Ashburton

New Zealand Tablet, 3 July 1913, Page 45

Ashburton

(From our own correspondent.) An interesting debate took place at the last weekly meeting of the Catholic Men's Club, Mr. M. J. Moriarty presiding. The subject was the inclusion of the suburbs of Ashburton with the borough," thereby creating a greater Ashburton. Mr. M. J. Moriarty led off the debate for the supporters of the movement in favor of the inclusion of the suburbs. He was followed by Mr. W. J. Cunningham, who acted as leader for the negative party. The leaders' speeches were followed by expressions.of opinion on the question under debate from several of the members. The subject was fully and keenly discussed, and a vote being taken, there was a majority of one against the suburbs amalgamating with the borough. Very Rev. Dean O'Donnell, addressing the congregation on Sunday morning last, referred to the fact that it had been brought under his notice that the supporters of the Bible-in-Schools League in Ashburton were distributing cards amongst Catholics, asking their signature to the same with a view to petitioning Parliament for a plebiscite to be taken on the Bible-in-Schools question. He spoke scathingly of the tactics adopted by those responsible for the delivery of the cards in their efforts to secure signatures from Catholics. He referred his listeners to the Catholic attitude on this question, as those who subscribed to the Tablet would well know, and incidentally he much regretted the fact that a great many Catholic families in Ashburton did not take that most valuable paper. Quite a gloom was cast over the Catholic community on Monday morning last when the fact became known that Mr. B. J. Cassels had expired suddenly at the residence of Mr. W. Soal. The late Mr. Cassels was one of our most popular Catholic young men, and took a prominent part in football and bowling. He

joined the local Post Office staff, on transfer from Dunedin, some thirteen years ago. The remains were conveyed for interment to Dunedin by the afternoon express of Tuesday, the assemblage of his many friends at the railway ( station being exceptionally large. R.I.P.