LOWER WAKEFIELD SCHOOLS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 309, 31 December 1877, Page 2

LOWER WAKEFIELD SCHOOLS.

The distribution of prizes to the successful competitors at these schools took place on Monday, the 24th instant, by Mr A. R. Oliver. Ou the assembling of the children Mr Oliver said that he had an agreeable duty to perform, that of awarding the prizes for merit, so liberally supplied by the Local Committee, at whose request he had felt pleasure in undertaking the examination. He ! had observed evidence of painstaking and care bestowed in the instruction throughout both !, the schools, and it appeared to him that an amount of useful knowledge was imparted, upon which a solid superstructure could be raised by the children in after years, and altogether {the children's answers in the various subjects gave him a favorable impression of the Nelson school system. The following is the prize list: > Bots* Division. Fir.st Class— Martin: Smith, 1; Leonard Fairhall, 2. Second Class— Felix Baigent, 1 ; Edward Hunt, 2; Arthur Watkins, 3. Third Class— Walter Baigent, 1 ; Albert Gibba, 2 Fourth Class — Malcolm Bird, 1; Charles Best, 2. Girls' Division. Mrat Glass— Bertha Baigent, I; Ada Lane, 2. Second Claas— Fanny Kinzett, 1 ; Mary AnneJVerry, 2; Margaret Eden, 3. Third Class— Jessie Smith, I ; Jessie Gibbs, 2 • Mary Eves, 3. Fourth Class— Edith Best, 1; Lucy Drager, 2; May Fairhall, 3. Special Phizes. I Arithmetic, given by Mr Herbert Langford—Bertha Baigent. Writing, given by Mr George Fairhall— Annie Fairhall. Marks —First Class, Martin Smith ; Second Claas, Arthur Watkins; Third Class, Ernest Gapper . Home work, by the Master— lat prize, Martin Smith ; 2nd prize, Felix Baigent; 3rd prize , Ernest Gapper. Good behaviour— Amrie Fairhall. Prepabatobt Division. First Class— Arthur Plank 1, EmmaGibba 2, Minnie Kinsett 3, James Smith 4. Second Class -Christopher Drager 1, Earnest Norris 2, Alfred King 3. Third Class— Dyson Thomas 1, LiZ2ie Wallaca 2, Ered Kinzefct 3

The Australasian of Ist December says :— "Commodore Hoskins and the officers of H.M.S.S. Wolverine and Sapphire, at present iv Port Phillip, were entertained on Monday night at a dinner by the members ofthe Victoria Club. Amongst the guests was his Excellency the Governor (Sir George Bowen) who in responding to the toaat of hia health, referred to the Commodore being, with himself aud the other Governors, the last tangible link to connect these colonies with the mother country, and he was sure that they would all hope that these links would be long preserved. The chairman has said that no doubt they would be glad to hear his views as a constitutional Governor on the present questions of the day, but there was a little fable showing the advantage of reticence which he might tell them. Once upon a time there was a lion who was afflicted with a bad breath. The lion went to the os, and said, ' Do you smell my breath ?' « Yes ' said the sturdy ox, ' I do,' and the lion instantly tore him io pieces for a slanderer. Next the lion went to the sheep and asked him, ( Do you smell my breath ?" ' No,' said the sheep. Whereupon the lion roared out ' Oh, wicked flatterer," and instantly ate him up for a deceiver. Then tho lion went to the fox, and asked him the question which he had already put to the ox and sheep, but the wily fox put his kerchief to his nose and sniffed out, ' Oh lion, I hare a bad cold and can't smell at all.' His Excellency said, ' Now, seeing so many able and accomplished gentlemen around me, I am sure that I need not poiut out the moral of this little fable. I leave you to guess who ia the lion and who is the fox with the cold."

A correspondent of the A. '£. Times, who was one of the excursionists arriving here from Wellington on Christmas Day, thus writes of Nelson ; — However much the " Sleepy Hollow " of New Zealand may be despised by some folk, I confess to a feeling of agreeable disappointment. There is an apparent degree of comfort, and an absence of those surrouudings which unhappily accompany poverty, in Nelson, which* I have seldom seen before. If people take things easier there than they do at this side of the Strait, it is not so much to be wondered at after all. The balmy air, the oretty gardens the hawthorn hedges, and gtaen fields are suggestive of peace, and comfort, and happiness. The town is capitally kid out, and Trafalgar-street and Bridge-street are worthy of doing a much larger business than I am afraid fails to their lot. There was not much to be seen on Christmas Day, as might haye been anticipated; but I was rather disappointed to find there was only a morning and evening train, as a friend and myself had made up our minds to travel on that line which gave so many arrows to the Opposition quiver before Sir George Grey and his following had succeeded to the Treasury benches. I visited some of the churches, and found the Roman Catholic and English churches' very handsomely decorated, especially the latter. I was rather disappointed at finding neither organ nor choir taking part in the evening service at Christ Church; but the clergyman explained that nowadays people were too apt to get a minister to pray for them, and a choir to sing for thera, in fact, having everything done'Tjy proxy, and he was determined to try and persuade his congregation to do these things themselves. Very good idea, to my mind; but I am much afraid the good clergyman will find that his congregations will dwindle away, just as some of the managers of the London theatres (if I may be permitted to draw such a comparison) found that their audiences dwindled away when they determined to trust more to the genius of Shakspere and his interpreters than to scenic effects. I am no cynic, but I have seen enough iv my travels to convince me that the musical (i include wstj-mnental as well as vocal) portion of the service of any of the churches cannot be dispensed with without lessening the number of those who attend church.