KING'S CORONATION CELEBRATIONS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 72, 12 April 1937, Page 6

KING'S CORONATION CELEBRATIONS

Part to be Played by The Children NO 1ND00R MASS1NG The holding of a combined church service iu the Hastings Municipal Theatre on the Sunday prior to Coronation Day; and the conduct of special coronation celebrations at each of tne sc-hools instead of staging a combined 'sehool's jjarty are the two latest deci* sions in. the preparation of the coronation jubilee celebrations for Hast- • ings. In making these announcements this morning the Mayor, Mr. G. A. Maddiaon, said it was} felt that the occasion of the coronation was one of particular interest to the children and peeial efi'orts should be made to impress upon them the significance of boronation and the ideals of the British Empiro and of the Monarchy. It was proposed originally that there should be a children 's party, open to all the pupils attending the primary schools in the borough, but owing to the prevalence of infantile paralyisis, it was considered advisable to substitute that occasion with the holding at each school of a children 's party, so obviating the massing of the children in a public building. Mr. Maddison said that the Borough Council held itself responsible for the payment of ninepence a h^ad for the various parties to be held at the sehools, this being to supply the refreshments, and in addition each school was to have a special coronation cake, which was to be divided and a piece given to each child. School committees, head teachers and other members of the teaching staffa are being asked to make the functions at the Schools as impressive as possible by staging a small tableau, depicting Eule Britannia or some other national llgure. These school functions are to take place on Tuesday, May 11, the day before Coronation Day. After conferring with the headmasters and others coneerned, Mr. Maddison said that it had been arranged for the pupils of Standard 3 to 6 inclusive only to take part in the procetesion to Nelson Park in the morning of Coronation Day (Wednesday). They will be assembled with all the others in the march-past at Nelson Park and are to be found accommodation on the grandstand. Each is to be supplied with a small flag, and in addition each school will have other flags, standardB and banners at the head of the columns of children as they take part. in the marching. The question of church services was gone into, said Mr. Maddison, and he had conferred with representatives oi the various churches who had expressed the wish that a combined' church service should be held on Sunday, May 9, at 3 p.m. This service, which would be a pnblic one in the Municipal T^K>tre, would not be connected in any way with the special coronation services it was proposed to hold in the individnal churches.