BOY WINS FIRST PRIZE

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1041, 4 August 1930, Page 1

BOY WINS FIRST PRIZE

(]»oses the House “The Sun” Built FATHER HOLBROOK IS SECOND Total Votes Top Billion Mark WHEN a little boy, Master M. Yelas, of Henderson, stepped shyly out on to the stage of the Civic Theatre on Saturday evening to be told that he had won first prize—the model home —in The Sun’s Great Popularity Contest the crowds which had assembled there to hear the results greeted him with a burst of applause which would have startled many older people. No less spontaneous was the response when Father Holbrook. winner of the second award, was handed an order for delivery of the big Buiek ear in token of the wide support he liad gained. Third prize, the Marquette car, went further afield, to Mr. A. W. Ebbett, a popular resident of Hamilton.

Votes they received were as follow ■.-* Master Yelas 154,126,250 Father Holbrook . . 105,409,300 Mr. Ebbett 7G,054,150 The ceremony -was the climax to a nmpaign which had roused the interest of the Auckland Province and stimulated enthusiasm both In the ranks of those who competed and of tiiose who assisted or watched. In Illustration of the comprehensiveness of a contest which will go on record as the most elaborate undertaking successfully put through by any New Zealand newspaper, the tampalgn manager, Mr. G. S. Teall, annfunces that the 145 candidates *ko were left in the final count polled among them no fewer than 1,207,934,000 votes considerably more than a billion. This huge total does not include votes secured by contestants who did not receive sufficient, to place them within the forranate circle of prize winners. When the count had been completed late on Saturday evening (it was a long and painstaking process, demanding great accuracy). The i*pn lavishly jarcelled out prizes valued at more than £6.000. Each contestant who lad Rnished pmong the lucky 145 was allowed to make his choice according to the measure of his votes. Here is what the first 10 candidates selected:— Master Telas, Henderson—“ Sun” Villa. father Holbrook, Grey Lynn—Buick ear. A. W. Ebbett. Hood Street, Hamilton— Marquette car. Mr. E. de la Mare, Auckland—Pontiac car. Mr. R. B. Pinkney, Epsom—Chevrolet Sedan car. Mrs. D. Martin, Ngaruawahia— Chevrolet touring car. Mr. W. Sheeran, Huntly—radio gramophone. Mr. Hugh Dent, Xgatea—Mount Cook tour. Mr. W. F. Williams, Devonport—motorcycle. Mr tV. Sinton, Mount Eden—La Gloria gramophone. task of vote count Ip to 4 o’clock on Saturday afterJoon - the closing hour of the contest, 'aodidates were pouring • votes into ballot-box at The Sun Office. The 'otes were then placed in the cuslody of judges selected by the competitors themselves, and taken to the title Theatre. Aid a strange duty was theirs in a Wamt setting. There, in the softly>t foyer, the 80 judges and officials 01 the contest down at tables uoged among the elephants and the it i • an< ' in tlle m >’stic atmosphere •4 India. They began an immense My at 6.30, and did not finish until midnight. 'otes and bonus additions fluttered <1- keys of an adding machine ■Mcially designed to total very large umbers, lent by courtesy of Messrs, strong and Springhall. for use \m S tlle campaign. The main in - E competitors was * n the theatre m pat,e titly- waiting the announceeh l-° E returns - - - • In the foyer bun* 11, * ant * cross-checking was “ BJ y in progress. Millions were ' a *ainst name after name. The ® was going to be close.

ALL EYES ON STAGE o .‘J’ en the interval. All eyes were j. t stage and every ear listening ' htly when the manager came from

behind the curtain to say that half the votes had been counted, and that the highest individual total at that point was about 17,000,000. The audience gasped; some whistled; all were astonished. Still the count went on. Little knots of candidates were grouped about the judges, who, in a monotone, were chanting in terms of millions and hundreds of thousands. “That’s the end of the big car for me,” some candidates would sigh as a rival name shot millions ahead. Rut it was good humoured defeat. “Never mind . . . many more prizes left.” And all the time a Buddha looked down complacently from his niche . . . perhaps he knew the outcome. LITTLE BOY’S SUCCESS Then, when the theatre show was over the campaign manager bowed over the footlights. “The winner, ladies and gentlemen,” he announced, “is a little boy, Master Yelas, of Henderson.” There was loud applause. “Father Holbrook is second”—another burst of clapping—and Mr. Ebbett, of Hamilton, takes third place.”—Further applause. “Are you entirely satisfied?” challenged the manager, leaning forward, his pince-nez catching a plint from the spotlight. “Any complaints?” “No,” shouted scores of competitors, and they applauded the results. Enter Master Yelas. . . “This little boy,” said the campaign manager, “has been working very hard and so has his daddy and all the people of Henderson. He has chosen the £I,OOO equity in The Sun’s model house.” Enter Father Holbrook. “This is an unrehearsed item.” he said. "X do say I am very grateful to all my friends who have helped me in this campaign. . . . When I take a thing on I believe in doing it for all I am worth.” Here came a note which found echo in hearty applause. "X went in simply and solely with the idea that anything I might get would go to my parish and school. lam delighted with the way this contest has been carried out —no bones have been broken.” SUN SCORES IN HAMILTON “Mr. Ebbett, who takes third prize, the Marquette Sedan, has been working very hard in Hamilton-,” said the campaign manager, in introducing the candidate. "Hamilton people know what a large number of readers The Sun has there, and now the circulation is about doubled.” Mr. O’Brien, a representative of General Motors, handed Father Holbrook an order for the Buick, and Mr. Tappenden gave Mr. Ebbett authority to take delivery from him of the Marqqette. Orders for tlje Pontiac sedan, the Wentworth sedan and the Chevrolet tourer were then given respectively to Mr. E. de la Mare, of Newmarket, Mr. IT B. Pinkney, of Epsom, and Mrs. L>. Martin, of Ngaruawahia. The rest of the prizes were then distributed in the foyer. Details will be found elsewhere. The manager concluded his remarks from the stage with an expression of thanks to Mr. Thomas O’Brien for his courtesy in allowing the use of the Civic for the concluding act of tne campaign The candidates’ interests were watched by the following judges: Messrs. G Winstone, junr., C. G. Brooks, A. G. Brown. R. B. Bartleet, and A. C. Johns. A list of the prize-winners appears on Page 14.