FOREST FAIR.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3200, 29 December 1892, Page 2

FOREST FAIR.

The Forest Fair held in the Oddfellows Kail, Hamilton, on Boxing Day, in aid of the funds of the Wesleyan Church, was a decided success, and the results fir and away beyond the most sanguine anticipations of the promoters. From the Mine the doors opened at about eleven in the morning, until ten o'clock in the evening there was a constant stream of visitors, and those in charge of the various stalls wer.< kept hard at wotk, and that only about £7 worth of goods remained unsold is a fact upon which the ladies in charge of the stills may well congratulate themselves. The hall was splendidly dressed with trees and greenery, and looked exceedingly well, a mammoth green Christmas-tree in the centre of the hall being the first thing to attract the attention of a visitor. The tree with its load of many coloured toys, (lags and other articles looked gorgeous, and as every ticket on the tree was sold when the prices were distributed in the evening the tree was the centre of attraction. The stalls were four in number, and were presided over by Mesdames Thomas, Chappell, Salmon, Davey, Cox, Dillicar, Gribble and Petersen, by the Misses R. and A. Thomas, X. and A. Davey, E. and M. Chappell, K. and A. Oox, A. Dillicar, L. Hall, Petty, P. Tidd and Nellie Houghton. There were several articles on the stalls that call for ttiention, viz.. a hand-painted screen, the work of Mr Howard, of Te Awamutu ; an oil-painting by Dr. Browis ; and two handsome cabinet', one being sent from Huutly and the other from Te Awamutu. Madame LSorreson had a stall, and road the bumps of all-eomers at a charge of one shilling per head, and did a rearing business ; in fact, the lady was nnahle to read the characters of all who desired it, her stall being crowded right up to the moment of putting out the lights. The luncheon tables regnlirlv groaned beneath the weight of the viands, and in the morning those in charge of this department prognosticated, from the quantity of eatables coming to hand from all quarters, that the demand would be inadequate tithe supply ; but at seven o'clock in the evening they had cleared out everything in the shape of provisions, and lint a few scraps remained to tell of tho havoc tint had tuvui wrought by tho consuming hordes of hungry customers. Thero was no stint, and surprise was expressed that so good a meal could be supplied at the low charge made. There were a good many entries received for the industrial competition amongst school children, and a bracket made by Master H. Edwin Davys, of Tuhikaramea, was quite an excellent piece of wood work. The rules of the competition provided that were there not six entries in any class no prize would be awarded, but it. was ultimately decided to amend this rule and award a prize in each case. The following are the prizes awarded:—For the best piece of carpentering work made by boys under V! years of age : H. Edwin Davys, first. For the best map of New Zealand drawn by boys or girls under 13 years of ago : Olive M. Burnett, first. For the best nightdress, made by girls over 13 and under 17 years of age : Jessie Slade, first; K. Chappell, second; Lucy Dodd, third; M. Selby and K. Care, commended. For best apron made by girls under 13 years : A. Wilson, first; E, Gillett, second ; A. Gillett, third. F.jr best pinafore made by girls under 13 years: G. von Sturmer, first; S. Hunt, second. A promenade concert was to have taken place in the evening, but owing to the crowd and the excitement prevailing at the Christmas-tree, it was impossible to get more than one or two items off. The i Hamilton String Band performed sever:.! selections and a song by Mr Barclay was well received, that gentleman possessing an excellent voice. The whole of the arrangements for the fair were in the hands of the Rev. Mr Thomas and Mr E. T. Davey, who exercised a general supervision, and the success of tho fair is no doubt sufficient reward to those gentlemen and all others who t"ok an active part in carrying it through. With ono or two subscriptions to come in, tho total proceeds of the fair will be a trifln oyer £80, no doubt a very welcome addition to the funds of the church. We must not omit to mentiontli.it Messrs C. Smith, S. Meachem. Exelby, V. Peterson, sen., and P. Peterson, jnr., lent valuable assistance throughout the day. I