TE AWAMUTU.

Waikato Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2103, 31 December 1885, Page 2

TE AWAMUTU.

The annual festival of tho Church of England Sundiy-school children of the various distucts vva* held in the parsonago grounds on Tuesday last. The leasonfor holding it at this time instead of after New Ye.v 11 the appioaehing departure of the Rev. Mr Phillips who has resigned his charge of tho pmsh. He has always taken a keen int.uest in tho welfare of the various Sunday-schools, and naturally wished to moet his young friends together before his departure. Mr Phillips will 1)0 greatly missed by his congregation, Jm piety and earnest Christianity weie unostentatious but unmistakable, and I hope his successor whoever he may be, will display the same oarnest desire for the spiritu.il wel fare of the congregation. Miss Hunter and Miss Phillip-, will also be sorely missed. Miss Hunter has worked hard in tho Sunday schools of Rangiaohia and To Aw.v mutu. No mittei what tho weather, eveiy Sunday found her at her post in Rangiaohia, and after a weaiy walk back again she attended the afternoon class hero. That her untiring energy and zeal are thoroughly appreciated goe3 without saying, and the little ones will bj sorry to lose their kind tsachor. In Miss Phillips we possessed askilful organist whom it will be hard to replace. Good music in a church is a powerful factor in the attractiveness of the service, for there can bo no doubt people give the preference to chinches which hav o skilful organists. To piesidc at the harmonium Sunday after Sunday twice a day demands no small amount of solf sacrifice, for the week day practices must be attended, and new music continually practiced^ until it must become weaiisonie, weaiisome at least it appears to a non-musician. And when we consider tli.it all this has been done voluntarily, we cm hive sonn small idea of the debt of gratitude we owe the lady. Tho picnic was largely attended by adults as well as cluldicu. Waggons buggies and trap-> pouied in dining the foienoon, and people strolled about tor a shoit time till luncheon, .ifti vvhijli vaiioiv* games and spoits were indulged in in one of Air White's paddocks, which he kindly thiew open to the public for the occasion. Solno of the bpoits wore most amusing, the tug of war between the young ladies of Rangiaohia and To Awamutu resulted in a victory for the ladies of the former distiict, who evidently possessed more nm-clo tlun their opponents. The egg and spoon rune tor young ladies only was very funny. Most of the cmipi'ttt'its nude the pice lively from the stait, but soon came ti gnef by dropping the eg!** before g<»m,» tho tirst round. One luly, however, recognising tlie truth of the Old adage about "slow and steady," contented herself with a steady pace, and :i careful b ilancing of the .spo m and ogg, and as a consequence passed the judge fiist, thoso who came to grief of course dioppmg out. Tea was sei\od about h\lf past five, aifd the festival terminated with a service in the chinch. Little or no interest is manifested here in the nutter of g"ld prospecting, we aie .so accustomed to the inevitable "tnhoa" of natives that we expect some obstacle to bb r 5 thrown in tlio way of the pi.ispector, so in •<tead of getting excited by the mystenous hints of El Doiado-), and silver mines tint will equal 01 eclipse the Cornstalk, we aio waiting with dignified composure to see what will turnup, and wo shall all mike our foi tunes, so confident aie some of u> thit we are to bo million ures that we lu\e fi\ed on our futiua soi-ido ipsidcucos and the tonnage of our yachts, failing the gold field in Maonland, we aio devising schemes to appropriate .some of tho ten millions Sir Julius Vogel proposes ti borrow. It is a " happy go lucky " sort of style, this letting thu inornnv take th night for the things of itself, but so far at any rate it has been chaiactoristic of the colony. In a fovv more years if taxation and Ikhi owing goon in tho same l.itio as they have to the pie=eut, we will dufc into a helplessly apathetic state or there will be a levolution. Things go on splendidly while the money lasts, but when it has boon spent those who will not h ivo been fortunate enough to got homo of it will be deeper in the miie than over. Pile on the taxes, borrow money, and build political and useless 1 ail ways, tho New Zealandors are a long suffeimg, or a very indifferent peoplo, the day of reckoning is not at hand; when it is it will be time enough to consider what wo shall do. I have just boon rea-ling m the " Dickcnson Country Chronicle" (Kansas U.S.A.) an article headed " how they manage things on the Madi as railways. '' It states that this is one of the principal roads in India, and h.»s ne.uly 800 miles of line. Tluue aie tlnpo classes, first, second, and thiid the fir-it class cirriages are cushioned with leathor-coveied cushions and aro so an.uigod that they can be turned into sleepcars, tho second class carriages are not httod up so luxuriously, having no cushioned seats, but theio are six shelves ananged ho that six persons can sleep (each car holds 12 passengers), while the thud class carnages are of tho roughest descuption, no glass windows, no double roof, and no convenience for sleeping, yet these aio always full, while frequently tho other two classes inn as much as a hundred miles without a single passenger. The cause of this is tho faro in the third class is one f ai thing per mile, while in the first and second the fares are two ponoe farthing and .seven-eighths of a p-nny per mile respectively. Tho article goes on to .ray that it is from tlio third class fares as ieg ivds passenger tiatfic that all tho profits aro made. Most trains have only one first juid one second class coach, while there iue always fiom eight to twelve thud cla c <s carnages required. Something aftei this sott is leqtuied on our i ail ways, but tlie suggestion is always met with the stock ntgumuir tint the population is not numerous en 'iigh, but the fares and freights might, with piolit to the depirtm>>n.t and fcho publio, bo considerably roduqod,— (Own Coi roHpondent, )

\ Juli in cfaal'ajigea D. Crairf io run 300 v.ards ovtr liunllc-. r.io Pi.iko County office*, Ombndije, will be dost i] from the Is' to tho Oh T-'>''ary R.ito-. ti-u ' r r>-ii<l to and ruestago* loft with Mr G Lickinton, iUtiu.i»r.