WEST END PICNIC.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 254, 6 April 1915, Page 2

WEST END PICNIC.

GREAT GATHERING AT KAWAKOA

A NATURAL PLEASURE-GROUND POPULARISED.

They weiuled their way in .thousand* yesterday to Kawaroa Park, the centre of the efforts oE that admirable and deserving organisation, yclept the West End Foreshore Improvement Society, am! they not only spoilt a delightful day, but they plated at the disposal of the" society a splendid net cash total with which to carry out the work for which the men and women of the West End have banded themselves together, so that by the date of the next picnic, on lioxing Day, the park will be more delightful than ever and still more suited for a picnicking ground for pleasure-lov-ing Taranaki. " They," as applied to yesterday's West End function, comprised men and women, boys, girls ami babies, human beings of all ages anu sizes, drawn from apparently all parts of Taranaki. Panting motor-cars and 'buses dropped liig cargoes, and motorcycles and horse-drawn vehicles of every kind all helped to swell the crowd which swarmed in by the various entrances from the south train. Nor. were they disappointed, -although the occasional showers had the effect of slightly disorganising the arrangements and interrupting for the nonce the flow of merriment. The large gathering was a triumph for the West Enders. The people of the province should think well of the little band who have made this little reserve their especial care, and who are by rapid degrees transforming what was formerly known as " the lupins" into a seaside resort which shouli. shortly have no superior in tlic whole of the Dominion. s .Mucli j remains to be done, of course, bu. ; it was possible yesterday to form some idea of the contemplated activities of the society. Someone has said that the only basis on which the future can be at all safely prophesied is the past. The "past" of this society has 110 pinned down pages. A short life has been full of progress, and the life-blood of the society still courses strongly in veins which possibly derive some, of their vigor from the ozone at the seasi<!~» None is ashamed to look back, but still there is 110 looking back. The workers ',are looking forward, urging on to their goal with an enthusiasm which j must beget success. Where minds arc j active, even when striving towards one [peat ideal, eyes are bound to picture jthat great end by varied ways, lint noj for long docs the main objective become I obscured. Little personal differences, or, | rather, differences of opinion, are speedJ ilv forgot, and out of the counsels of J the one—purpose people must come | success —has come success, one might I say, when yesterday's function comes Ito mind. These people are doing n j great work, the value of wtlich will be appreciated more and more as the years j roll by, even as now we pay tribute to f; the memory of the late Mr! Tisch, who t saw farther than many of his contemporaries in regard to this particular work. Kawaroa. Park, the " park by the sea." is mi undulating strip of land owned by the b.orough, not broad acres, but long acres fronting the sea beach, beautiful pohutnkawas and other trees form a belt against the mountain wind, and the park slopes therefrom to the north, to the sea, and to the sun. Til and out and round about wander pathways, alternately in sun and shade. Here, too, is a carriage drive, on which front a pretty little bungalow tea-house and a band rotunda—-Ifere also are the municipal baths. Here are to bo made very shortly a level area belo v the drive for races and games, a tennis court, a great tu-o-storeyeti pavlTion and promenade roof. Swings, swingboats, see-saws, and. delight of delights, an ocean wave fill 'the' eye ot ' v

little folk. Is it any wonder, then, that the townspeople (locked to the park yesterday, or that several of the citizens, seeing the transformation effected, made handsome donations to the funds? Bather is it a wonder that the townsfolkdo not shower to a far greater extent their cash donations for such an excellent purpose. Hut let's to the picnic. Who ever dreamed that such a procession was possible? It was unfortunate that' the Injur of starting was altered. tiiat debarred many from seeing those grotesque heads, those giants, strange ihorscs, giraflj:, camel, monkey#, and a hundred and one other queer characters that made the West Enders' procession something for folks to talk about and remember perhaps for a lifetime. The municipal steam traction engine, gaily caparisoned and bc-llaggcd, drew another brilliantly decorated car, on which were placed behind wire entanglements living effigies of the fiermau and Austrian Emperors, in charge, of a force of Scouts. The Citizen!-' Band played martial airs, and thai came all the paraphernalia of the greatest and most unique procession New Plymouth has ever seen. Not till the parkwas reached did the procession disperse, and right to the last moment the clowns ami dummies and grotesque burlesques delighted the crowd. At the park there were already set up all kinds of games to lure the strav sixpences from the speculative folk, who willingly paid their mo.uey for a chance to « S'plasho the Kaiser!" 0 r to guess the weight of a sheep, or a rooster, or a cake, or to do any one of a score of things that some men have for yean tried unsuccessfully to do at every fair that happened along. But there was as .much fun in failure as succesi Meanwhile hampers had been opemwf and lunch spread beneath the shelter of fie trees, whilst others, scorning the impedimenta of hamper and basket, patronised the refreshment booths. The picnickers were supplied free with the wherewithal for the "cup that ehee-s" • and apparently it did cheer. Then came chihliens faces, skipping eompcti- ; tions, and so on. and the small folks ? had a great time. So did the hiv folks i who watched them. And over it a 1! ' floated the strains of excellent' played by the Citizens' Band on the rotunda. By-iind-bye came two of 'he grotesquely garbed characters of (he .procession, and their anths of the "glad-eye" and a most tuneless bar-rel-organ caused quite a diver-;. Two capital exponents of the art of tightrope walking gave a "free :.how"'bc

hind the baths, and a lively J :ttie moi'.key completed the exhibition un ih»t rope with antics that, as one lady .sa'd, "would have made a cat ia'i;»V J!ij"b was a. prelude to a novelty swimming sports meeting in the mimical bat!.s, wliicli place was crowded its jkhs:dlv "t luis never been crowded before. Diving, swimming, chasing the koo-.0, and antics in the tepid water fairly convulsed the crowd, who applauded mightily also the wondrous skill displayed in the water by Messrs. Swanson, Schvuvtz and Brett, who certainly more than ioubly repaid the people the modest price of admission. The ocean-wave aud various swings were never deserted, and the gentleman in charge must have been glad when the day was over. All of these pleasures were free to the eh'l- ' dren, and they had their (ill —or should jiave had. Crowds thronged the afternoon Lea-booths, and the s>iup!!;.i or edibles had to be replenished ig.>in and again. This department was in tie hands of a remarkably energetic ladies' committee. Nimble threepenny-bits found their way into the society'? purse through the efforts of a couple of young ladies with bran-tubs whose toys had to be replenished more than once, and by all those means which an energetic committee like this seems t,o wcii able to devise. There was, perhaps, necessity for a more settled programme ni sports, and this the society will put on at future picnics when the new j>la>ground is made. The site for it is excellently chosen, being overlook: i »y the greater portion of the park. Deserving separate mention was t*;e entertainment of nearly seventy veteran soldiers and pioneer settlers by the Nganiotu Foreshore Society m a marquee on the rising ground beyond the Morley Street entrance. The veterans were briefly welcomed by Mr. Alf. E. Sykes, the president of the West End Society, who stated his opinion, based on 'his personal experience, that this park was becoming one of the finest in Australasia. At the luncheon, presided over by his Worship the Mayor, Mr. J. W. Hay. den, on behalf of tiic Ngamotus, spoke briefly, explaining that the Anniversary Day function at the pioneers' landingplace at Moturoa had had to be abandoned this year on account of Anniversary Day falling on the day before Good Friday, which was not a holiday. Colonel J. Kilts, V.D., who replied on behalf of the veterans, thanked their hosts and re-echoed Mr. Hayden's wish that the veterans would live to enjoy many more gatherings of this kind as the guests of the younger generation of Taranaki. /

All the workers—and they appeared to Im> legion—are deserving of every praise for the success of the day's outing. Xo one will begrudge a special mention of the president, who seemed of late to have lived almost solely for the AA est Kurt foreshore, and the secretary, Mr. .T. if. Box, who was hound to lie busy in such a big day. To mention all the others is impossible, but each and every one, including the willing co-operators from the Ngamotu Society, should be proud of the ultimate result of their well-directed effort. Two of tlie competitions resulted:— Sheep guessing (correct weight 1341b5) —J. S. Connett (Ml Block) and fl. Bird (Waitara) guessed the correct weight. Cake-guessing (correct weight 3%lbs)— Six tied: Mrs. Ileal, .Mrs. Dowling, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Duffin, Mrs. Treeee and Mrs. liufl, the latter winning the draw. A benefit picture performance at the Theatre Royal completed the revels.