THE PIERROTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 July 1917, Page 4

THE PIERROTS.

ONE THOUSAND POUND DAY. OVER £ISOO NETTED, The aim of the (New Plymouth Pierrots to raise £110(30 for (patriotic ipurposes lhas (been move tlmn achieved, for although 'the exact amount realised 'by their strenuous and admirably organised etlorts cannot 'be stated for a fev/ days yet, it may 'be approximately estimated at over £(1600. A result) so satisfactory is worthy of the sacrifice of time and the exercise of indefatigable energy involved, and the Pierrots must he well pleased that the response of the public has been so worthy of the cause- i All day Saturday the main thoroughfares were thronged, and among the crowds were to ibe seen the Pierrots, in their striking attire, 'busily engaged in gathering money by the sale of all sorts or articles and by numerous and plausible devices.

The butcher's shop, opened on the previous evening, continued in a state of siege until early on Saturday evening, when the whole of tlie large and'varied stock of meat and small goods had 'been completely sold out and operations had, perforce, to cease. A special word of praise is due to the expert butchers who worked so defltly and so well in satisfying tbeir many clamorous customers, and 'Who performed their long and arduous day's duties with unabated cheerfulness and unvarying courtesy. The oyster stall, in a recess close to the butcher's shop, wa« also moat liberally (patronised, and the gentlemen upon .whom the task of opening the oysters (devolved found even their adept cleverness taxed to the utmost. The produce stalls also had their many hundreds of purchasers and did first class business, while the shilling parcels, each guaranteed to contain ■full value for the money, although about SOflO in number, were all disposed of 'before evening. The purveyors of balloons, gollywogs, and other emblems intended as mementoes of the occasion, had little need to push their wares, an eager demand setting in early in tlhe morning and lasting throughout the day. For the special delectation of the children a barrel-organ grinder with a performing monkey paraded the streets, the antics of tlhe animal hugely diverting the little ones. The pony tS be raffled ambled hither and thither, ridden by a lad in jockey costume, and attracted a great deal of attention.

In the evening the streets were so [ densely crowded that Jocomotion liecame difficult, in some centres almost , impossible, and the activities df the Pierrots, instead of being exhansted toy t/he strain of many arduous hours, seemed rather to increase than to wane as time tferib on. A band of them in a gorgeously decorated motor lorry went from place to place, halting at street corners, favoring the (public 'with songs, ehoru&es, and other items more or- less imusical, their contributions to the general entertainment meeting with due appreciation. A special centre of attraction was the raffles lorry in Brougham Street, near the Devon Street corner, where extremely liveiy ,was going on during the whole day, crowds eagerly investing and; even more eagerly awaiting the results of the various drahvmgs. The results were announced from the lorry and the last Was not announced until a late hour.

In an enclosed portion of Brougham Sfcre&t, at the comer of Devon Street, the Citizens' Band gave a 'promenade concert. Owing to the uncertain nature of the weather their programme contained no lengthy selection, it being feared that if suoh were attempted it might Ibe interrupted by a heavy shower and a stampede for shelter. Fortunately, however, no rain fell during the two hours they played, and their fine music, under the able conductorshiip of Bandmaster V. W. 6. MoLeod, was very greatly in their programme were the following items:—Overture, "■British' Flag" (Rimmer); intermezzo, "■Harvest Moon" (Picquard); topical march, "Hullo, Who's Your Lady Friend"; fantasia, "Darkie 'Beauties" (Newton); marches, "Battle of Eureka" (Bulch), ''Royal Hussars" -(Anderson), and "Merry Musicians" (Greenwood); waltz, "The Guiding Star" (Felix Burns). FINANCIAL DETAILS,

As already stated, the total receipts will probably exceed £ISOO, including the donations previously received and acknowledged, and a, full balance-sheet will be published in the course of a few days. In the meantime some details of the takings on Friday and Saturday will 'be of interest. It is a noteworthy coincidence that the amount set by the Pierrots as their goal,' and the actual receipts on Friday evening and Saturday, closely approximate, .the former amount being £IOOO and the latter £IOO2 Is 7d,

The following were alp,proximately the principal takings on Friday evening and Saturday, exclusive Of art union money, donations, bids for the Union Jack, and minor receipts!—

i» s 4 Cdncert . ../.wvrn. :.-.i 70 0 0 Shilling (parcels 142 0,0 Raffles and sales from lorriee 250 0 0 Butcher's shop • 180 0 6 GollywOga, flags, and balloons ,48 0 0 Oyster stall 15 0 0 Produce stall' Jil o 0 Cajces, confectionery, and home-made goods 20 o , 0 Organ and monkey ........ lo 17 6 Singing Pierrots', collections § oJp Buttonholes (oolleoted Iby ;Mrs: firookman) 12 0 Signatures to autograph table centra (collected iby Misses Warren and Hammond)- ,5 2 0 , : u '£777 19 5, ; . general. Great interest was taken in the raffle for tlie pony -presented 'by Mr. J. W. H. Martin,, tickets, to the value of £72 (being disposed of. The -winner George Grey, of Plymouth. Another raffle which attracted keen interest Avas that for a fur-lined coat,' which was won by Miss Elsie Gilbert. The lady's costume raffle was not drawn till a late hour, and resulted i 4 f avor of Mrs. Parli. The executive desire to thank Miss Belle Olliver, of Morey's staff, for her good work in the sale of tickets. The talkings of the butcher's slop will-' he slightly increased bv the sale, of sortm hides and otbei wbinh ate still on hand., Among the gollywogs offered for sa|e, and sold out long 'before the day W as over, ware a number of umqueuiesi"n, which were presented iby Mrs. p. °j.' i'lannagtm and keenly sought after. 1 The Plevrots be (pleased if thost who havi protflisSa donations Offl theses Who mart* bidi for th# flag At 4« r ( . I ; i

cert "will forward their contributions) if they liave not already done so, "to tfio secretary or the treasurer. Owing to the fact of all' the Mtß of the art union tickets not having reftched the executive committer op night, it was decided to po&fcpojie the drawing of the art union tiU Mondial neict, #tji ingt., at.^Mo, The folUcwing artfolea have not disposed of, and may toe jpiurs&wed: from Mr. P. J. Flatmagari!—aj tons of co»1, a wheelbarrow, a >pair of steje, qnantlty of calf food, vegetables, three sacks of wheat, an acetylene gas (plant, a vapor hotb. Signed orders for these . goods may te purchased from Mr. Hannag&n. Among ramny encouraging itfthymuna received by the Pierrots luting tfoo day was the following from theang&nui Commercial Hussars, who assisted very materially in 'last year's euiscasa: "The Wanganui Commercial Hussira this morning passed a, resolution wishing your organisation ever; success in today's effort."

THANKS AND OOtaAmATTO^. . When the campaign had Ibeen brought to a close shortly toeifors the Mayor and Mayoress (Mr. and Mrs. C. H. Burgess) addressed a latge crowd from the raffles lorry at the comer of Devon and (Brougham Streets, thanking the country visitors and •the townspeople for their very generous support, and calling for cheers for the Pierrots and "Our Boys at the 'Front/'

Cheers were also given for the Mayor and Mayoress, and in acknowledging the compliment Mrs. Burgess stated that the sum realised would Ibe so handsome that there would he no need for a further call on the public on behalf of the Vivtoria League for another eight months.

The workers were subsequently entertained to light refreshments. FRIDAY'S CONCERT IHtiAfi. The following were the purchasers of the flag:—C. H. Burgess, Hector Gray £lO each, McLeod "Printing Co., E. P. Welbster £5 5s each; L. A. Nolan and Co., Terry Gormley, M«llbourae Clothing Co., P. J. IFlannagan £5 eacl}; Pierrots, £4 4s; Anonymous, W. 8., J. 'Abbott, v ßoon Bros., E. Cook, Mrs. Burgess, H. Brookinan, Mrs. Boon, J. McKean • £3 3a each; W. Jenkinaon, Jas. Thomson, Geo. Tweedy, W. A. SDusconibe, C. Corrigan, iT. W. Winfield, Amfoury Bros,, Hooker Bros., Fred. Dank#, P. D. Colson, F. W. G. McLeod, L. Jennins, White and Son £2 2s each; P|-Asher> A. McLaren (Toko), H. Wills, W." G. Beid, B. G. Cottier, B. J. Dfcare, J. "R. Hill, Returned Soldiers, W. Seamark, Pewy Knight, C. Doibson, C. Bundle, Anonymous Lady, Wi Bennett, L. Day and H. Benton £1 Is each.