TURUA TOWN HALL

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 5035, 4 October 1926, Page 3

TURUA TOWN HALL

THE OPENING FUNCTION'. PROG.RESS AND ENTERPRISE. A very distinct milestone marking the progress of the township of Turua was reached on Wednesday evening, when a gathering of record dimensions assembled to witness the opening of the splendid new town hall and to listen to the first concert therein.

The buildiing is undoubtedly one of the best country halls, within a very wide radius, and, being owned by a company of which practically every resident of the district is a shareholder, it aptly marks the spirit of progress, enterprise, and faith in the district. Externally the buildiiig is disappointing, but th® corrugated iron walls and the sloping roof are no indications of the appearance of th a interior. The design of the building, its spaciousness, the lofty domed ceiling, the handsome furnishings, and indirect lighting system all tend t° ! give the impression of .a city theatre rather than of a country hull. There is seating accommodation for 4QO, for the auditorium measures; 60ft by 40ft, and instead of the long forms usually suffered in the country there are chairs and padded tip-up seats. The people of Turua must be justly proud of their hall, and other townshipsl will undoubtedly be envious. The pride of ownership and active interest .were amply demonstrated on the opening night. As a contrast with most of the largely attended functions on the Plains of the 500-odd present, very few were from outside the immediate district, thus proving that the size of the building w.as warranted. OPENING SPEECHES. The chairman of directors of the Public Hall Co., Ltd., Mr A. H. Rogers, who presided, briefly ou'tined the history of the movement. He said that it had been recognised for ,a very long time that th® provision of a new hall had become a vital necessity,, and that several schemes, had been put forward but nothing had eventuated until th® idea of a public company was mooted.. The matter was taken up enthusiastically, .and practically everyone in the district had become a shareholder. There still difficulties. to be; overcome, but if all pulled together they ( wbuld be surmounted. The directors were trustees for the public, and intended running the business on up-to-date lines, but suggestions concerning the hall and its management would-always be appreciated. A building, which it must be admitted by all was very suitable, had been provided, and it was hoped that the public would look on it as their own and protect and guard it accordingly. The company would run pictures every Saturday night, and every effort would' be made to secure the best programmes. A scale of charges for hall hire had been drawn up, but they were subject to amendment, according to the amount the building w ( as used.

Mr Rogfeife- then thanked; all’those who had .assisted in the venture, and made particular reference to the builder, Mr E. A. Chester, and his staff, stating that the building would stand as a lasting monument to their faithful workmanship. He also mentidned the manager pf the Bank of New Zealand, who had. come forward with helpful advice, and the secretary of the company, Mr J. E. Grebin, who had been of the greatest assistance. Mr Roigers apologised for the unavoidable absence of Messrs A. M. Samuel and T. W. Rhodes, M’s.P., and called upon Mr R. *W. Bagnall to opep the hall.

Mr Bagnall thanked the directors for the opportunity given him to perform the service, and stated that having been in Turua since its earliest childhood he had never expected to see such a building or such a large audience at any entertainment in Turua. In the early daysl the only place for entertainments was an did school room situated near where the factpry manager now resided. Afterwards portion of the sawmill wasi utilised.' As the district grew it became necessary to provide a public hall, and the old building provided had certainly done its duty long and well. He was pleased that the district had undertaken the provision df such a splendid building as the new. hall. It was a building that the district coud well be. proud of, comparing very favourably with many city theatres. A public hall enabled the people of the district to come together for mutual benefit, and was therefore a very desirable acquisition.

Mr Bagnall then declared the hall formally opened and dedicated to educational and social activities.

The; chairman of the Hauraki Plains County Council, Mr E. L. Walton, was the next speaker, and congratulated the people of Turua on their enterprise and public spirit in undertaking a work of such magnitude. A public hall, he said, was a necessity. It played a great part in the social life of a country township, for it was not the nature of ma,n to live alone. He must seek the company of his fellows. In fact he was gregariousl by nature, and he was answerng the urge of his instinct when he built a public hall. The building of a me .’ting house was no new thing. Democratic people built public halls to meet their need for getting together to exchange their views, air their grievances, and Zeroise their right of ‘free speech. The new buildng was the ma,terial aspect of the idea of progress. To him W idea was. more* important than the actual building, but'•nevertheless the building could be made to represent the ideas for the future. A few generations ago a man wa an extreme individualist. Now he might not be aware that he had ceased to be one. Times had changed, and with th'O pasing of time ide'as altered unceasingly and often unconsciously. In the past century people worshipped the ideas of liberty, equality, and freedom. This bred competition, and the evil doctrine, that Jack was as- good as :hig master, while freedom progressed along false lines under which a man thought himself free to do ap he likedy instead octree to do as he ought. Happily, the doctrine of every

man for himself, as it used to be applied, Was done with forever. While these ideals still have a value they are now being modified, and the idea of co-operation was emerging in the place of competition. Sacrifice, with its awakening of the sense of responsibility for the weaker members, of society, was taking the, place of equality. Lastly, there was the idea of service, that spirit of self-s’acrifice which enabled us to give all our best for the benefit of our cduntry and of humanity. To service, therefore, the building should be consecrated and dedicated, thereby promoting the attainment of human happiness.

A word of congratulation was also added by Mr S. J. Laughlin, and at a later stage Mr J. T. Davies; paid ,a tribute to the directors of the company for the manner in which they had carried out their duties. THE CONCERT. . ' As the attendance on the opening night may possibly be an indication ot the financial success of the hall, so, it may .well be hoped, may the quality of the concert provided be indicative of the entertainments provided in the future. Opening with the song “The Son of Hybriasi, the Cretan,” by the Rev. W. W. Averill, witlh "The Deathless Army” as an encore, there followed sohgs by Miss R. MpCullay, of P.aeroa. Mrs P. R. Henry, of Turua, gave a rendering of Liszt’s “Lieberstraum,” followed by Chopin’s. “Waltz in D Flat,” and. some humorous songs alt the piano were given by Mr W. J. Scrimgeour, of Thames. An exhibition of Highland dancing was given by Miss N. Charteris and her pupils. Other numbers, all of which were equally deserving of their encore, were contributed by Mrs P. Hague-Smith, of Paeroa, Mr A. Briggs, of Thames, Mrs F. C. Robinson, of Turua, Mr Ej Watson, of Thames, and Mr Beach, of Thames. A bagpipe selection was. given by the Re,v. Charteris and his sons-, and an Irish Jig was. danced by Miss Charteris and Mr J. M. Devereaux. The accompanimentsl were played by Mrs P. R. Henry and Mr J. Buchan.