Stratford News.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 154, 28 December 1911, Page 3

Stratford News.

: * From Our Resident Reporter. * * * ************ + +

THE EG MONT CLUB'S NEW HOME. The Egmont Club is a very popular institution unionist business men and the menfolk of Stratford in general. It has not been in existence very long, but large membership and the fact that it jong ago outgrew the accommodation secured have proved conclusively, what only a few recognised previously, that a well-managed and inexpensive club was a H-iil live necessity. The executive is a progressive band of men, and enterprising. Oil the advice of one of its members a section was secured some time ago in Broadway North, near the Fire .Brigade station, 'the price paid being ,C3O(J. The "deal" was sharply criti- - cised at the time, but the edge of the' criticism was worn- oiT by the subsequent sale of half the section for the same amount as was paid for the lot.' On the remaining land the executive proposed and the. members decided to erect a new honi'.i for the club, and the guarantors were secured to some extent by the purchase of debentures by the ' members. To Mr. .T. D. Ilealy was entrusted the - work of designing the new building, and a contract was let to Mr. J. \V. Boon, of .Stratford. The building is now nearly •out of the contractor's hands, and the other day I had a look over the place, arriving at the conclusion that the club ' the architect and the builders have a good deal to be proud of, for it is hard to imagine what more could have been done to secure the comfort and convenience of members. The building has a pleasing front elevation. Tt stands back a few feet from the road, and' this is spanned in front of the main door by a portico with iron pillars and fretwork. A concrete dwarf wall, surmounted by ,111 ornamental iron railing to a height of three fret, extends along the whole of the front. Stepping over the threshold 'we find ourselves in a vestibule 7ft. bv 10ft,, from whic); 1 swing doors admit' us to the spacious hall. 2Sft. (iin. by 10ft. On our right is the reading-room, 23ft. by loft., lighted by one of the main front windows, arched, and-containing small tinted panes in the upper portion. Folding doors divide oIT a card-room. 15ft. by 1-f 1 • This arrangement admits of the two rooms being thrown into one of 35ft. by I,sft. for social .purposes. On the left side of the hall a door opens into a cardroom 18ft. by 15ft. Farther on is the entrance to the sanitary block, and the hftll ends at a pair of swing doors which give entrance to tile billiard room. This is a specially fine room, and probably | one of the finest in the island. Its dimensions are Soft, by 41ft. Three of Riley's tables are to 'be installed. The billiard room walls are panelled throughout in our beautiful mountain riinu. specially selected, and oiled and knotted to bring out the splendid markings of the heart wood. The lighting promises to be all that any cueist can desire, there being three large skylights. The ceiling here, as in all parts'of the building, is of artistic Wunderlich steel, with deep cornice* and centres of rich design.' the. ceilings painted white and the re- j mainder skilfully used by the decorators. At the rear of the billiard room are coffee and tea rooms, 32ft. by 12ft., and a storeroom 10ft. by Bft., matchlined throughout, and from the latter a stairway leads to the basement, which contains the boating apparatus. There are no chimneys in the various rooms. The rooms are to be warmed by hot water radiators, of which there will be three in the billiard room and one in eatli of the other rooms. Returning through the billiard room to the hall, we note the pretty effects given by the colored muranese glass at the vestibule end. The hall and reading and card rooms are dadoed with lincrusta to a height of' four feet, finished with neat moulding, and all the wall papers are of rich plain tints, with friezes. It should be mentioned that the rooms are very lofty, with a 12ft. fiin. stiul throughout. The conveniences are centrally situated, and a through current of air flows between the offices and the building. This, and the installation of tire most mpderm Adamant fittings, \Vill prevent even suspicion of discomfort arising. The front elevation is rusticated, the remaining outer walls and roof of iron, and there are concrete foundations throughout. The gentlemen at the helm of the club's affairs have done nothing-by halves in the erection of the building, and the furnishing will be done on a. similarly liberal scale. The. club-rooms, one would, think, should be sufficient almost for alltime, but the executive has great faith in l lie undertaking and ill Stratford, so provi-ioii has been made for the,addition of an upper storey at some .future date. The subcontractors are: Painting and decorating, Messrs. Bcl.lr.mger! 15r05.; plumbing, heating and electric

light, Messrs. McMillan and Fredric; fur nishing, Mr. John Leydon. The tota cost of the building alone is approxi nmtely £I2OO. The officers of the club, who must bi complimented on the management of th< institution and the enterprise shown ir erecting such a commodious and conveni entbuilding,are: Patron, Mr.J.B. Hine M.P.; president, Mr. J. Masters; execu live, Messrs. 0. Bichter, J. McAllister Robt. Masters. .1. Fredric, W. Boon, R N. Melville, A. H. O'Leary, T. P. James P. W.*Wilson, X. J. King, S. Ward and J. H. Thompson; secretary, Mr. G. Richter; treasurer. Mr. J. McAllister. The steward is Mr. Tom Dwyer, and he -ap--1 pears to "fill the bill" all the way. A CHRISTMAS TREE. A couple of days before the Christmas holidays thirty children were gathered together in the Wesley Church grounds by the Christian Endeavorers, and the result was a really happy gathering, it being difficult to say- which enjoyed it the most—the eager little guests or the thoughtful people who arranged it and entered with such zest into the little folks' fun. There was a Christmas tree, of course, well laden by some members o# tie congregation with those things most dear to the child mind, and when they had had what looked like a surfeit of cookies and sweets the children took home with them a real appreciation and many mementoes of the Christmas feeling which prompted their hosts.