AN EXTRAORDINARY PHENOME NON.

Feilding Star, Volume XIX, Issue 34, 9 August 1897, Page 2

AN EXTRAORDINARY PHENOME NON.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, — A most extraordinary— and I hope unusual - phenomenon has recently been witnessed in tbe thriving township of Feilding. On a certain evening a portion of our fair population, moatly young, though some with an experience of, say, 40 summers — and perhaps a winter or two— might bavo been seen on their bended knees " a-sobbing and asighing " and a- crying their eyes out in a really most distracted and distracting manner. Now, any reasonable person witnessing Buch a scene wonld naturally have come to the conclusion that some terrible and apalling disaster was im pending. Let us see what it was all abont. It appears that a certain building dedi cated to the service of the Deity called St. John's Church was in debt, and in order to raise the amount to pay off or reduce such debt a number of kindly disposed, highly-respectable, and well behaved persons proposed to give a per fectly harmless and amusing entertain* ment and to appropriate the moneys received for admission towards the reduction of such debt. I ask, what possible harm or wrong could there be in such a proposal ? And yet an itinerant preacher, not belonging to that sect, was able to so work open the feelings and credulity of a number of bis audience and to impress them witb the idea that such proposal was so wicked and wrong as to cause the scene of mental distress I Lave described. What appears to me as far greater cause for 11 sobbing and sighing " is that peoplo can bo found to be so readily willing to impute evil and sin to the perfectly innocent and even praiseworthy actions of their neighbours. I am glad to hear tbat tbe entertainment in tbe Assembly Rooms to morrow evening in aid of St. John's Church is likely to be well patro nized. I hope all sensible people will, under tbe circumstanccß, make a point of being present. Perhaps it may be considered unnecessary to remind them that just now tbe moon is nearly full. I am, &c-, J. J. Bag kali,. Feilding, August 9th, 1897.