The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. GISBORNE, MARCH 9, 1905. PREMIER ON FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

Gisborne Times, Volume XVII, Issue 1399, 9 March 1905, Page 2

The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. GISBORNE, MARCH 9, 1905. PREMIER ON FRIENDLY SOCIETIES.

At the iniyitation of the officials of the Manchester Unity , of Oddfellows, ■ the Premier [(Right Hon, R- . J-. Soddon) made a few remarks L (stales the New (Zealand Herald.) on benefit societies at the Premier picjiic at MotulaEiL Ho was, ho said, an Oddfellow himself, having . been ST. made a member of the order a great many years ago, when he joined Lodge Waimca No. 5515. ' He considered that the friendly, societies cjf ; the colony, were doiing a most noble; .work in. encouraging thrift among their members, in relieving the State' of a great deal of the responsibility for caring for, the sick, which would otherwise fall agon it, and in inak- ■ ing the men who joined such societies provident and well-conducted citizens. .There were in the colony no less than 35 central bodies, haying affiliated to them .462 lodges, With 43,408 members. Their, total funds reached the very, respectable figure of £846,315. The sick and funeral' funds amounted _lo .£774,532, , aiud the medical and" management funds to! £.71,785, which would .work out to £l9 9s lid per member.. Now this was at December ;3i, 1902. But a careful estimate had been prepared, in the absence of precise figures, and he could inform his hearers that the number of members was now over - 45,000 a , and the totql value of the i assets was estimated at £1,000,000. i which,, he thought, was highly creditafbde to so yo.uivg a colony as New Zealand. (Cheers.) The Manchester Unity of Oddfellows, of which he was proud to be a member, numbered no less than 17,315 members, l 2681 of whom belonged, to the Auckland district. It was the largest of all these societies in point of numbers, the Foresters being next with 11,797.| Altogether, the total number of members of the various societies was, in 1902, as he had said, 43,408. Compared with Australia, New, iZicalaml was a long way ahead in the matter of capital per member,'being £l9 9s lid as against £l3 16s 7d, the next highest, '.which Was Victoria, and £l2 Ss Sd for South Australia, which came third. When ho saw around him such a display of y.outh and beauty, he made ! ' ,up his mind to make the Premier picnic one of his annual engagements. (Cheers.) Motupatu was, a very ; lovely place nature had been bountiful indeed, and ho felt much-im-pressed by the) beauty, of the surroundings and the scene in that natural .amphitheatre of hundreds of 1 (Well-dressed," well-fed,, happy mem 1 and women and children. The peo--1 pie were the picture of happiness, 1 and did not seem to be oppressed by •the struggle to live. Thjey seemed l to enjoy life, and the Creator intended that the human beings whom Ho made should enjoy -life, anti not be bowed down from the cradle to the grave with the anxiety of the struggle to live? Anxiety, of this sort was due to the selfishness of men, and the best living men and women were those who enjoyed life themselves and helped others to enjoy it also-. These remarks were received With cheers,, and continuing, the Promier expressed bis delight at being with them that day, with the young folks and the old, and delighted to testify to the fact that the good les- . sons .of thrift and prudence Which 1 Oddieiaowship circulated amongst I ’ members had borne such good, fruit. I The object of that body was the no- * ble one pii alleviating the sufferings • of humanity.. Although Mr Seddon as befitted the occasion, applied his r remarks mainly to Obi l ie Itowsll'ip, ho e also conveyed a message of consider- v able importance to friendly societies c generally. “ Every assistance,” he P said, “must lie unpidered to. friendly s' societies, and, .speaking as the Minis- b ter in charge of tihe Friendly Societies Department, I say all must do what they can to assist friendly o societies in the true work of pliilau- | thropy..”- i *

Matawhero stock sale to-day. The three masted scow Gruroa arrived from Newcastle last evening. Whitohousj’o Bioscope Company will appear at His Majesty's Theatre, Giaborne, on Tuesday and Wednesday next. The Union Steam Ship Company’s o.b. Manuka made the pasaago from Auokland to Gisborne in 19hr 35mm.

At the Police Court yesterday morning a man named Frank Seymour was fined 10s and ooste for drunkenness. Air R. Johnston was tho presiding J.P. The Fire Brigudo has roceived n donation oi ono guinea from Mr J. Craig as a mark of appreciation for the prompt manner in whioh they turnod out on the occasion of tho incipient fire at bis promieoß on Thursday last.

Thomas Morrin arrived in Sydnoy by tho Zoalandia, but so tho Stud Company directors did not give any instructions no stops were tuken by the police to execute tbo warrant issued.

Only three Damiovirko races came to hand by tho Pross Association yesterday— Hnok Hurdles: Inspau 1, Grand Jury 2, Athol Maid 3: divs, £5 14s and T2 6s. Makaukiu Handicap : Furnoaux 1, Pantoloon 2,Chartreuse 3; divs, JE4l4s and £1 9s. Oup : Gold Cup I, Kaharoa 2. Submarine 3 ; all started ; divs, £6 11a and 14s. The programme of the sports, gathering to be hold at To Karaka on Thursday, 30th mst., to celebrate tho opening of the railway, appears in another column, and it is of an attractive character. Messrs Lewis, Devery and Seftoa are the secretaries. Tho sum of £i>o will' be offered in prizes. A great gathering of town and country folk is expected. ! The agitation of ' the Railway], 'League for additional rolling stock for Uio Gi.siborne-Tc Karaka line' quickly bore fnuit, word being roeeived by the Secretary, of the League yesterday that 16 new waggons were being sent, and that more' were to follow. An entertainjmont of an attractive character, will he given at Te Karaka this evening, when Mr White-

house’s Bioscope Company will »p-, pear. The show is an exceptionally, fine one, and there should he a large, audience.

The Care Monico lias been taken; over by Mr Duncan Campbell, late <?E the City Buffet, under whose able management it should maintain the excellent reputation ' it holds. Mr ICarupbell intends. to provide the best of accommodation at a reasonable rate, and visitors to Gisborne are roeo:imnen(Uul to give the Cafe a trial. Special terms are offered to day boarders. The usual fortnightly meoting of the Gißboruc Tent of Roohabites was held last evening, Bro. T. Hoidsworth, Chief Ruler, presiding. Two candidates were proposed for membership. A lotter was received from the United Friendly Societies’ Committee stating that the Committee could not see its way to move in tho motion brought forward by the Tent to prevent anfinancial members in one Lodge from joining another Lodge or Society. After the transaction of business the Tent went into harmony.

■There was a large and enthusiastic attendance of the oommitlee of St ; . Patrick’s sports last night at the Masonic Hotel, and a large amount of routine business was transacted. Matters in connection with the day’s sports are well forward, and a very successful day is expected. Mr P, Maher, who has undertaken the management of the children's pleasure during the day, intends to devote his greatest effort in this direction. The City Band will he in attendance. . Several nominations have been received from outside, and with the local boys in, training, the entries for tho pedestrian events promise to exceed previous years. Intending competitors are reminded that the entries close with Mr Ed. Williams, saddler, at 3 jj.m. on Saturday, next. Gisborne isshortly to be visited by Captain Scott Harden, tho well known war correspondent of the London Daily bhronicle. Captain Harden will lecture on the Russian-Japanese war. Writing iu regard to “ The True Story of the Fall of Port Arthur,” an exchange says:— “Captain Soott Harden’s story was so graphic that it proved interesting in the extreme. Tho possessor of an exceptionally fine series of photographs and impressionist pictures, he is able to show views of the beleaguered town, its harbor, its marvellous fortifications, its battered buildings, its inhabitants, with their good and bad traits ; in fact everything about Port Arthur (where he livsd and worked before and during the siege) that could interest the public he has noted;" Captain Skinner’s new schooner Kaeo was berthed at the wharf at 5 o’clock last evening, and was inspected by a large number of visitors. The vessel is, 105 ft long, with 24ft beam and 9ft depth. The arrangement and fittings of tho cabins and dining Baloon were greatly admired, and the new vessel should do much for the passenger traffic on-the coast. The Kaeo landed 30 tons cargo in the Bay of Plenty, including the monuments for theschoo) children recently drowned there. The East Cape was passed on Thurday night. The Kaeo had to use her engine most of tho way down the coast, there being little wind. Twelve tons were landed at Port Awanui, 11 tons at Tuparoa, 30 tons at Waipiro, 20 tons at Tokomaru, 10 tons at Tolago, 5 tons at Waipare, and 5 tons at Pakarae. The Kaeo has 130 tons coal? timber, pipes, furniture, and general stores for this port, '