TE AROHA MASONIC HALL.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 243, 25 February 1888, Page 3

TE AROHA MASONIC HALL.

Tun recently constructed Misonic flail ; Loiltie Te Aroha, No. G97, situated in Biid^e street. Te Aiolia, A\as consecrated in due fcim on Thui^day evei ing last. The officers >\ lio specially <. arne to p erform the ceremony •weie Bi other Malcolm, JSicliol.('-ub i -iihite Pistiict Giand Master), •md Kioiher Slater, (Socreiaiy of the Distiict Giar.d Lod«e : both from Auckland. Twenty six member of rhe fiaternity in all weie picscnt. including pevcral from adjacent disti lots. Di other Rev. Bowler fiom Te Auamutu ablj* peifonned the wut-ical poitionoftho progianime The ceicinony of consecration \v;is cained out in a ims-t impies-ive manner, and Brother Jsidiol delneied a vciy interesting and able addicts, in the couise of which he jefened to tiic advanteges of Masonry, and tlie mpid strides the institution had made ■within the past few Ho also complimented the membeis of the local Lodge on the rnteipme and eneigy they had f-hown by the election of sucli a commodious and comfoit.ible Hal! ; Mipmed vrell loi the fuluie of Jlapomy at ff e Aioh.i. After the ceiemony, which lasted about an hour, all present sit down 1o an excellent repast provided l^ Brother G. Ebeit (of the P.ilacc Hotel) in a style thr.t left nothing to be desiicd ; and a m(»st enjoyable evening was spent in social converse, inteJ^poised by several songs, etc.. lendcred in dit-t class st}lc by some of the members present.

It is barely 20 yonrs since the mot profitable day* of English f aiming. In 18G7, in the be s t i\ licit growing di«Jnicts of the eastern counties, land was in such dem.iivl that it was difficult for vould-be tenant^ to ohtim farm^. In tlsat year a l;md as:ent in Ip-wich leceived no fewer than 120 applications in three day 1 * foi one farm ; next year it may be out of cultivation. A minister, (says a Canadian paper), with a lat her floiid complexion, had gone into the shop of a barber, one of his parishioner?, to be shaved The baiber was addicted to heavy bouts of di inking, after which his hand was, in oonspquence, unsteady at his work. In sharing the minister he inflicted a cut, sui'kienfly deep to covei the lower part of the face with blood. The minister turned to the barber, arc! said in a tone solemn severity, " You see, Thomas, what comes of taking too lnneh cliinlv '' ''Ay,'' lcplied Thomas, "it mak's the ?kin vena, tenner."