DOMINICAN CONVENT, DUNEDIN.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XVII, Issue 36, 27 December 1889, Page 25

DOMINICAN CONVENT, DUNEDIN.

An entertainment was given in St. Joseph's schoolroom on Friday evening, by tbe pupils of the Convenl schools in commemoration of the visit of tbe lash National delegates to Dunedin. The guest of the evening was Mr. John Dillon, and there were also preseut the Most Rev. Dr. Moran, the Very Key. Father O'Leary, and the Bey. Fathers O'Neil (Milton), Lynch, Vereker, O Donnell, McMullen, and O'Neil, Sir Robert Stout, Messrs. J. B. Cailan, Thomas Bracken, F. W. Petre, J. Carroll, D. W. Woods, and a large number of ladies and gentlemen, tbe parents and relatives of the pupils, and the friends of the Convent. The programme was performed with, if potsi ble, more than the usual taste and skilful execution of the nuns' pupils. The young ladies especially who reciter', the verses explauatory of each tableau did their several parts with great intellilntelligence. They were the following : — The Misses M. Connor, F. Cameron, £, Newman and M. Kilmarun. Tbe tableaux we may add were each and all of them extremely beautiful and spoke highly for the artistic skill employed in planning and carrying (hem out. On the conclusion of tbe programme Mr. Dillon made a short address. — He thanked the performers for the great pleasure they had given him, and added that he was sure he migot taka it upon him also to exprfss the thanks of all those present, He was not a competent judge of music, but he knew so much that he had been delighted by the performance. It was a long time since he had been at scLool, but he hid once been there, and he had not quite forgotten all about it. It would have cost him a great deal to sacrifice any part of his holidays to any purpose whatsoever, and, therefore, he knew how to appreciate the fact that the pupils had given up a part of their holiday to give him this entertainment. Mr. Dulon went on to say a few words on the improvement introduced of late years into the education of girls by ttac ang them to play tbe violin — an instrument which he regarded as tne most cnarming of all. He was greatly pleased to sse how tbe nuns were mtercs.ing their pupils in tbe events of Irish history. Maay of the girls present were not the children of Irish parents, and very few of. them, if any, ha i bee a bora in Ireland. Interested, however, by such representations as those they had seen, they would all read the history of Ireland, They were bora among happier circumstances. Every one met with some unhappiness in life, and they must expect to have the common lot, hut it would never be their fate to see their pi rents and friends carried away to prison without adequate cause. They would never find their houses surrounded in the night by men who would turn them into the stieet, and tear down the roofs and walls that sheltered them. Buch things, nevertheless, were done in Ireland. Here every man who lived respectably was independent and protected by tha law, but it was otherwise there. Two thiugs especial.y were to be said to the credit ot the Irish people ; they ha i been faithtul to religion, aad to the principle of liberty. For this they deserved the bighesc praise. All that the pupils woaid learn from the insruction given tnem by the nuns, aud the study they would ba induced to mane ot Iriih histoiy. Mr. Dillon concluded by a humorous allusion to the claims male in favour of the rights of women. Women, he said, were anxious to take the management of public affairs oat of tbe hands of men, who, they affirmed, bai mismanaged ;hem shamefully And if he was to judge by the elocution of the girls who had declaimed tbe verses explaining each tableau, he must admit that the women would actually be fit to form tbe Parliamentary orators of the future.— Mr. Dillon, we may add, had been presented by tbe pupils with a nicely-bound volume, containing tbe verses repeated, together with some fine photographs illustrative of the Cat kjlic mission in Duaedm. A book of itie same kind bad been also prepared for Sir Thomas Esmonde.who.iboutrh not present, wa* included in the honours ot tbe occasion, and an edition, de luxe will be confi i«d to tbe delegates for presentation to Mr. IWuell. We give in deiail a description of each of the tableaux, wiih the verses explanatory of it : — Overture, "Jean de Piris"; vocal quartette, "Mild as tbo Moonbeams,"