SOCIAL AND PERSONAL

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2927, 13 November 1916, Page 2

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL

Soldiers' Room Fund. The lion, treasurer acknowledges receipt of the following donationsl'ahiatua Ladies' Patriotic Society (proceeds, of a sale), £16 13s. lOd.; Johnsonviile Women's National Reserve, £1; Mrs. Ponsonby, £l;"a!so the fol: lowing monthly subscriptions;— Mrs. J. G. Stott, £8 (eight months); Messrs. J. Staples and Co., £5 us.; Mrs. Herbert, £5 (live months); Mrs. Gilmer, £5 (live months); Lady Stout, £-1 (four months); Mrs. Shirtclilfe, £4 (four months); Mrs. P. J. Nathan, £3 (three months); Miss Eraser, £2 10s. (fivo months); Messrs. Wright, Stephenson and Co., £2 Is. Bd.; Mrs. C. Earle, £2 (two months); Miss Tendall, £2"( two months); Timaru Ladies' Patriotic Society, £2; Mrs. J. Kirkcaldie, £2; M/ss Kirkcaldie, £2; Mrs. W.'Nathan and Mrs. G. F. C. Campbell, £1 Is. each; Mrs. Hanan, Mrs. Scales, Mrs. Litchfield (four months), Dr. Harcourt Arthur, The British Empire Trading Co., Mis. and Mr. W. H. S. Moorhouse, Mr. G. Hunter,. ALT 1 ., Miss Coates, Mrs. L. Blundell, Mrs. F. R. Chapman, Mrs. M. Eichelbaum (two months), Messrs. Smith aud Smith, ,Mrs. Morrali, Mrs. H. Kirkcaldie, Mr. D. T. Stuart, Mrs. J. M.'Eldownqy, Mrs..W. Ferguson and Mr. T. Ronayne, £1 each; Lady Osborne-Gibbes, Mrs. Yeats, Mrs. J. Re'nton-Watt, Mrs. Coleridge, and Mrs. Salmond, 10s. 'each; Mrs. Mestaver, Miss Buttee, Miss Jenkyns, Mrs. E. E. Gillon (two' months), and Mrs. Ernest Hadfield, ss. each; "A Friend," 2s. 6d. Per Miss Murray: Mrs. Yaldwyn, £1 ■ (four months), and Mrs. F. Samuel, 55.; soldiers'' contributions (two weeks), £6 18s. 6-Jd.

Bazaar at Island Bay. A very successful bazaar was hold at the residence of Mrs. lvecnc, in Island Bay, last Saturday. All profits are to bo' devoted to the -Uarnardo Homes. .Mrs. A. It. Atkinson, in her opening, spcecli, gave an excellent sketch of the good work done in Dr. Barnardo's many homes for orphan children. She mentioned tho very large numbers of boys who had gone from the homes, to tho firing line, and what excellent Teeords the Barnardo boys: had in whatever part of the world they happened to be. The day being ideally fine, it was qui to possible to havo- tho stalls in the garden; The teachers of tho Island Bay School managed the stalls for sweets and flowers and cakes. Mrs. Kecnc and a number of her friends served tea indoors and on tlio verandah, while in tho drawing-room an excellent musical programme had been arranged by Mrs. Alfred Hill. Miss Soutannc sang, Miss Kama played the piano, and Miss Churchill recited, and several excellent items wero contributed by Mrs. Hill s pupils. Altogether Mrs.Kcene and her band of capable helpers have every reason to congratulate themselves on tlio result of their efforts.

Mrs. Walter Ashton will return to Wanganui to-day. Mrs. Wavmouth and Mr. F. 0. Waymouth aro" staying at Mrs. Facer s, Hawkestone Street. Mr. Waymoutlris leaving shortly for England in the .Motor Patrol Contingent. Miss Waymonth, of l'eilding, is also at Mrs. Facer's. Mrs. Hunter-Brown and her daughter are the guests of Dr. Pollen. Tho marriage of Miss Rene Qtieree, only daughter of Mrs. Ernest Querce, to Mr. L. S. Wallis, son of Mr. Wallis, contractor, took placc, oil Saturday at tho Unitarian Church, the Rev. b. E. Hales officiating. The bride was given away by'her uncle, Mr. Tlieo. Queree, and Mr. Leslie Holland, was the best man. The bride woro a picturesque dicss of white georgette, with a long cohrt train lined with tho palest pink, and fastened with pear ornaments. ItMi white tulle veil was surmounted with) a wreath of orange blossoms, and she carried a white aild.pmk bouquet. Her ornaments were some handsome pciy.l earrings and . a string of peails, the gifts of the bridegroom, and a pearl and opal brooch, 'the gift of her parents. Miss Biddy Peterson, the bridesmaid, wore a palo blue frock, with underbodice and sleeves of lace, and a wreath of blue and pink flowers,, and she carried a pink bouquet. Mrs. Queree wore a handsome gown of grey silk ninon, and she carried a bouquet or beautiful white roses tied with loops of heliotrope ribbons. lue bride's going-away dress was a saxo blue tailor-made, over a union and lace blouse, and she wore a large white picture hat wreathed with forget-me-nots. During tho service, special music was played, and a small choir of 12 voices, under tho direction of Hodges, sang several items. The cliunli was prettily decorated for the occasion, andtho "Bridal March," from | Lohengrin," was played. A reception was afterwards, held at the Duke of Edinburgh Hotel. '

An illustration of tho kindly spirit of the French women toward British sol- ] clicrs is contained in the latest number of tlio Victoria League's official publication. In the cemetery set apart tor British soldiers at Rouen, every grave is said to have boen planted with tor-cot-me-iiots, through the. care of a French ladv, who sowed tho seeds and raised the 'innumerable plants for men not one of whom she had known in lifo This ladv, on many occasions, has followed to the grave a' soldier s funeral, "to represent," as she expressed it, "the mother, or wife or sister, and to say the prayer they would have said." Some of the graves arc beautifully adorned, tended by this Frenchwoman, who will never see her own son's "rave, for no one can tell her where *it is. So, as she cannot care for her son's grave, she takes those of British soldiers to care for instead.

Concert at Victoria Military Hospital. To the delight and enjoyment of the inmates and nurses of the Victoria Military Hospital, tho Salvation Army Wellington Songster Brigade, tinder the leadership of Major Colledge, on Saturday ovoiiiiig rendered an inspiriting programmo of .music and song. Brigadier Gist, tho Principal of the S.A Training College, presided. The brigade gave somq fine interpretations of tho Army's latest music, whilst items on the English concertina, dulcimer, ami saxaphone were very pleasing. ■Vocal.trios by the Sisters Hodder and the Sisters Collins, White and .Cunningham evoked lioarty applause. Messrs. Begg and Co. provided a piano 1 for the evening, and this added much to the success of the entertainment. At the conclusion Dr. Deck paid a high tribute to tho work that is being done for the men by Mrs. Staff Captain Walls, wife of Chaplain Captain Walls, now in France, and Mrs. Lieut.-Colonel Bray, both of whom visit the Hospital weekly laden with articles that bring pleasure and comfort to the soldier lads. The doctor also expressed 1 his appreciation of the visit, and requested'that tho. brigade should come again. Tho men lying in the wards expressed words of gratitude for the programme of music.

"Mouth-Organ" Bibles. Tho 112tb report of the British, and Foreign Biblo Society, 1915-1916) has 1 just been published. The year's issues . of the Scriptures, comprising the whole or parts of the Bible', amounted to the unprecedented total of 11,059,617 copies, the increase in a great measure being due to tho fact that more than 2,700,000 English copies, just double the number of two years ago, were isI sued. Nearly all these additional books havo gono into British soldier's knapsack or the British sailor's dittybox., Tlio report says: — "With many British soldiers the society's thumb, index' pocket Bible is a favourite; From France one soldier writes: 'When I was in Egypt I bought one of your Bibles for 2s'. 6tlnow 1 want one for my chum', and I enclose a postal order to pay for it. It is one of them mouth-organ Bibles that 1 want —the Bible with tho alphabet running down tho side.' Another soldier, asking for the same book, described it as 'tho Bible with air tho chapters cut out down tho side.' " Naturally the present conflict cuts sharply across an international institution such' as the, Bible Society, yet none of the belligerent couttriea has placed ditliculties~in the way of distributing the Scriptures, and it is a remarkable fact that the society's depots at Berlin, Vicuna, Budapest, Warsaw, and Constantinople havo not had to closo their doors Mr. and Mrs. B. M'Carthy and Iheir 1 two sons, from llawera, are spending ' a holiday in 'Wellington. i Mrs. IT. Mullor and 1 . Miss May Mullor, of Owen Street, left by tho Riveraim on a visit to Australia. > Mrs. "A". Kaye, of Christchur?b, has just returned from a visit to England, and while there attended the Keswick • Convention—tho huge confercnco held , among the religious of all sects in j 3 England for the purpose of encourag-j - ing tho growth of Spirituality. Dr. - i'eploe, Prebendary of London, was a; . speaker, and, though a very old man, he delivered sevetal very fine addlresses. Among the speakers there was to be a ' Now Zealander, and she heard the address of a speaker introduced as such. She did riot seo him, biff ho gave an ' address which was enthusiastically rc- '' ceived. Afterwards she was informed ? he was tho Rev. Guy Thornton, who I had some years previously been stationod at Sydenham, and before that n at Gveendale.

A "World's Weok of Prayer," which began yesterday, will he' obsorvedi by the Y.W.O.A.'s in. every country, as well as by the brother association, the Y.M.C.A. It is now eighteen , years since tlie representatives of tho World's Y.W.C A. Committee decided to annually hold this international week of prayer. In tho Wellington Association meetings will bo held! daily at various hours. The opening meeting was held at the Y.M.C.A. yesterday. This was a united gathering of Y.AV.C.A. and Y.M.GA. members, and speakers from both associations. , On Wednesday, at 3 p.m., in the club rooms, Herbert Street, Mrs. M'Clay will lead a woman's meeting, and on Thursday evening at 8 o'clock Miss M'Lean, SLA., will speak to all girls. Daily ten-; minute meetings will be held at 1.35 p m. for business girls, and on Thursday at 12.35 p.m. Other meetings will be held on Monday at 7.30 and Tuesday at 8 p.m.