The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. MONDAY, JULY 21, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1014, 21 July 1879, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. MONDAY, JULY 21, 1879.

We. were to-day courteously shown plans, in coarse of preparation, of .1 building which it is propositi tot-ivct upon freehold land in the centre of the wwn. The building is to consist of n comntoaious public hail and places of business, and it is intended to «o arrange the scheme .is to make it a good commercial speculation, apurt from the public advantage that will otherwise he derived ilisretrom. The ptan, which it is intended to submit for pubtie approval, gives the t'olt'ivrini: as the dimensions of tht» building : Frontage. 11S fceet. consisting ot five shops, with a grand entrance to the hall, right-of-way into hack part of premises, arid two private entrances to apartments above shops; shops. ">0 feet in depth, with a frontage to each of 14 to 10 feet : ' halt. 100 feet by ."0 feet, with a height of r»0 feet, and a of I«'> feet. T!u> fmitdtng will be erected en arches. 30 as to form a basement., that portion beneath the halt to lie utilized hereafter ' as may seem fit to the proprietors, and made a source of revenue, white, in the easy of the shops, the spaed wiit be occupied by apartments. It is proposed to lit up the interior of the hall, so as to render it suitable for the numerous purposes for which it may be required. There will, of course, be a commodious platform, with alt the necessary adjuncts, to which " access will be afforded from the rear of 1 the building. It nppears to us that. ; the galleries are to bo fitted up 0:1 the most approved principles, and wiit not ontv increase the accommodation, but wilt enhance the comfort and assist the revenue. The front elevation of the building, as shown on the plan, is very handsome, and advantage will be taken of the workable nature of the material of which tlte building is to be composed which we n.e«d not say is Oamartt stone —to make it a >■ tiling of beauty/' and another prominent monument of the excellence of what is fast .becoming one of our 3taple products. The fact that over 50,000 feet j of stone will, provided the idea should be carried out, be use*! jn the construction of the building, is a strong argument why it should meet with the heartiest approval of the public. The Stone Company, in the success of which we arc all direct Ivor indirectly intetuated, will reap the advantage of having .mother standing advertisement added to thoi-5 already in existence in this towji, and, we ar« proud to say, elsewhere—to leave out of the question the direct pro tic that will be derived from the sate of th« stone. More than this, the increase of work at the company's quarries will mean a large addition to the number «*f h.inds at present engaged, and the building will, for a year or thereabouts, absorb all the that • Oamara is capable of supplying. Hero are advantages, if v.e are not greatly mistaken, that will call forth the warmest sympathies of the public. I»ut. fsom this, there are strong reasons v. hy this work, in which the public will shortK be asked to co-operate, should be nnttei t.iken. We need scarcely say that wo nllt.de to 'ho necessity that exists for a hall for pt.:bli.; purposes. This necessity is becoming every day more apparent. 'The absence of si;ch a ouiluing 1acting to oar social prejudice. If no other argument than this could he adduced why the impending proposal

should meet with cordiality from all aides, tho public should support it to the best of their ability, and not allow' it to go the way of those other like proposals which have been placed before them. But we think that there is not much reason to fear that there will be any lack of the necessary public enthusiasm on this occasion. True, money is scarce —very scarce—but the plan upon which it is proposed to erect the building—the particulars of which, by the way, we ;tr- not at liberty to publish at this stage —should ensure a liberal response, evtii in these hard times. We can imiirine that, under existing circum- • sf.inces. such a scheme as that about to be .-;i-_'ge.-t».d v.il'i be in a high degree popular. It will be to the interest of .itoiiuma-inns. carpenters, and others connected with the building business, to see that it does not sink like those th.it have preceded it. it their support can make it : Hi,at. If thev can be shown a means of unking a pound by accepting, sav half cash ami the remainder in property that wc believe should, properly worked, at once pay a fair dividend and do something better in the future, the}- will not exhibit any apathy. We would wonder it they did. Nor do we think that any difficulty will be experienced in getting other sections of the community to help to the by.it of their ability. "What would benefit the artizan would benefit the tradesman, and poni'catc through all the ramifications of our lotal commerce, assisting it.i revival. This is the business aspect of tho matter. The social, in the present state of trade, depends, in a great measure, upon the assurance of the commercial success of the affair. The public cannot, if they were never so greatly inclined to do so, afford just now to make nnicli sacrifice for the sake of social benefit. It is fortunate, therefore, that, in the present instance, there is I greater promise of commercial advantage ' than of sacrifice. It will be pleasant to be able to feel tint we have not " paid too dearly for o.ir whistlethat the magnificent building, acting as a public, lecture, and entertainment hall, and at the t&rao time adding to the appearance and importance of the town, is a paying speculation to the investois. It will be pleasant to listen to an entertainment in a building in which one has not to pay the penalty of being half frozen for so doing. Tiiu members of the Philharmonic Society shotiidj v.e think, do their utmost to get the scheme carried out. and we would not be surprised if 'lie advocates of the Curfee Palace were to take advantage of the proposal by endeavoring to secure looms for the carrying out of their praiseworthy idea in a manner that will make it acceptable to every section of the public. It would have to take the form of a club, and atferd comfort and amusement to its patrons. We have endeavored to demonstrate that all are interested in the successful launching of the public hall scheme that will shortly see the light of day, and the task has been a pleasant one, for we believe that it possesses every merit to recommend it to every wellwisher of the community. i