CHRISTMAS.

West Coast Times, Issue 1329, 25 December 1869, Page 2

CHRISTMAS .

" Old Father Christmas "i* with us once •] again, and, judging from the preparations ranking in the town generally, we feel certain lie will meet with a hearty welcome. 1 The caterers for the public have been > s earching far and wide to give his votaries ' a proper regalement. Such numbers of fat beeves, such legions of turkey, geese, ' ducks, and fowls, as there are exhibited, and are tempting pu 1 chasers, has seldom bfen seen ; whilst libations of generous wine have been waiting to pout forth to his honor. The grocers, too, made a tempting display of all the ingredients for the time-honor.d plum pudding. The town was gaily decorated with evergreens and ferns, and the continued stream of miners and others from the country districts, gave the streets a gay and lively appearance ; indeed, we have seldom seen the streets more thronged than they were yesterday afternoon, .and if we may judge from the number of brown ' paper parcel* with which the diggers were hurrying to their hotels, we shou'd imagine that the drapers had a very good time of it, Taking a stroll through ttevell-sfreeh one could not help but admire the, variety of good things set forth in the shops. The butchers vied with each • ther with a desplay of meat in endless variety. Beeves fi om the plains of Canterbury ; veal from the Nelson province ; mutton and 1 lamb from Wanganui ; and pork fed in our own neighborhood. Then, the poulterers and fishmongers had the pinniped of fowls, of all description, and fish that we have seldom seen excelled. The frui made an excellent show, their shops being literally crammed with the choicest and most delicious frnit, some of it imported, but a considerable quantify, such as stra ivberries, currants, and gooseberries; heing natives of the soil. But to dye a detailed account, of the appearance of the shops,, we will commence at the south end of the street, and, first we come to the shop of Mr R. Campbell, known as the , " City Company's," Ffpre was by far the best show of meat. There wis one bullock, ' which' had , taken the prize at *he "Royal Affricnltnra-I' Show, I at Canterbury, and this was certainly' a Umlendid beast, weiffhinp ]2201bs ; but not ■P weight alone was it splendid, for the »ieat was the finest we have seen out of the ■old c^ifcry. A joint from the fove-quarter ■was^Hn? cut, up when we wpre 'in the ■shop^rcnrd the appearance of the meat ffwas^eallv first-rate, being, neither, top ' fat ■jper too lean, but having a nicely mixed marbled appearance. ■ Another bullock of nearly as good quality, if not equally as good, weighed n/50lbs. This one was fed ->n the station of Messrs Gnrforth and Morns-m, at Wan<ranui River, on this coast. • The meat appeared beautifully marbled w'en cut up, ,and we fancied— tout not being judges, it might be merely fancy— that ,the flesh of this bullock had a firmer appearance and a better color than its Canterbury compeer ; ffood 1 judges say that such is the case, but we suppose there m.iy be, as in fnct there is. differences of opinion about it. We ateo noticed a very fine calf, a native of Nelson, which a knowing looking member of the butcher's fraternity informed us was real "fancy weal ;" not having tasted it we presume such was the case, but at 1 any rate the carcase was a splendid one. ■ There was a she?p from the of , Wnnganui, which weighed 1351b5, an im- ,_ jnensa-carcase-sheivins^-thel fatjwautifully , white, and tho flesh beautifully red. or rather pink. This was also a prize animal. Then there was pigs— and such pi<rs, ' a look at them made a man's mouth water ' with visions of roast pork and the accomi paniements. Lambs there were in abun- , dance, all of the primest quality, and the , small pqueakersp-well, we did not count them — but they seemed to be stowed away in rows on every counter shelf, and pre- ! sented such an appearance as would have • delighted ttn> eves of a gourmand. The 1 next butcher's short we arrived at with a disnlayr-for many of them did not kill, , ov;insf to the heat — i<* the gmithfie'id butchery, kept by Mr Pi ice; here also the display is splendid, one bullock .in parti - 1 cular being of prime quality. The veal ! was also excellent, as well as the she n p and i r lambs. But in this sh»p the sucking pigs , took the palm ; they were neither too big/ , nor too little, but j ist the proper size. , Firm little fellows the}' were, too, and we doubt not many good citizens who to-day hayc'M-'le their dinners off one of them 1 will smack their lips and «ay " 'twas good." Tn justice to Mr Price, whose display wus ■ not so good as in former years, we may . state that he has not killed the' best of his , stock at present, but, we believe, has re- ! served it for New Year's Day. The remainder of the butchers made an excellent ' show, but not nearly so good as in former years, the great hrat of the weather having ; deterred them from doing so. Now for • the poulterers. They made ah excellent display. At the shop of Mr Ross, the poultry, if anything, excelled, what we have ohsei*ved in past' years. The geese were prime ; so were the .turkeys • and the chickens were so plump and fat that , we think a <rood housewife would notpr^ss them by, without making Mr .Ross' stock less. Mr "Wacner, also, exhibited some very fine geese and tnrkevs. The fish shop*? were well supplied with tbat most delici us <offish — soles ; as also rock cod, ' ling, and several kinds of fresh water fish. Bnt the fruit shops ! First, we will, commence with Mr A. "Walker's, South "Revell-street. His Avindow was most temptingly laid out with fruit of every kind that is seasonable. The juicy orange from Sydney was there, plums and> cb'eV-' | ries from Nelson, and from our own soil, strawberries as large as pigeon's eggs. At Ross' tliere was also a good display of every description of fruit, and s >me firstclass const grown vegetables. At Webb's there was a very fair show — vegetables in particular /were in force ; some cauliflowers grown on the coast were pally first-class, and we question if they could be exce'led in any other province. At Dunninsr Brothers the show of .imported fruit w,v first-claes, more especially in the way of apples, oranges, and plums. Brockle'iursf was not one whit behind his neighbors in the display of coast grown esculents ; indeed, we think his was the best, especially the potatoes And now for the confectionery. Stonebridge came out strong, showing cakes of immense size, and in such endless variety, that to give a deserip'ion would tax our limited space. Oavell's display was also excellent, embracing more variety of cakes than we could name.r On the whole, the display of Christina's checthis year — with some few exceptions — will not shame that of former years, there being everything that an epicure could desire.

SPOItTS AND AMUSEMENTS. Although/ we cannot congratulate ourselves on^foving quite so many sports and amusemeira this season as there were las-t,

yet, if there is no' quantity, there is at least quality. Such is they are we will endeavor briefly to review them, ac follows: — At the Du'ce of Edinburgh we have Thitcher, the well knowu ;• for who does Icnow or has not heard Thatcher? If there are, we would advise them to loseFno time in going to hear him. Jn the same company of vocalists we have another old friend, the " Unfortunate Man." Mr Small, is just as amusing as ever. His comic songs, Irish songs, are irresistible, and the man, woman, or child that does not burst into a hearty fit of laughter when Joe Small makes his appearanceis a misanthrope indeed. Mr Daniel*, with his pathetic and patriotic aongs, moves the senses in a pleasing manner; indeed, those who no not hear him" ihiss a treat. At the Princess' Theatre the Christy Minstrels are sure to draw crowded houses. Last night was their first appearance here; but good judsres say their reheurstils are the tip-top thing. There are some first-rate singers among them, and we will vouch for the corner men — " bbne's and tambourine," that they do their duty. ■ To those who mi-^ht wish to fancy themselves in the old country at this "ime of year there is the Skating Rink, at Hanson's Post Office Hotel, where, for the sum of one shilling', they can cut ass many capers as they think proper. The Bowling.- Alley, at, the Manchester Hotel, also tempts the athlete to show his powers ; and doubtless many will visit that well-known hostelry. The 3ports will be held at the intersection of Stafford and Revell street,, and wjll comprise title in the ring, wrestling, Jbicyle races, throwing'the caber, and a variety of other manly amusements too numerous to mention. But the great- event 'of the holidays, with the exception of the races. will be the regatta. This will be on a more magnificent scab this year than oh any former one. The reg.-jtta will occupy three clays, and as there will be a strong muster of,, boats, some of them new ones, built for the occasion, it is expected that a good deal of money will change hands. For those who delight iiupjcnics there will be the-Kanel4gn Gardens on Boxing Day, at which there „wilkw ilk- be a band of music ; and no doubt a considerable number of the votaries of ' erpsichore will go over to " trip it on the light fantastic. The races commence onitjie^3oth ; and this year, from the value oft the prizes offered, there is likely i to l ,B]a>>me good sport as the stakes will induce good horses to come- forward.