WANGANUI CORONATION CARNIVAL

New Zealand Tablet, 4 July 1918, Page 31

WANGANUI CORONATION CARNIVAL

■.-..:." (From our own correspondent.) Notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather there was a large attendance at the Opera House on Monday. evening, June 24, to witness the coronation of the Queen of the Carnival. The display was a very brilliant one, the Queen in her- royal robes, the Lord Chancellor in his State attire, the four princesses in their court dresses, with a whole array of maids of honor, pages, standard bearters, etc., made a very imposing spectacle. After the royal trumpeters had" sounded on their trumpets the preliminary announcement the royal procession filed on to the stage. The Queen-elect being seated, the Lord Chancellor (Mr. F. Grogan) in grave and courtly tones declared to those present the joyful purpose for which they had assembled, and after having administered the oath of fealty to the Queen-elect (Miss Rita Foster), solemnly placed the crown upon her head and conducted her to the throne. The Queen of the Carnival then made her speech from the throne. The four princesses were then presented to her Majesty, and the following programme of musical and other numbers was performed by way of salute to the newlycrowned Queen:—"All Hail to the Queen!"; grand salute to the Queen by chorus of flower girls ; vocal solo (selected), Miss Rubie Curran (Princess Rubie) ; instrumental sextet, "Sizelietta"—Miss Martin, Messrs. Shanly, Jones, Trownson (2), Upton, and O'Hara ; vocal solo, "Land of Hope and Glory," Mr. Pinard : recitation, Miss Zeta Chapman ; vocal solo (selected), Mrs. Ivo Symes : tableau, song, and dance, "The Butterfly and the Flowers" : vocal solo, Mr. Pinard: finale, chorus and return procession. Miss Olive Martin was accompanist. Before the final chorus Father O'Connell congratulated all who had taken part in the Coronation Carnival on the success and patronage attained, which had (he said) exceeded his fondest expectations. A great measure of success was clue from the generous help of his nonCatholic friends in the town and from all parts of the district. He hoped that the spirit of unity which had been manifested on this occasion would be preserved in our midst. Father O'Connell then dwelt on the great work accomplished by the Good Sisters of St. Joseph, and by their splendid efforts in placing their candidate (Miss R. Foster) at the top of the contest. He thanked Mr. and Mrs. Foster (parents of the Queen-elect) and their returned soldier son for coming all the way from Auckland to attend the crowning; and also Dean Holley, S.M. (Provincial), who came from Wellington for the occasion, all of whom were delighted at such a magnificant spectacular display. Besides those already mentioned, the following participated in the coronation pageant:Trumpeters, Masters V. Crotty and M. Carroll; Court herald, Master E. Crotty; standard bearers, Messrs. H. Rhodes and E. Tymons; sword bearer, Master P. Joblin ; crown bearer, Master Max Carthy; orb bearer, Master Neil Edgar; sceptre bearer, Master M. Cullinane; maids of honor to the Queen Misses T. Birss, D. Beck, M. Missen, and H. Missen ; maids of honor to Princess Rubie, Misses M. Burke and E. Percy; maids of honor to Princess Gertrude, Misses M. Kee gan and G. Rhodes; maids of honor to Princess Elizabeth, Misses V. and A. McLoughlan; maids of honor to Princess Eileen, Misses G. Clark and M. McDonnell; princesses Misses R., Curran, G. Camnane, E. Mills, E. O'Leary; mistress of robes, Mi.* K. Carroll; pages, Masters H. and N. Johnson. Following is a summary of receipts and expenditure in connection with the Queen Carnival and Coronation Ceremony:—St. Joseph's Convent Stall, .£BOI 0s lOd; St. Vincent de Paul (Wanganui) stall, £377 13s sd; Hibernians' stall, £366 17s 2d Children of Mary stall, £358 8s 9d : St. Vincent de Paul (Aramoho) stall, £345 12s 4d; door takings, £lls 3s; sundry receipts, proceeds of concert, etc., £79 ;—total, £2443 15s 6d. Less expenses, £206 2s 2d. Credit balance, £2237 13s 4d.