PLEASANT POINT.

Temuka Leader, Volume 2, Issue 153, 11 June 1879, Page 2

PLEASANT POINT.

Monday last may well be termed a. high day for our little community. In accordance with the advertisement which appeared on Saturday last in your paper the race meeting took place near the township. The day, which opened with a keen frost, shortly succeeded by a clear sunshine, prepared everyone for a day’s real enjoyment. The races, which commenced about one o’clock, soon gave promise of being a good get up of the kind, and those who enjoy such pastimes must have felt that now was a chance for them to drive dull care away, or, in other words, put to bankers’ letters, lawyers’ writs, and bailiffs visits out of their heads for one day at least. Others, who may not have been troubled by any of these now daily occurrences, prepared themselves for a booze, io enable them to satisfy the craving for such temporary enjoyments as indulgence in-intoxicating drinks bring to its victims. The usual drinking booth was provided, ‘ which during the day seemed to be well patronised. The races were fair, considering the character of the horses entered, and notwithstanding that there were no strange horses from a distance the whole went off well, and the races were better than the average at these small meetings. The crowd assembled was even a large one for such a sparsely settled district, but many from a distance, however, put in an appearance. No cases of drunkenness came under our notice, but a good deal of amateur racing to the danger of foot pedestrians was indulged in. In the evening an entertainment of another character was provided for the intellectual "portion of the inhabitants of this part of South Canterbury. The Rev. Mr Gillies, Presbyterian Minister, from Timarn, delivered Iris promised lecture entitled the career of a Scottish herd laddie. The lecture was delivered in the Presbyterian Church, the Rev Mr Alexander occupying the chair. Amongst the visitors, besides Mr Gillies, 1 observed the Rev Mr Burnett, from Ashburton, and others from Temuka. At the commencement of the lecture the Church choir, accompanied by Mrs McRebin entire harmonium, sang some hymns in their usual finished style, after which Mr Alexander introduced the lecturer to the audience in a very neat short address. Mr Gillies, who has the happy knack of combining humor with instruction, very adroitly introduced some good moral lessons. His advice to the young folks—especially to the young man in quest of a wife—was both grave and gay ; sometimes coming down upon the bachelors with heavy blows,- at other times holding up to ridicule the case ■ of an old man with a young wife. Mr Gillies’ pourtrayal of Scottish character called forth bursts of applause. Throughout the whole there was much to encourage the young lads :o persevere and not to succumb to difficulties. Fergusson. the poor herd laddie, was another Hugli Miller, a genius born, as many of the‘Poorer class of the Scotch have provedvfhemselves to be. Oatmeal porridge and'" oatmeal brose was to Fergusson, as to Miller, at times a luxury not always at command. The useful, active life which the subject of the lecture afterwards led, proved that rvhat Johnson called food for horses in England, but by way of ridicule he termed food for men in Scotland, shows that oatmeal has more good qualities than one —that, as the lecturer termed it plaster for the stomach, it must be a good plaster for the braimaS- well when it can produce such men as the two quoted, and many more besides. -The lecturer was listened to attentively by a large audience, the church being full, and it is not too much to say that Mr Gillies is'a real adept at this class of lectures. Language, gestures, dialect, in fact every peculiarity

calculated to make such lectures interesting Mr Gill! s seems entirely maMpi* of. If you have not yet bad any of these lectures delivered at Temuka you could not do better than.endeavor to obtain the consent of that gentleman to give you a really enjoyable evening’s entertainment The object of the lecture being to provide funds for the Sunday-school, it met with universal sympathy, if one could judga from the clink of shillings and halfcrowns as they were heartily pitched into the plate. A vote of thanks to Mr Gillies for his able lecture brought this part of tha business of the evening to a close. This was not all the business, however. The Rev Mr Alexander, a young minister who cume out under the auspices of the Tree Church Commission in Edinburgh—the secretary of which, in writing to Mr EmsPe, said if Mr Alexander did not please the colonists, it would not undertake to do Mt. Alexander had been stationed at Pheasant Point for some time, and was about Ao be removed to Temuka when the Moderator of the” Presbytery (the Rev Mr Gillies) deemed it advisable to invite an expression of opinion by the Point congregation regarding him before be took steps for his removal. He accordingly called a meeting of members and adherents to consider the matter This meeting took place at the close of the lecture, the moderator ir the chair. The church was nearly full. The chairman stated the object of the meeting to be to know from the congregation whether or not it is their wish that Mr Alexander should become their pastor, or whether they were prepared to let him go, the time having now expired that was agreed for him to remain at the Point, and if they did not wish to give Mr Alexander a call it would be his duty ,as moderator to transfer him to the Temuka congregation to preach there for the next six weeks. At the close of Mr Gillies’ address Mr D. Anderson proposed, and Mr Henry seconded, that a call be given to Mr Alexander to become minister of the Point Presbyterian Church. The motion being put to.the meeting one or two gentlemen expressed a wish that an opportunity should be given to hear other ministers. A visitor who knew something of Mr Alexander, and also had some idea of the wants of the Point people, advised the congregation not to run the risk of losing Mr Alexander by being buoyed up with the hope of obtaining one nore suitable. This gentleman's advice was taken, the party-expressing their readiness to fall in with the great body of the people, and thus secure an unanimous call to Mr Alexander to be their pastor. If Mr Alexander sees his way to accept this call a very harmonious settlement will take place, promising great good to the Presbyterian Church. This young minister has already endeared himself to all with whom he has come in contact. Before closing this report I must express the regret that is felt at the closing of the New Zealand bank here, and particularly the regret of the people at parting with its agent, Mr Fraser, who is to be removed to Temuka. ;