THE ANNIVERSARY HOLIDAY.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5260, 1 February 1878, Page 6

THE ANNIVERSARY HOLIDAY.

January 22 the anniversary of the foundation of the colony in 1840 was observed as a general holiday. The weather unfortunately was not favorable, which threw a damper on the whole proceedings, otherwise a most enjoyable day would have been spent, ample provision having been made for the celebration of the holiday. A detailed account of the several sports and festivities will be found in another portion of our columns, from which it will be seen that notwithstanding the unpropitious stale of the skies several of the events came off creditably, although not with so great an amount of success' as would have attended them had the day been finer. The early morning gave promise of good weather, but during the forenoon the sky became overcast, and wind and rain were, with short intervals, the order of the day. Afterwards the number of holiday-makers who showed on the wharf to witness the liegatta, the leading event of the day, was -very much smaller than that of last year, attributable, no doubt, to rhe weather ; and the same remark will apply to the rest of the sports. There was still, however, a very fair gathering, considering the before-mentioned drawback. On the occasion of this annually recurring holiday, when viewing the fleet of shipping in harbor, and the large and handsome stores and warehouses in the vicinity of the wharf, and in other central portions of the city, a spectator who thinks for a moment how very few year's have elapsed sines the first settlement of Wellington took place, cannot fail to be struck with the wonderful progress that has been made, of one thiug he can hard y fail to take notice of—that whatever may happen nothing can take away the magnificent harbor which Nature has given to this favored city. Since the first immigrants landed here in 1840, the strides which have been made in the population, trade, and commerce of Wellington are certainly astonishing, and on no occasion is this more forcibly brought to mind than on the day of the Annual Regatta, when the Queen's wharf is the centre of attraction. The number present ou Tuesday, for obvious reasons, fell short of that of the previous year, and the interest in the several events was not quite so keen as would have be n the case under more favorable circumstances. Upon the whole, however, the Regatta, if not brilliantly successful, was less of a failure than would have bseu the case had the committee not been so energetic in their endeavors to do all they could to bring it to a satisfactory conclusion. The Eeohabite fete, considering the unfavorable weather, was fairly successful, and the same may be said of the other festivities of Tuesday.

THE REGATTA. Patron,his Excellency the Governor; president, his Worship the Mayor ; commodore, George Hunter, E<q., M.H. u.; vice-commodore, T. Buchanan, Esq.; treasurer, S. S. Downes, Esq.; secretary, Mr. C. H. Ellaby ; judges, Captain Todd of the St. Leonards; Captain McKelvie of the Hurunui; M; s>rs. George Allen and JV. It. Brown ; starters (for races commencing at the wharf), Captain Holliday; for all other races, Captain Rose. The north-west wind which blew so strong on Monday appeared to have spent itself towards midnight, and as the sky cleared reasonably hopes were indulged .that a favorable turn had taken place; but on this occasion the hopes entertained were doomed to disappointment. The committee , met at an early hour and discussed the question of postponement it being generally agreed up«n that while the prospects were not altogether pleasing a putting off of the Regatta would materially damage its suc- ' cess. After due consideration it was agreed to - proceed with it, and; accordingly the ships in harbor displayed their bunting to the full extent, from main to jtbboom, and across the wharf.i A barricade was erected on the wharf- for admission, inside of which a small fee was charged, and at tea o'clock the members of the committee and others left by the p.s. Napier for the New Zealand Shipping Company’s Hurunui, the flagship, which was moored a short distance- from the wharf. At this time the weather was very unpromising, dull leaden clouds lowering in the sky, and the first race was started in a shower of rain and with a fresh south-east wind. The time was strictly adhered to; hut wato the boats not coming to scratch at ihe programme time, otherwise everything was conducted in good order. The first event was the Open Boat Sailing Race, for which six entered, all getting away well together. The Aida, a Nelson yacht, took the lead, closely followed by one of H.M.S, Nymphe’s boat*; but the competitor* were pretty well together until off Evans Bay, when the St. Leonards’, which was scudding along under a great press of canvas,met with a contretemps through some of her rigging giving way, and consequently Mr. Fniser, who was in charge, thought it advisable to bring to and return. The Pet, which carried an enormous mainsail, took the wind out of the'Aida’s sails, and afterwards had it all her-own way, being admirably managed by her crew. The Aida, which kept a good course, and was well handled, unfortunately came to grief off Vgahaurauga through being swamped ; and in the same locality the Pearl, which had not earned a distinguished position during the race, also came to grief. The Coasters’ Race wa -h par excellence the event of the day (five starting). The Clematis kept the lead throughout, but there is little doubt but that the Hera M—the, successful cruft last year—would have made a close match if she had not lost time in rounding the flagship the first time. Generally, the rowing events were not so interesting as usual, on account of the courses being altered, aud an utter disregard to colors being shown. The Dolly Varien crew, who did not curry a coxswain, won the four-oared outrigger race ; the Torpedo, the junior’ f.mroared outrigger race; the Transit, the four-oared inriggsdrafc, a althe Hiirunui’aboats theship’s gig race, all other rowing events on the programme being postponed until a more favorable occa ion, oeveral protests were entered, but as they were under seal to the Secretary we cannot give them. Subjoined are the events contested ; . * (Lucs Ho at Sailing Race.—For all comers. Distance, ten miles; .entrance, 10s. (id.; Ist prize, cup and £7 ; 2nd, £5. The Aida, Pearl, Sc. L-onards, Pet, H.M.S. Nymphe No. 1, aud H.M.S. Nymphe No. 2, entered for this event. They all got away well together to gun-fire at half-pa-fc ten, the,rain pouring in torrents at the time. Off Point Jeruingham the wind bl *w very stiff, and the St. Leonards lost some of her gear, which disabled her. The Aida maintained the lead until near Ngahauraaga, when she also came to grief by taking in water, and the Pet under heavy sail led the way, pausing round the flagship the first time at ten minutes past twelve. The Pearl having also dropped out, H.M.S. Nymphos \h» 1 boat kept on the course in the ur "-orid pho-i'-. hor sister boat following far in 'h':-. ■■ a/. Toe race was now considered a gift 'A I - !.VL, which, thanks to good management, ale:*;vd a jjoml. course, and far out-dfctaiiced her rivals. She reached the winning-peat at one o’clock, thus doing the ten miles in two hours and a half, H.M.S. Nymphe No. 1 com'ng in half-an-hour afterwards, and No. 2 nearly two hours after. Junior Four-oared Inxi'GGlD Race.—Distance, two miles; entries, 10s. 6d.; Ist prise, £5; 2nd, £3. Thi* was a very tame contest, the Transit and Maud being the only competitors. The former won by over twenty lengths. Four-oared Outrigger Race—Distance, three miles ; entrance, £2 2s. ; Ist prize, cup and £25 ; 2nd, £lO. The Stella was scratched, leaving in the Wellington, Dolly Varden, and Torpedo. Captain Rose succeeded in getting them away on even terms, and the Dolly Varden took the lead, winning a tough race, with the Torpedo in a respectable position in the rear. Time, 20mm. First Class Yacht Race. Distance, twenty miles; entrance, £2 2s. First prize, New Zealand Shipping Company’s cup and £25 ; second prize, £lO. Six vessels entered for this race, viz., the Garibaldi, Flirt, Re i Jacket, Oceola, Florence, andMinnehaha. The southerly wind which blew was favorable to all the craft that ran, and the Florence, although not expected to do much except in a heavy breeze, proved the winner, with plenty of time to spsre. All the boats left their moorings to a very good start at 12.14 p.m., the Minnehaha taking the lead »nd the Garl-

baldi second, the Florence being rather sluggish in getting under way. When crossing Evans Bay, a luffing match going on at the time between a few of the yachts, the Flirt carried her mast away, which of course threw her out of the race. When the flagship was reached the first time the Florence and the Red Jacket were racing almost side by side. The Red Jacket passed the flagship at 1.12 p.m., and the Florence three seconds afterwards ; the Garibaldi and the Minnehaha, which appeared to bo out of trim altogether, were the next to lound the flagship, some distance behind the leading boats, the Ooeola bringing up the rear. As they stood away again for Ward Island, the centre-board boats began to, drop astern. The weather proved too much for the Minnehaha, which had togivein. At 2.52 o’clock, the Florence, the winner, passed the flagship, and at 17 minutes past 3 o'clock the Red Jacket did likewise. The Garibaldi was third, and the Oceola a good fourth. The result of the race was iu some degree anticipated, for it was expected that the Florence, although she only carried about half the quantity of canvas necessary for racing, would prove by her excellent woatherly qualities a wiuner. Junior Four-oared Outrigger Race.— Distance, two miles ; entrance, 10s. 6d. ; Ist prize, £lO ; 2nd, £3. A close race iu quick time, the Torpedo, Dolly Varden, Wellington, and Stella coming iu as named. > Coasters’ Race.—Distance, twenty miles ; entrance, £2 2s ; Ist prize, Shaw, Saville, and Uo.’s cup and £25 ; 2nd, £lO. The following vessels started Saucy Lass, Oynthia, Herald, Clematis, and Reliance. Tills was the prettiest race of the day. The Clematis had the leeward berth, and the Herald aud Reliance the windward. All slipped their anchors at noon, the moment the gun went off, the Clematis first, closely followed by the Saucy Lass, the Herald being upon their heels, the Cynthia and the Reliance coming next. , At 2 p.m. they passed the fl igahip the first time, the Clematis Ist, Saucy Lass 2nd, and Herald 3rd ; followed by the Reliance and Cynthia. The latter vessel fouled with the sunken hulk Eli Whitney, and lost considerable time. After the coasters bad cleared the flagship the wind increased considerably, with heavy rain, shutting out any further view of the vessels, and it was not till about 3.30 p.m. that the leading boat hove in sight, which proved to be the Clematis, followed by the Saucy Lass. The Clematis won at 4.18 p.m., the Saucy Lass a few minutes later. The Herald lost her jibboom in the second round, aud did not finish the race. The Cynthia was third. Second-class Yacht Race.—Distance, ten miles ; entrance, £1 Is. ; Ist prize, cup and £lO ; 2nd, £5. The following vessels started; —Old Scrubber and St. Leonards. The Pet, which was competing for the open sailing boat race, had entered for this race, but did not arrive in time to start with the other boats, and it was not till s one six minutes after they loft that she arrived at the starting-point, However, despite her heavy handicap, she gave chase, and speedily got up with her opponents, passed them, and came in an easy wiuner. The St. Leonards’ boat was second. Ship's Gig Race.—Distance, two miles ; entrance, 10s. 6d.; Ist prize, cop and £5 ; 2nd, £3. For this event gigs from the Mataura, St. Leonards, and Hurunui started, but a discussion took place about the course being changed. This being amicably settled, the boats were sent off, the Hurunui winning by about twelve lengths, and the St. Leonards being second. The Mataura, it may be mentioned, had such a bad start that her chance in the race was materially affected by it. In conclusion we may state that the weather became so bad that many crews were wary about venturing out, and it wa< therefore resolved, shortly after four o’clock, to postpone the other events until some future day, to be fixed upon by the committee. It is agreeable to report that no grave circumstance marred the day’s proceedings in the way of accidents. One canoe -with a young fellow in it capsized through fouling the anchor chain of the Hurunui, but he was quickly rescued by Capt. Holliday, who was iu a boat close by. The emmittee are to be complimented upon the m-uincr iu which they carried out their arrangements, and ou the flagship everything was done to lavilitate them in doing so. The Hiuemna, with his Excellency the Governor and guests, as well as the U.S.S. Co.ls Wellington, with excursionists, cruised round the harbor duri .g the day. ,

The pulling races postponed from the Anniversary Day, owing to the inclement nature of the weather, came off on Saturday afternoon, and were not a very great success. This might have been expected from the fact of a postponement being necessary. The attendance was very poor, which may be accounted for by the counter attraction of the cricket match on the Basin Reserve. The races with one exception were contested with little spirit. The course for all the events except the whaleboat race was from Evans Bay Point along the shore to a vessel anchored off Meech’s Slip; thence to the wharf, to finish there. The whaleboats started from the wharf, and made a three-mile circular course round H. M.S. Nymphe to Evans Bay Point, finishing at the wharf. The starts of the boats from Evans Bay Point could not be observed from the wharf, and consequently the. times which the races occupied could not be very well ascertained. The first race did not commence till an hour after the advertised time, -and the Volunteer Whaleboat Race did not take place till late in the afternoon, by which time most of the judges had gone home. The Senior Pair-oared Race, the last on the programme, did not come off. JUNIOR PAIR-OARED GIG RACE. The first event on the programme was the Junior Pair-oared Gig Race. Distance, two miles. First prize, £5 ; second, £2. There were four entries for this race, but only two put in an appearance, namely, the Dart and Duchess of Devonshire. Shortly after starting, the last-mentioned b >at from some cause or other stopped rowing, leaving the race to the Dart, which was pulled leisurely over the course. WHALEBOAT KACE. The next event was the Whaleboat Race, which the Echo, Orson, Black Diamond, and Arawata contented. The distance was three miles, a circular course, and the boats had to be steered by a bona fide steer-oar. The first prize awarded was a cup and £ls ; second, £5. After some considerable delay, through the Echo persistently keeping ahead of the other boats, all went off to an excellent start. The Echo was the first to go ahead, but she speedily had to give place to the Black Diamond, which soon assumed a lead of a couple of boat’s lengths. She was followed by the Arawata. The Orion, which had decidedly the worst of the start, soon picked up lost ground, and gob on pretty even terms with the Arawata and Echo. The Black Diamond was first round the Nymphe, Arawata second, and Orion and Echo in the order named. As they pulled across the hay for Point Jerningham buoy the Black Diamond and Arawata were a long way ahead, but a moat exciring race between the other two boats, for the third position, took place. They raced close together for a quarter of a mile, when the Orion’s crew putting on a tremendous spurt shot ahead. Nothing of any note occurred during the rest of the race; the Black Diamond coming in first an easy winner by a dozen length-, the Arawata second, Orion third, and Echo last. Time, 25J minute*.. MAIDEN FOUR-OARED INRIGGED GIG RACE. Distance two miles. First prize, £7 10s.; second, £2 10s. The Castor and Maud, belonging to the Star Club, were the only boats in tins race. They pulled together all the way round till turning the last fl ig-boat to come home, when the Castor by wide steering lost a couple of boat’s lengths and thereby the race. Time, 10 minutes. scullers’ race. Distance one and a half miles. First prize, a cup and £5 ; second, £l. Messrs. Hearn and Floyd started for this race, the former winning as he liked. No time was taken. VOLUNTEER WHALEBOAT RACE. In this race three started—the Black Diamond, Echo, and Arawata. The former boat soon after starting dropped out of the race, while the Arawata took the lead and maintained it to the finish. As the Echo had not entered, of course she will not bo able to claim the second prize.

SPORTS ON THE BASIN RESERVE. Notwithstanding the wretched character of the weather on Tuesday fully one thousand persons attended the sports on the Basin Reserve, got up under the auspices of the Rechabite Order. We are informed that some 2300 tickets of admission to the ground were sold, and there is little doubt had the weather been propitious yesterday there would have been witnessed one of the largest crowds which ever gathered on the cricket ground. Although the rain fell heavily and almost continuously the whole programme of the sports was carried out, and satisfaction was expressed at the manner in which the various arrangements were conducted in the face of considerable difficulties. Mr. A. Brown, Mr. Sidey, aud Mr. O’Kell were entrusted with the management of the sports, and great credit is due to them for the efficient manner iu which they discharged their duties. An excellent spread was provided by Mr. Tafner, of the Temperance Restaurant, Cuba-street, at a moderate cost, aud he was well patronised, considering the somewhat limited number of people ou the ground. Preparations were made for quoit matches, archery, swings, and other amusements for children ; but owing to the spectators being compelled to be under shelter, the games were not much patronised. A feature of the day was the Art Union at the conclusion of the sports. There were thirteen prizes, comprising a quarter acre of laud at Woodville, a sewing machine, pictures, &o. The arrangements for the drawing were carried out under the supervision of the ex-Mayor, Mr. Hutchison, and Mr. Rous Marten The winning numbers will be found in our advertising columns. The following are the various events, with the winuers' names :

Boys’ Race, 220 yards.—Ourtby, 1; Lawton. 2. Mens’ Race, 4-10 yards.—Ferranni, 1 ; Lewers, 2. There were eight entries lor this event, which was ran off in heats. Hop, Step, and Jump.—Reid, 30ft. Cln. Thirteen entries. 100 yards Race.—There were fourteen entries for this event, which was run in heats Howe and Poole in running tied twice, and divided the stakes. Wheelbarrow Race (blindfold). —Lawlor, I. Seven entries. Walking Match, one mile and a halt (20 entries). — McGirr took tire first prize. There was a dispute as to the whin r of the second prize, which was ullimately awarded to a youth whose name did not transpire. Stone and Basket Race (eight entries). —Davis, 1 ; Hume, 2 The next event was a man-of-war’s race, for which there were five competitors. The race created a great deal of amusement, botlr among the onlookers and competitors. No nattte was given. Sack Race, 100yds (10 entries).—Wise, 1 ; Rockby, 2. Jingling Match.—There were only three entries for th ; s even , which was won by Hume. One-Mile Race (10 entries), —Johnson, 1; Nicholson. 3. Patching a Greasy Pig, capturer to retain possession of the animal.—After an immense amount of fun in hunting the slippery quadruped, McKain succeeded in retaining ids hold, and the pig was consequently declared his property. There were several impromntu boys’ races g't up after the programme was got through, and notwithstanding that the rain fell heavily a goodly number of youngsters competed. The drawiug iu the art union took place at the conclusion of the sports, and at half-past five the whole programme was gone through, aud the gathering separated. RIFLE MATCH. The Kaiwarra R fle Volunteers fired for company prizes, and prizes presented annually by C. B. Izard, Esq., at their rifle ranges, Kaiw.irra, on Tuesday (Anniversary Day) at 7 a.m. There were thirteen competitors, under the command of Captain Thompson. The following were the six highest scorers and prize-takers :

Those marked * took range prizes. Mr, J. Turner’s prize of a fowling-piece of the value of £4, for the highest aggregate scorein the three first matches, is not decided yet, it only being the second competition. The weather was most unfavorable for rifle-shooting, it having rained during the whole of the competition. The conditions of the match were—ranges, 200, 300, 400, and 500 yards, five shots at each range.

Private Menziea .. 1G 16* 13 Tl. 15 s —63 Private Nairn.. .. 15 18 16 14 —03 Private France .. 10 18 10 7 —57 Corporal Turner .. 14 17 17 5 —53 Private Stock.. .. 15 16 10 3 —50 Private Brimble .. 11 19 8 10 -48