ASHBURTON CALEDONIAN SOCIETY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 2, Issue 285, 5 March 1881, Page 2

ASHBURTON CALEDONIAN SOCIETY.

The annual meeting of the Caledonian Society was held last night. Thpre’ wer'e | i only seven members present, and Dr-- ■ Stewart presided. The balance sheet,... showed a surplus of L2113a 4d, and it'was * adopted along with the following report : In laying before you the second annual report of the Society’s proceedings, the directors,have a, to congratulate you on a successful year, , ‘ | sidered as a whole, from beginning to end ; antf- 1 on a balance-sheet that shows a surplus. ,At the same time, they regret that that surplus es not larger, inasmuch as it indicates a loss bn what was expected to he a great financial sue- -« cess—viz, the sports meeting. The 30th of, I September, 1880, was celebrated. by., ; the r ”rr, Society as their anniversary, and the chosen for marking the event was a concert of Scottish music and dancing. The was, of its kind, the most ‘successful that has ever been held in the district, and the best proof of that statement is the fact that every Scottish family in the district, from the Rakaia river to the Rangitata, and from the hills to tKeS sea, sent a representative, while over 6ooi people were crowded into the Town HalL The ; directors do not think it necessary to enumerate’ all those who kindly took part in the entertainment, as a full programme is recorded on the , minutes of the Society, but they accord their. ■ • thanks to Mr and Mrs Gerald Dyson Branson,' - who, being of a kindred that never saw the purple bloom of the heather, kindly lent their..... aid. Kindly given, too, was the help lent by : Mr H. A. Gates, also an Englishman. Last, - but not least, is the duty of thanks we owe,.tOj-C our countrymen and countrywomen who, both- * as dancers and musicians, came forward hand-, r somely and contributed their valued talents to- . make of the Scotch concert an unqualified k success. When we think of the hundreds of Scotchmen that were assembled under the -lobf of the Town Hall on the 30th of September, last year, we cannot but hope that the Scotch Concert will be maintained as an annual insti- ~ tution, calculated as it is to cement anew bond of friendship that unites.all Scottish., hearts when they beat in cadence to the melody ; of their country. A dance, which was well attended, followed the concert. On-Boxing Day and day following of 1880 the annual , sports were held. They were remarkably well attended on the first day, and the second day brought out as many as could have been expected, but your directors are afraid that the : times are not yet ripe for a two-days’ sports meeting. Regarding the question of finance, the directors would be glad to find more of the ■ Scotchmen and others of the district on,the j; . subscribers’ list, which has not been so lengthy . this year as it could have been wished. The. sports, it has been remarked, were not a fiiaan-' | cial success. Let it be remembered, Koweve?," J that what would have been the surplus was swallowed up in the expenditure for ground rent, preparing the running track, fencing' the i 1 enclosure, and such like works of a permanent nature as need not again be incurred. But the expenditure incurred this year in the directions indicated points, your directors think, to the necessity of securing ground for the .Society's , own use, and this consummation, so devoutly I to be wished, your directors hope will be taken to bring about. Your directors conclude their report by . expressing their. gratitude to : those who have in any way aided them in their. year’s work ; and by giving utterance to a hope' that many joyous and prosperous years- are ; before the Society and its members.—J. MAC-r ■ Lean Dunn, Hon. Sec. ;1 - f The balance sheet and report w;ereordered to be printed for circulation ! among the members. The election of office bearers was then - proceeded with, and resulted as follows —President, Mr M. Stitt; vice-president, Dr Stewart; treasurer, Mr T. Quill •; - Directors—Messrs Reed, Anderson, Kidd, ' Jacobson, Williamson, Dunn, H. T. ’ Smith, Douglas, McKenzie, Cameron,..-, Digby, and S. Saunders. >r: It was decided to advertise for a secre-; ■ tary, who should be remunerated for his-, work; at the rate of 6 per cent. on. the annual revenue of the Society. Messrs Poyntz and Zouch were appointed honorary auditors, and after votes of thanks to the retiring officers had been passed, and’special votes to Messrs Anderson and Reed, for their energy in the Society’s work last year, the next Directors’ meeting , was fixed for March 11, in Quills Hotel, and the meeting adjourned.