Of Interest to Women

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 2, Issue 144, 8 April 1940, Page 2

Of Interest to Women

WOMEN'S INSTITUTE WHAKATANE MEETING The April meeting Avas held in the Parish Hall on Tuesday 2nd, the newlv-elected President, Mrs Sutciiffe, presiding over a large attendance of members. The visitors for the afternoon were old lesidents of the district and the afternoon took the form of a Pioneers' Day. Mrs Sutelill'e opened the afternoon by introducing the newly appointed secretary, Mrs Cairns, vicepresidents Mesdames Stewart and Zinsli and treasurer, Mrs Mulholland. Minutes of tlie February meeting were confirmed and various correspondence read. Two delegates to the Biennial Council meeting were appointed, Mesdames Cairns and Hills. It was decided to leave the matter of appointing convenors for various circles in the hands of the committee. A letter was received from the Town Clerk, Mr D. V. Saunders, thanking the ladies who gave their services on Centennial Day to receive names: and also those in charge of the collection, which amountcd to nearly £19. Show of Antiques etc. A feature of the afternoon was the display of antiques, baby gowns and. garments of by-gone days, all of which were 30 years old o<: more, some of the articles were nearer 150 years old. notably a watch 'which last visited the repairing jeweller in 1809, a baby gown of several generations, and a christening ring of Ceo. I"s reign. . Beautiful paisley shawls, tapestries and cashmere shawls and garments of all kinds made a unique display.

After the business of the meeting was concluded the president welcomed the old identities and presented each with a spray. Thos? present were: Mesdamcs Alan Stewart, Ken Knight, Alec Murray, L. Luxton, MeCrcady, Sargent, Erio Ramsoa, Eric Hill, W. Doolan,, A. Hall, Tebbutt, Richardson, Burgess, James, "Withy, T. McGiJiiiiiin, A. McGougaiu Bennett. J. Peebles, Misses Greenup, Black. Mrs W. Doolan was asked to come forward and receive special recognition as the -first white girl - to be., born in the district. Apologies were received from Mesdames W. P. Brown, Moody, W. H. Carter and G. S. Armstrong. Miss Greenup addressed the meetr ing on her early experiences on the > Rangitaiki Plains when the settlers 1 were known to their friends in the : South Island as the "swamp hens" 1 and the difficulties of transporta- ' tion Avere such as to be incompre- : hensible to the residents of Whakatane of the present day. Miss Greenup gave a most interesting and instructive talk,, and at the conclusion made jesting reference to the rivalry which once existed between dwellers on the Plains and the residents of Tancatua. Mrs ,T. Peebles was asked to speak on behalf of the Taneatua residents and told of her early experiences, from the time of her arrival by boat from Opotiki. Both speakers were heartily applauded. During afternoon tea Mrs Stewart entertained the companjr with the "Harmonious Blacksmith" which she said would no doubt be remembered by most of her audience as among their repertoires when learning the piano. Songs were given by Mrs Berry "When You and I Were Young Maggie" and Mrs Millar "Sweet Belle Malone" both very much appreciated by the audience, many of whom joined in the well-known choruses. The competitions for the afternoon were won by the following members:—Best Flower: Mrs Wheeler 1. Apple Jelly: Mrs Stewart 1, 'Mrs King 2. Articib of needlework made by member 20 or more years ago: Mrs Norman (Point lace) Mrs Moran (embroidered camisole) 2 On behalf of the Opouriao and Taneatua visitors Mrs Hill returned thanks for a very pleasant afternoon; and Miss Greenup returned similar thanks on behalf of the Whakatane visitors. The varied afternoon was brought to a close by the singing of the National Anthem.

WEDDING CLARK—AIRD The wedding was solemnised at Holy Trinity Church. Devon port, on Saturday, March 30th, between Betty Baxter, youngest daughter of Mr and Mrs W. B. Aird, Christchurch, and Denis Dare, only son of Mr and Mrs W. M. Clark, Whale a lane. The Rev. Brieriey was the officiating minister. The bride. who entered the Church with Mr C. Clark,, Hamilton, wore a charming suit of brown faconne, relieved with velvet lapels, a brown vison hat, and carried a red fox fur. The shoulder spray was of orchids and maidenhair fern Miss Wiki Aird, sister of the bride, was in attendance, and w r ore a willow-green suit, brown felt hat draped with veiling and willovgreen ribbon, and shoulder spray of brown french marigolds. Mr Robert was the best man. After the ceremony a reception was held at the Station Hotel Auckland. Mrs W. M. Clark, mother of the bridegroom, jeceived the guests wearing an air force blue suit, black felt hat with a blue feathers mount,, and shoulder spray of pink carnations and blue delphinium. Mr and Mrs Denis Clai*k will make their home in Auckland present.

ANNUAL MEETING

W.I. GARDENING CIRCLE Tlie annual meeting of the Wai-mana-Xukuhou gardening circle of the Women's Institute was held 'inst week at the home of Mrs E. P, Woolfield, Waimana. Mrs John Addison presided over a good attendance of members. In the absence of the Secretary, Mrs Wylde read the minutes. An interesting reading on bowls and vases for decorative purposes, was given In- Mrs Woolfield,. and a competition ai ranged by Mrs Woolfield, 'jumbled names of fruits,' was won by Mrs King. It was decided that whenever possible, when gardening circle members go to town, to take flowers to the hospital tor the wards. Mrs Woolfield on behalf of the members, conveyed their sj'mpathy to Mrs Eagle who is in hospital, and wished her a speedy recovery to health, and hoped she would soon be able to attend the meetings again, as she has been missed from the circle. The winners for the past year in the competitions etc. are as follows: —Best flower, most points: Mrs Mitchell 1 who received a dainty butter dish and knife donated by Mrs A. Iv. Bell, Mrs Stevenson 2 and Mrs Eagle 3. Best vegetable, most points: Mrs Eagle, who received a beautiful silver cup, which was donated by Mrs C. Wylde for yearly competition to encourage vegetable growing. Competitions, most points: Mrs Woolfield 1, Mrs Stevenson 2, Mrs Mitchell 3. The results of the day's competitions were: Best flower: Mrs Mitchell 1, Mrs C. Wylde 2, Mrs A. K. I Bell 3. Best vegetable: Mrs Mitchell (Leek) 1, Mrs A. K. Bel] (Parsnip) 2, Mrs King (Marrow) 3. Posy in a cup: Mrs Woolfield I{, Mrs H. Wardlaw 2, Mrs A. K. Bell 3. After a dainty tea had been served by the hostesses Mrs Woolfield and Mrs Hughes, all enjoyed a walk round the garden, which was neat and bright with flowers. At the conclusion of the meeting a vote of thanks was passed to the judge, Mrs J. Wardlaw, and to the hostesses and to Mrs Woolfield for the pleasant afternoon.

PUKEHINA

TRAVEL TALK ON IRELAND ENJOYABLE AFTERNOON The usual monthly meeting of the Pukehina Women's Institute was held last week in conjunction with their annual general meeting, a good attendance of members being presided over by Mrs T. Miltkelsen. General business consisted of the (Continued foot next colamn)„

election of the officials for the ensuing year, ancl the reading and adoption of the report sheet. On the conclusion 6*? the busi ness, an interesting account of her travels in Ireland was given by Mrs McNaughton, a member of the Dominion executive, who recently went abroad to attend the A.G.W.W conference. .Apart from her talk on Ireland, which was one of the manycountries visited during the tour, Mrs McNaughton . displayed the many souvenirs of her travels. She was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for her extremely interesting address, and was presented with a bou quet by Mrs S. Gunion. Personal. Recent visitors to the district were Mrs Bruce Nichol. of Abbotsford, Lee Stream, and Mrs A. Harris, of Emmasdale, Clinton* Otago. Mrs Harris was on the recent European tour with the W.D.F.U. They were the guests of friends on lha Te Matai Road.