"THAT CUP"—ITS HISTORY.

Thames Star, Volume XII, Issue 3824, 31 March 1881, Page 2

"THAT CUP"—ITS HISTORY.

(To the Editor of the Evening Slur.)

Sir, —So much nonsense, and a great deal worse thau nonsense, having been written and otherwise circulated re this Cup, I consider it would be remiss iv my duty did I not put you, sir, and the public in possession of the facts. But, first, allovp__m&.-ta--uxito«? vay vfivy-ni^oa^ protest against this unsoldier-like and irregular manner of airing imaginary grievances, and the fact that it has gone about in this manner is a plain proof of its illegitimacy. la your issue of the gQth inst., Vol. McKee states some things that are, I suppose, correct, but a good deal the very opposite ; for example, he says " that Lieut. Douglas had spoken to all the competitors, and they had agreed to withdraw from the ma^eli." This is not so. So far from, that being the case, Lieu,t. Douglas did not eveu* know all, or nearly all, the competitors were until Captain Farrell handed him the list the other day. And the yeasan Vol McKee was "never offered one penny" was, th^t several of the other competitors yigntly considered they had as good a claim as he had, aud scouted his selfish demands, although, to their honour, be it known, they considered the match a foolish one, and were agreeabler to a new arrangement, having regard' to the' benefit of their compauy—JloKee only <?2f<yepted, aud his magnanimo'js biy soul, his regard for his company's interest, his pure unselfishness, prompted J\i\a to offer to take £10 fo? \^e C\«p he never won. Such is the price lie now states, tb,oqgU he wanted much wore. Again, h.e (McKee) states 'Hhat Dr Andrews repudiated any intention of withdrawing the Cup." Please insert Dr Andrew's letter, which, you will observe, entirely disproves this statement :■—.

Thames, 19th Dec^ai^er, 1879.—T0 Oaptain FiirrelL ars o%ei?3 of the Thames Rifle

Rangers.—Dear Sir and Gentlemen,—With reference to the Cup which I had the pleasure of presenting to your corps as a shooting prize, I regret very much that the competition arrangements made in the first instance were aueh as to be of little or no benefit to you r company. I therefore take the liberty, at this active of the match, of withdrawing it, so that you (the officers) may make smch arrange, menta about its being fired for as regard time and place, by whom, distances, mumber of mafccbea.jj and all other particular* as i a your united wisdom you deemubest calculated to promote efficiency in the.use of the ri« e , and bring the Bangers to the front as a shootine corps ; and with this object I shall have the further pleasure of sending you from Aucldmd ia a few days another pnze as 8 substitute for the one hereby withdrawn, the match for which to be completed after its arrival to your bauds. Trusting that all this will merit you approval, and wiJh the best wishes for the future welfare of the Thames R.fle Kangers-I am, Dear a^^' men, yours, very truly, R. F. £* DBBJ? 8 ' Surgeon Thames Rifle Rangers.-P.S.—The Cup I hare given into the possession of Lieut. Douglas, who will, on my behalf, hand it to the winner injdue time. —R.F.A. Upon this letter being read to the Com. pauy, • resolution was passed suspending the match until the arrival of the promised substitute Cup. This resolution was unanimously carried, myselt only protesting, on the grounds that the Cup was in my possession, and that certain partit-s were circulating lying rumors with ,-egard to Dr Andrews' indebtedness ta me, &c, for which reasons I wished tbw Cup to be fired for at once, and taken out ot my care. The Company would not hear of this, and simply ridiculed the idea. lam proud of their confidence, and no act of mine will ever betray that confidence. A tew weeks ago, on hearing that Dr Andrews was again in Auckland, I reminded him of his promise, with this result:— ...... .■■ ■ ■ -■. ..;.,■ ■:;,.- , ■••■,■ •; Wynard House, 17th February, 1881.— My dear Douglaß,—lt was my wish to have had a Cup from England, after my own design, but as it has not come, I fear I'll be out of the country before its arrival; Trend two small cups, which I and Mrs Andrews have been usiug. The winner can take his choice, and the other be given as' second prize. Have them fired for only by'those men that competed before. I send the Gups by the .Enterprise this eveaing.—Your* truly, R. F. Andbews. The supposed match will be concluded on Saturday next, and the now celebrated Cup will be arranged about as soon as convenient. You will then see, sir, that , the wishes of the donor, as also the Company's resolution, have been strictly carried out, and all in a most open and aboveboard manner. lam sure, therefore that both the public and yourself will see that we hare reason to be aggrieved at this wretched and would-be mischievous scribbling. To crown all thatis low and base in human nature, commend me to the covert;, uuuianly, assassin-like procedure of trying from behind a hedge or under cover of an assumed name thus to stab in the dark those whose position they doubtless imagine prohibits them from defending themselves.—l am, 4c, . R. T. Douglas.

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