matter to twist the cross back again to its normal position, which was done the next day, and people after reading the newspapers were astonished to find no difference in the spire The extensive rope works running from Madras-Btreet to Barbarloes-streot near tho South Bolt were completely levelled with the ground. One family at Opawa ha-l a novel exp rieace. While sitting inside the house, the wincauglit it and twisted it completely round, on buildings in course of erection weie ehakeu to such nu extent as to bo dangoroua and work ha<l to be sopped. cever.il sl.el and buildings were ov(r,urned im 1 the river, Papanui Road, and other plucc-s were i-trewn with broken branches an ( fallen treef. The gale soon blew iteelf out, and really the damage done \va i not nearly what ono would expect. Ono was forcibly reminded of the oIJ school recitation, '• Tlie wind in a frolic." Some evenings since, I received an invitation to the annual dinner at tho Working Men's Club in bydonhora. 1 attended with a greit deal of pleasure, because this institution h a sore point with the Sydenham Prohibitionist?. They tried and did not succeed in closing all the j üblic honsen, but the Working Mon'p C lib they could not touch When tho pubs were nominal^ closed numbers joineif the Club and the Prohibition enthusiasts railed ag inst it. They repr Bented that it watjust a huge drinking nhop. I was tiiore fore much pleasod to have an opportunity of seeing for myself. I found the place conducted in tho most oiderly manner Although refreshments may be had by anj member anything like excess is most strictly guarded against. At the dinner itself ther.i waß a profusion of everything both eatable and drinkable, yet everybody passed a pleasant, sociable evening wi horn a, sign of disorder or exces9 in any ehapo or form. I think the whole affair was a com plete refutation of the wild and reckless statements made by Rev Mr Isitt and hisfollowers. On another evening t attended a meeting of the Prohibitionists themßelvetat the Oddfellows' Hall, in Sydenham,and then I found the hall filled with a largo crowd consisting mostly of females of an age that would warrant ono in aaanmin;: that they could have litllo experienceeither ono way or another. The addresses, 'elivered were of tho usual intemporat<> temperance clusj. Of course tho Supreme Court Judges wero severely dealt with. They are simply brewery shareholders and absolutely under the control of the " liquor party." In fact it appeared to me that newspaper proprietors, editors, judgos, and the public generally had entered into a compact together to support the 11 liquor traffic," anddiin't they roll this phrase out! It was made perfectly clear that all excep' a select few in Sydenham forming tho Prohibition Loagm were doomed to perdition. But to leave the Prohibitionists, I wil go on to a fish Btory. Everybody knows that trout have teen introduced most buocess'ully into Canterbury. Accounts have gone home to England offish of enormous size. Gentlemen who are piscatorially inclined have strango and fearful notions as to size ani weight, so that when account* of fish weighing 201bs and upwards were re ported they were received with incredulity. Tnere is in the Telegraph Department Mr Meddings. r.n enthusiastic fisherman. He succeedod in hooking an enormous fish, which imm diitely swallowed him, and lib remained inihewhalo. No! no! Stop! I think I am mixing up another fish story Mr Meddings landed his fish, which, I think, turned the scale at 2Glbs. He li is not neglected this opportunity of con vincing tho English anglers of tho won dorful growth of the trout in Now Zealun!. Ho sent tho fish to the Belfast Froeziu. Works, whore it was f rozan, and it N now on its way Home to Mr Porejvul, the Agent-General, who, no doubt, will mike good use of juch a splendid advertisement of our colony, and it may be the means of inducing wea'thy and enthusiastic fishorinei to give our New Zealand rivers a trial. Last Wednesday being market day 1 took a run to the Addington s.ileyards. 1 was told the market was not a particularly targe one, yot 1 was fairly astonished ut the amount of stock that passed unlcr the hammer dv ing the day. Some day when I overcome my laziness I will send you ii complete description of those yards. F r the present I will merely say that all the arrangements are most complete, and 4ire made to secure the greatest amount of com fort for the animals, tho public, the buyurb and the auctioneers. The Battle of tho Creeds still goes on with undiiniuished energy. Tho Free Methodist Minister, Rev. Jolm Hosking, 1 suppose, finding (list the attack on Mr Worthington of the Temple of Truth was not 'panning out'according to expectations, has turned his attention totheFreethinkers. Ho inserted a sensational advertisement, and I went to hear him. I was much disappointed. It was a singularly A-cik attack, and there wero none of the promised revelations. On Sunday, I went to hear Mr Collins, the freethought leader in reply. Tho conclusion I havo come to is that Mr tloeking would bo wise to stick to religion and 1 t Mr Collins a'onc. Us decidedly comes out second best I canuot help regretting that a man of Mr Oollios's ability and eloquence should advocate tlio views he does. Why should he use his great abilities in unsettling men's minds, mid 1 should like to know if he succeeded in destroying our prosont religion wl at he would givo in its pi cc. 1 fancy this is a quest on he himself would find borne difficulty in answering. This reminds me that the Froethinkors held their annual piccnic at Sumncr, on Sunday, February 19th. As they had dancing and r cos during tho day, the Lyltelton Times has been Hooded ever since with letters pro testing against the desecration of the Sabbath. It certainly sounded very strange to hear Pa ra ra boom de-ay in front of the Cathedral on Sunday morning I went a few nights ago to eco the Stceu Smith Company at tho theatre. I thall see them agatD, and therefore will (infer v description of ono of the most wonderful performances I have overseen. Porfessor Steen claims that tho whole is merely clover trickery, but if lie woro to cl .itn to bo a npiritual modium he could not satisfy the audience moro completely. I ulno must hold over my trip down the coast.