FEMALE REFUGE.

Globe, Volume XX, Issue 1544, 30 January 1879, Page 3

FEMALE REFUGE.

The annual meeting of (he subscribers to the Female Refuge whs held yesteiduy at the Supreme Court building?. The attendance was limited. Mr E, Dobson was voted to the chair. The Hon. Secretary read the following report of the committee of management for the past year : The committee of the Canterbury Female Refuge beg to submit the third annual report of the institution to the subscribers and friends as well as to the public generally. The report of the ladies’ Committee appended hereto is so full as to render a lengthy statement on the part of your committee unnecessary. On the management of the institution, number of admissions during the year, children born, conduct of the women, religious care and oversight, &c., full information is supplied in the abovenamed report. During the year it has been found that the present accommodation of the Refuge is much too limited, and the need of enlargement has, particularly of late, forced itself on the attention of your committee, and, after having given the subject their best consideration, it has been decided at once to add to the present building. By these additions there will not only be an increase of the dormitories, but also a room set apart for cases of sickness, and accommodation provided for the children alter their mothers have left the Refuge—as recommended by the Ladies’ ( ommit.ee. Your committee have exercised the greatest care in the admissions to the Refuge. Their aim has been to admit only the friendless aud homeless. They have declined to admit others not thus circumstanced. The ladies’ Committee in their report set forth the great need of a Penitentiary in Christchurch. The want of such an institution your committee also deeply feel; it has frequently been the subject of conversation in tin ir meetings, and they are not without hope that such an institution will be at no distant d ;y provided. Your committee cannot but gratefully recognise the deep and unflagging interest which the ladies’ committee have taken in the general supervision of the institution, and especially for that thought and care bestowed on the arrangements mnda for worship on the Lord’s Day. and for a bible class on I hursday evenings. The committee cannot think that such services will prove to have been in vain. In the view of the ladies’ commiftee on the kind and judicious management of Miss Nimmo, the matron, your committee fully concurs. lu reviewing the year, in the opinion of your committee the objects of the institution have been gained. Under its roof the really needy have found protection and a home. The committee have been greatly encouraged by the grateful spirit evinced by many of the inmates, and they are not without hope that the influences which surround the institution will tell favourably on the women in years to come. The committee commend the refuse to the subscribers as worthy of their continued support. Contributions to its funds will be thankfully received by the treasurer, Mr J. P. Jameson. The report of the ladies’ committee was also read as follows ; The ladies’ committee of the Canterbury Female Refuge, in reporting upon the progress of the institution during the past year, are g ad to bo able to testify to the impro.ement in the working of the institution and to the encouraging results which it has been the means of achieving. * The number of women who have been admittedsince JanuaryTst, 1878, is seventeen. Of these fourteen have had ch Idreu born in the Refuge, all of whom are living. Oue woman left to be mar ied after remaining only two weeks, and another, who was unwilling to remain, left in three weeks, she, however, paying all expenses. Of those women who were admitted to the Refuge in 1877, two are well married, six are in service and doing well, two ran away, one left without permission, of tour the matron has n > tidings, and two who were admitted from the gaol are known to have again gone wrong. During the lust five months a further effort has been made to influence the inmates for good. Mr Hargreaves conducts a Bible meeting at t ie Refuge ouce a week, and reports that the women are always attentive, and appear interested. !< ’uch Sunday a service is held by different ministers in turn, and the matron reads prayers nigbt and morning daily. The inmates express themselves as being very grateful for all that is done for them, and have been on the whole well conducted, obedient, and industrious, the amount realised by the laundry work being <£32B 13s 3d. A patifci u has been addressed to the matron by the inmates, praying that their babies might be permitted to remain in the institution under her charge after they (the mothers) leave, instead of being put out to nurse, they (the mothers) paying the cost. This matter has been i-eriousiy considered by the committee, and it is now proposed to build two nurseries for the babies, and also additional sleeping rooms for the women, the number being now so large that there is not sufficient accommodation. Circumstances frequently occur to remind members of tbe committee of the need for a penitentiary for women who have been in gaol and who, on their release, having no home to go to are almost certain to relapse into their abandoned habits, and the committee trust that be; ore another year has passed, some plan may be adopted of providing a shelter for these poor erring vvom-n who cannot be received into the Refuge, for f sar of their exercising contaminating influence upon those who are comparatively innocent. To the matron the thanks of the committee are due for her untiring patience and kind and careful treatment of the women and children who are entrusted to her care. The reports were adopted as read, on the motion of the Rsv. the Dean. Mr J. P. Jameson (hon. treasurer), read the balance-sheet for the year. The balance-sheet showed that tbe receipts daring the year, including a balance from 1877 of £4lB 6s 6d, and interest on deposit, £23 Is Bd, had been £1332 2s Bd. The expenditure for salaries, &c, for the same period, bad been £670 11s lid. The balance in hand was £l6l 10s 9d, and there was £SOO deposited at interest. The statement of accounts, as read, was adopted. The Treasurer reported that the two building contracts now in hand would absorb all the funds they had in reserve, so that they might look upon that as a building fund. There were very few subscriptions in arrear at ail, as Mr Bowron and himself bad gone round and collected most of tbe subscriptions. They only bad a caretaker and his wife’s external help. The inmates were well supplied with work, and the Refuge had plenty of customers for the washing. The accounts had been audited by Mr F. E. Wright, who had signed the cash-book as having been compared with the Bank pass-book and vouchers, and found the same to be correct. It was resolved that 250 copies of the report and balance-sheet should be printed and distributed to subscribers. The committee elected for the ensuing year was as follows: —Messrs Pratt, J. P. Jameson, Bowron, Dobson, Packer, Q-eorge Booth, H. Thomson, The Primate, Very Rev. the Dean, Revs. Aldred, C. Fraser, and his Honor Mr Justice Johnston. Tt.e Very Bv. the Dean moved —“ That Messrs H. W. Pucker and J. P. Jameson be request ed to act as secretary and treasurer for the ensuing year.” Ri-v. Mr Aldred seconded the motion, which was agreed to. The following ladies were elected as a ladies’ committee Mesdames Rolk-ston, Watson, Inglis, Montgomery, Cowlishaw, Dob-on, O'.'Uld, Jacobs, and Mies Ely, it being understood that the ladies’ committee would elect the remaining number ud to twelve. The Very Rev. the Dean moved—" That the action of the commit tee in enlarging the accommodation of the Institution and providing for the care of the infants in the Institution alter the mothers have left the Refuge to nroceed to service be approved.” Roy. Mr Aldred seconded the motion, which was agreed to. A vote of thanks to Dr Nedwill, the hon. medical officer, and to the chairman and officers terminated the proceedings.

THEATRE ROYAL. "AMOS CIABKE.” Mr Eignold’a fine performance of “-Am o9 Clarke ” last night has done more to establish his reputation, in the eyes of judicious critics, than even Iris masterly interpretation of “ Henry V.” Without detracting from the merit of the 3hak?perian assumption, it must be remembered that Mr Eignold is greatly indebted to the advantages given him by nature, of an exceptionally good voice and an imposing appearance, tor much of the reputation ha has gained in the King, Permr.nl attribute* such as these, aided by fair elocutionary ability—the last being in the power of any intelligent actor to attain—are all that is required to make such a showy pare as King Henry the most prominent object in the play, to the dwarfing of all the other characters, but much more is required at the hands of the actor who undertakes cuoh a character an Amos Clarke, and here it, was that last night Mr Eignold proved himself an artist in the true sense of the word. Easy, natural, and unaffected, his acting touched every chord in human nature, and he was equally graphic as well as truthful in the delineation of the softer emotions of love and tenderness, as he was impressive and powerful in depicting the more turbulent moods of scorn, hatred, and revenge. In his performance last night Mr Eignold displayed the true actor’s art, and what is more, convinced the audience that ho was the possessor of latent powers and forces they had scarcely given him credit for, oven after seeing him play the hero of Agincourt. The two performances may stand side by side as types of two distinct classes of acting, each equally powerful—the heroic and the purely natural—the former being indebted more to art for its effect upon the audience, while the latter no art can teach; it must be the actor’s gift. Without wishing to be hypercritical it would bo well to suggest to Messrs Elliott and Clinton that they might imitate the refined and quiet natural manner of the “ star” to their own considerable advantage. They literally roared through the parts of Colonel Percy Kirke and Sir Robert Clavering. No historical authority exists that the Butcher of Tangiors was a blustering Bobadil. He was a fiend in cruelty, but in mannei’ quite the reverse of the blatant bully Mr Elliott represented him to be, at least so historians have handed him down to us, Eor Mr Clinton’s vocal violence there was even loss excuse. Sir Rob rt Covering was, presumably, a gentleman, though a vindictive and choleric one, and ha would scarcely betray such gross want of breeding and common manners in the presence of In's inferiors as Mr Clinton did last night. Ho could not speak either to his relatives or dependants—ho bellowed at them—and this is not the acme of good acting, besides being distressing to the audience. The plot having been sketched in yesterday’s issue, it only remains to notice the remainder of the most prominent character?. Foremost stands out the Captain Snapper of Mr Charles Burford, who looked and acted the dashing “ Knight of the Road ” of a hundred years ago with picturesque effect. Equally good was the Patrico or hedge parson, of Mr Harry Power, who seemed to be inspired by a reminiscence of Harrison Ainsworth’s Jerry Juniper. It was unctuously racy, the drunken gravity of the clerical old soaker being amusingly graphic, Mr 0. C. Vincent was gallant and tender as the fugitive Captain John Clavering,'giving material aid to the piece by his good acting. It fitted him excellently, and he did ample justice to it. Mr Sterling Whyte had adi üble—Sir Simon Clavering and an old fiddler who breaks his cherished old companion—his second self—into pieces rather than pander to Colonel Kirke’s cruelty. In each character Mr Whyte appeared to advantage, Sir Simon being a good specimen of high comedy and the poor old musician a capital bit of character acting. Mr John Howe is deserving of mention for the careful manner in which ho played the part of a Hampshire Squire. Miss Jennie Watt as Mildred Vaughan, the beloved of Captain John, was deserving of groat praise for her natural and still powerful rendering of the character. Her acting was as good as her appearance, graceful and winning. Tribulation Touchin, a faithful old woman in the interests of the Clavering family, was in highly capable hands when entrusted to Miss Bessie Vivian. The other female characters were creditably sustained by the various ladies of the company, The dresses worn were handsome and appropriate, and there were one or two effective “ sets ” in the course of the piece, though the termination of two acts was spoiled by the slovenly manner of lowering the drop curtain. An act (drop in the theatre is more than an ornament—it is a necessity—and it is to be doped this deficiency will be supplied by the new incoming management. “ Amos Clarke” will be repeated to-night, for the last time, and to-morrow the bill will be charged for the bei efit of Mr Eignold, and Ihe last night but one of his engagement. The pieces are a comedy drama entitled "Alone,” the beneficial re sustaining his original character of Colonel Challice, and Jerrold’s famous drama" Black Eyed Susan,” with Mr Eignold as William,