BUILT IN A DAY.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 144235, 28 October 1913, Page 6

BUILT IN A DAY.

A SUNDAY SCHOOL AT VOGELTOWN. About two years ago a Methodist Sunday School" was opened at Vogeltown and until three or four months ago twenty odd scholars met every Sunday afternoon at the residence of Mrs. Banbow, and latterly at Mrs. Jamieson’s owing to Mrs. Bembow taking up her residence temporarily in town. Simutaneous with tihe opening of the sdhool arrangements were made to finance the purchase of a section at a cost of ;ESO and by means of a bazaar, which was inaugurated by the Ladies’ Guild and a number of donations, sufficient has since been raised to pay off this deficit. It was then decided to proceed with the erection of a school building, the suggestion being thrown out that an effort should be made to build it in a day. Carpenters and joiners were approached to ascertain their views qn the proposal and to see if they would be willing to render assistance and so encouraging and satisfactory was tho response that the Trustees agreed to proceed with' tho scheme on. Labour Day. A plan and specifications were prepared by Sir. Victor Griffiths, who acted as honorary architect, and the necessary timber and other materials were ordered. In tho meantime the many little details necessary if success was to he achieved, were being attended to and Mr. J. H. Sheppard was appointed to take charge of operations. Offers of assistance were being received from all directions, the scheme being taken up most enthusiastically, and for three or four weeks past tliooe concerned had been looking forward to the arrival of Labour Day with pleasureablo anticipations. The timber and all material for tho shell were placed on the section and whenever opportunity offered the Trustees and a tow friends have pushed on with the priming of the rusticating. This was completed and tho boards triangulated, and on. Saturday last a working bee was "arranged at which the floor joists and studs were sawn off to their proper length and stacked in a convenient situation to facilitate handling, and the four corner, piles wore also fixed so that there would bo no delay in getting tho lords. A HIVE OF INDUSTRY.

■Preliminary preparations in so far as tho materials were concerned were confined to what has already been stated and it was agreed to make a start with tho actual building operations at 4.30 on .Monday morning. The men were keen to get to work however; some of them, in fact, must have been waiting for daylight, for at 4.30 there wore -already a number engaged in fixing the piles whilst others wero halving tho sleepers at intersections and all angles. As tho piles wore fixed, the sleepers woro laid and securely nailed, Mrs. Benbow driving tho first nail, five o'clock there were between twenty and thirty raeu on the job, the section presenting a very animated appearance. Mr. Sheppard had his largo stall admirably organised and all wero working with a will determined to achieve the object they had set out to accomplish. Good progress was being made with the foundations, all tho piles being well beaten into the ground, and as tast as the frame plates wero halved and notched for the studs, there were others ready to receive and fix them together. At seven o’clock the frame was hoisted amid three ringing cheers, and after this had been sot to true position another big batch Of amateur carpenters under- the super-vision' of experienced tradesmen who had set the base, commenced to nail tho rustic. By this time thirty-six men had their- coats off and so great was the noise made by the many saws and the score or so of hammers that it was with difficulty one was able to make oneself heard. It was a happy band of workmen and, tho enthusiasm they displayed was ay in.fsetious that even tire casual observer who came to look on caught the fever and before ho really knew what had happened he too had his coat off and had grasped tiro first saw or hammer he could lay his hands on. Thus the busy bees were increased in numbers. There was not a drone to b© found in the hive. It was a hive of industry and -when the ladies, who had undertaken the important duty of attending to the refreshments, announced that breakfast was ready shortly after seevn-thirty a considerable portion of tho walls wero boarded. Tho weather was all tlrafc could be desired and in this particular instance the usual custom of waiting until tho roof is on before proceeding to lay tho floor was cart aside, so that half the floor was also securely nailed. A capital breakfast was served in a large marquee which had been lent for the occasion by Mr. Hasell. Of course no stipuated time was sot aside for meals and after full justice had been done, though somewhat hurriedly, to tho many good things provided, the men got back to their work and shortly after nine o’clock tho rafters wero in position, the rustic at tho end of the structure completed and quite I half of each of the side walls. At ten o’clock a cheer announced the fact that the floor had been laid and tho rustic on the western side completed. Joiners in the meantime were busy fixing window sashes and doors, and the plumbers and electricians woro also following up in their own particular departments. When

the wall on the eastern side of the building and also the front wall had been boarded in many of the hands were thrown out of work, as it required the skilled tradesmen to complete the more intricate parts. These, however, had ample assistants and so satisfactory had been, tho progress of the work that at lunch time tho work originally sot out had been accomplished with the exception of the roof. Even a little platform had been built. A suggestion emanated from a number of the workers that, the Trustees should sroooed with tho lining of the building, his had not been in the contract, but a meeting of the Trustees was held on the spot and it was decided, provided all hands were agreeable, to go on with the work and that the two thousand odd feet of timber required oould be obtained at such short notice to proceed. To a man the band of workers agreed most heartily to the proposal and a messenger was despatched to town to order the timber and arrange for its cartage. Whilst the roof was being put on and the finishing touches were being put to the outside of the main building and tho pordh erected, others were-erecting the necessary scaffolding inside so that immediately the lining arrived this work oould be proceeded with. Once on the ground as many hands as possible were put on squaring the boards and handing them on to others to fix. Dozens of haranVers were going as hard as it was possible for men to use thepi, but a mote good humoured crowd with it all it would Be impossible to find. They freely admit that they never spent a happier day in their lives. At four o’clock the outside of tho building was completed, and excellent progress was being made with the lining. Despite the fact that there had been so many busy workers, there was no confnsioft, and at six o’clock everything was finished with tho exception of the last few feet of lining, and this oould not bo continued until tho scaffolding had all been removed. It had been decided to hold a concert in tho building in tho evening at seven o'clock, and'seeing that it wohld take some littlo time to dismantle the scaffolding and then finish the lining, it was reluctantly decided to cease work and get the building cleared and furniture placed in position to accommodate the large crowd which was already assembling for tho entertainment. Titus, not only did the promoters succeed in carrying through their original proposals, but in addition the building had also been lined practically throughout.

During the day a number of congratulatory telegrams were received from different parts of the Dominion. Mr. and Mrs. Burton, who aro away in Napier, wired wishing those concerned success, and Miss Keys, of Wellington, who was formerly a worker in tho school, wired “Drive the nail aright boys; drive with all your might boys; but hit it on tho head.” OPENING CONCERT. In the evening the new building was crowded to overflowing, and a most enjoyable house-warming was held. The Rev. J. Liddle presided, and an at-, tractive programme was rendered, songs being contributed by Misses Gilbert (encored), Mr. Lawrence, Mr. A, Gray, Airs. Duncan, Mrs. Birch-John-soa (encored), Mr. F. Asher and Mr. W. Okoy (encored); Rev. 11. T. Peat, recitation (encored), and / pianoforte solos by Miss Collins and Miss Herbert. The piano was kindly lent by Mr. Hoffmann. The chairman, in. a few remarks, apologised for the absence of tho Rev. J. W. Burton, who had beau unavoidably detained elsewhere. He congratulated the workers on the success of their efforts, and tho Vogel town branch of the Methodist Church in having so creditable a building for a Sunday School. Ho paid, a special tribute to tho work of Mr. Victor Griffiths, the superintendent of the Sunday School, and the architect for the building. Short spechcs were also delivered by Air. Griffiths and Air. J. Gibson, and Air. F. W. Okey proposed a comprehensive vote of thanks to the ladies and to all who had in any way assisted to bring about tho great success which had been achieved, and mentioned that tho section on which the school stands had cost £BO, and that this liability had been wiped off prior to the decision to erect the building. The cost of tho building approximately was £l3O, this being for material alone, the whole of the labour, carpentry work, joinery, plumbing and electrical, all having been given free. Air. AY. Ambury seconded the motion, which was carried with acclamation. The new building is 30 feet by 22 feet, and is well lighted with four largo windows. There is also a porch, fitted with two doors, and there is a sliding door loading from tho porch into the school. Electric light is installed. Mr. Sheppard, who, as already stated, acted as oversqcr, tenders his personal thanks to all the workers for the generous support they gave him. It had been decided to complete the lining of the building on Wednesday evening, but a number of carpenters who found it impossible to proceed with their ordinary work this morning, owing to the rain, turned up at the school this morning and completed tho w ork. School will be held in the new building next Sunday, but tho official openirfg Will be hold on November 0, in conjunction with tho celebration of the anniversary of tho establishment of a Sunday School at Vogoltown.