Local and General.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 278, 5 April 1869, Page 2

Local and General.

Postponement of Concert. —The Lyttelton Choral Society have postponed their concert, advertised for this evening/ Until Tuesday, the 13th inst. The Goublay Family. — This celebrated family, whose entertainments have won the most favourable comments of the English and colonial press, announce two appearances in the Town Hall, commencing this evening. S^*" Great Southern Railway. —The accommodation on this line for the very important work of receiving and carrying grain is notably inadequate. At most of the stations grain may i c observed stacked in the open air, and farmers generally complain that their drays are greatly delayed, at the stations. Conversazione. — The first of a series intended for the ensuing winter months took place on Friday evening in the Colonist Hall Lyttelton, nearly 100 ladies and gentlemen being present. The hall was tastefully decorated At the west end, a large table was placed, on which were exhibited several works of art, also, some valuable stereoscopes and slides. An excellent band was engaged, and dancing was kept up with great spirit until morning. Child ken's Treat at Duvauciielle Bay. — A children's party, as above, took place in Mr Stevenson's paddock, at Duvauchelle Bay, Akaroa, on the Ist inst. Mesdames Piper, Shadbolt, and other ladies in the district inaugurated, and carried out the. necessary arrangements with great credit to themselves and to the immense satisfaction of the rising generation, who assembled in considerable numbers, guarded and protected by Mater and Pater-familias. After the orthodox and necessary tea drinking, cake consuming, toy distributing, sweetmeat bolting, nut choking, romping, pulling and squabbling had been settled to the heart's content of the juveniles ; the seniors indulged in " the light fantastic " for a short time, with apparently as much gusto as the children had exhibited in their multifarious enjoyments. We like to see, and hope to chronicle many reunions of the above nature, and trust the present success will tempt the ladies to " try again " on some future occasion. Smallpox.— ln view of the fact that the small pox is slowly, but surely, spreading" in elbou ne, and that there is a possibility of the infection being conveyed to this Colony, it will be well for parents to attend to the requirements of the following sections of the -Vaccination Act :— The parent of every ; unvaccinated child born in New Zealand after the first day of March, 18G9, shall, within six calendar months after the birth of such child, take, or cause to be taken, the said child to a medical practitioner, or to the medical officer appointed for the town within which the said child is resident, for the purpose of being vaccinated ; and the said medical officer so appointed shall thereupon, or as soon after as it may proj erly be done, vaccinate the said child. Upon the eighth day following the day on which any child has been vaccinated, as aforesaid, the parent of the child shall again take, or cause to be taken, the said child to the medical officer by whom the operation was perforned, in order that such medical practitioner or medical officer may ascertain by inspection the result of such operation Aquatics.— The third series of scratch pairs in connection with the Canterbury Rowing Club came off on Saturday last on the same course as the last occasion, namely, from Maskew's to Stanmore bridge, a distance of half-a-mile. The proceedings were announced to commence at 2.45, with a sculling match, between the two coxswains of the club, J. Callender and H. Pearce, but with a lamentable want of punctuality, this event did not commence till nearly 4 o'clock. Callender rowed in the Cygnet, and gave his opponent, who used the Nameless, a start of three lengths. The two boys were anything but evenly matched, and though Pearce pulled pluckily throughout, he was beaten / easily by about six lengths. The pair-oared' matches were then proceeded with. There were eight entries, and the crews having been allotted in the usual manner, the boats proceeded down the river to start for the first heat, as follows .-—Cygnet— l, W. H. .Churton; 2, E. 'J. Dudley. Swan— l, G. Stead; 2, It. Foster. The Swan took the lead at the start, and led by about half-a-length to the corner where her crew put on a §purt, and got 'round * before the ' Cygnet, jjhqugh having the disadvantage of 'place.'' Cygnet then, however, went to work, 'and gradually crept up,' eventually winning Tjy: a bare quarter-length. Time : "3 rhin. 2 sec.: Second Heat.— Swan— l, C. A. Nalder; 2, J: H. Herdson. Cygnet— l, T. Douglas; 2, T.. Grierson. The Swan took the lead at' once, and kept it, winning by 15 sees. ; rhe winnersof these two heats, then prepared for the final heat. Cygnet, W: H. Churton and E. J.! Dudley.' Swan; C. A. Nalder and J. ;H. Herdson'. This heat ' was almost a facsimile of the first, the .bept; part of the race bejng from Brittan's corner up. At this point, the Swan was'leadirigby nearly a clear length; butjithe :Cygnet came in about a quarter length ahead, thus winning the best ■coritesredKrace^we have ever witnessed on the river. Jas. Callender steered the Cygnet throughout, and H. Pearce the Swan.

Bankkt*ict.— Charles James Fox, formerly of Waipara Flat, farmer, and subsequently a irarder in Lyttelton gaol, has filed a, declaration that he is unable to meet his engagements with his creditors. Mr Bamford is solicitor far the debtor. Ellesmere Farmers' Club. — A meeting of the members of the above club was held at Loe's Hotel, Leeston, on April 2. The Rev W. J. G. Bluett, who was elected chairman, gave a short statement of the purposes for which the club was formed, and the meeting was then adjourned until the next sale day, at i p.m., in order that all members might attend. Ellesmere Book dcßf—At • a meeting of the Ellesmere Book Club, held at Loe'a Hotel, Leeston, on April. ,2, the Rev. J. G. ! Bluett in the chair, a set of xules for the guidance of the club were approved of. The sum of £15 10s was handed to the treasurer as being the subscriptions already collected on behalf of the society. A resolution was also passed authorising the chairman to purchase any books at Mrs Knyvett's sale which he might think suitable for the club. Messrs Dudley and M' Alpine were elected to serve upon the committee. v Concert.— On Saturday evening last, the " Times " Minstrels gave a concert at the Town Hall in aid of the Library and Hand Fund of the Orphan Asylum. The weather was anything but fortuitous; a heavy downpour of rain set in most inopportunely and continued uninterruptedly thronghout the evening. There was nevertheless a large, anil highly appreciative au ience, and while there was scarcely a seat in the front without its occupant, numbers in the back part of the hall were unable to procure sitting accommodation. His Honor the Superintendent and his Worship the Mayor of Christchurch, were amongst the auditory The entertainment was very properly opened by the Orphan Asylum band, which played in so creditable a manner as to gain the heartiest applause. Composed of lads, of such tender age, it was agreeable to note the accuracy and precision with which the band performed, and a further pleasure to observe the esprit of those who composed it — two thiDgs which contributed at once to create a lively sympathy in behalf of the little fellows, and the cause in aid of which the concert was given The first part of the programme contained a good collection of ballads, songs, and choruses, most of which were encored. The opening chorus " The Alpine Wooer," hardly passed off so successfully as might have been expected, considering the number of vocalists and instrumentalists on the stage; and some of the accompanying choruses were but feebly sustained. In the vocal solos Mr Dunlop, who sang " Nelly Gray " with much taste was loudly applauded; Mr Cliff, who sang " The Old Cabin Home " and " Fare-thee-weU, Kitty Dear," with force and expression, was deservedly applauded. On account of unforeseen causes, the Minstrels were obliged to call in the assistance of Messrs Morgan and Hobbs. Both were valuable acquisitions, the former amongst the general body, and the latter as corner-man, a post which, as an amateur, he filled with very considerable credit. He is decidedly the best amateur corner-man that we have seen in Christchurch. As Tony's confrere, Mr Ffrost has vastly improved ; it was a pity his voice was so treacherous to him in " Louisiana Belle " and "De ole Wood Pile." The " Hen Convention," sung by Mr Hobbs, was vociferously applauded and encored. We can hardly compliment the corner-men on their dialogue which they carried on between the pieces. Except in one or two instances, it was devoid of point. Atter the interval, Mr Cliff's song, " Like a Flower," was re-demanded, vi r Poore was encored in his tin whistle solo " The Swiss Boy," with- variations, and responded with the " Perfect Cure," which was equally well received. The, serio-comic quartette " We're a Band of Brothers," by Messrs Cliff, Hobbs, J. Duulop, and D. Dunlop, was of course encored, and on their reappearance the brothers managed to hit the proper key, which they missed at the outset. Mr Morgan's solo and quartette " The Little Wanderer " was encored. The Japanese String Band created much amusement. Mr D. Dunlop followed with a lively song and chorus, " Pull, pull together boys," which was sung well and applauded The Laughing Chorus increased the >»ood humour which had pervaded the audience during the entertainment, and the concert was closed by the National Anthem, performed by the Orphan Asylum ,Band.