Wellington Gives K.O. to Old Man Gloom

Radio Record, Volume VII, Issue 18, 10 November 1933, Page 12

Wellington

Gives K.O. to Old Man Gloom

NEW ZEALAND leading the world! Sounds a bit unusual, doesn’t it, to we New Zealanders, who have come to accept the fact that people in other parts have the bright ideas first-and we follow, months, or years afterwards? But, on this occasion, a body of live Wellington men had an idea -an original idea-and they are going to see that it is pushed through to a successful conclusion. Their idea was a carnival. _ (You'll now be smil-ing-or perhaps yawning-and saying in indulgent tones that it’s probably quite a good idea but not VERY

original. ) but -it’s not a carnival to make money. It’s a carnival that’s going to © show the stuff New Zealand’s made of, and, — what is more important, it’s going to restore our confidence in this little © country "down under." While the children of the Dominion have been having their usual bouts of measles and whooping cough, the grown-ups-yes, every jolly one of themhave been laid low with this nasty depression epidemic that has been doing the rounds. Actually the causes were not nearly so serious as the newspapers would have us believe, but some of the victims were nerve cases, and auto-sugges-tion made them very much worse than they might have been. The country seems to be on the road to convalescence, however-but it needs a bit of help; and the National Confidence Carnival is going to give that little impetus. Roosevelt may have had his National Recovery idea some

months ago, but the promoters of Wellington’s carnival insist that their big idea came to them last May-and Roosevelt followed suit some time afterwards. However, we won’t quarrel with the President of the United States over a little thing like that! ‘Probably the biggest event of the whole carnival, which starts, incidentally, on Saturday, November 18, and continues until the following Saturday, will be the historical pageants in the afternoons and evenings of Monday and Tuesday. ‘This is the feature of the carnival to which the greatest amount of research has

been applied. Historical accuracy, down to the minutest detail, was aimed at, and the works of historians had to be reconciled and scenes selected which would conform to the consensus. of — historical agreement upon facts, and at the same time present the stages of New Zealand’s pro-gress-the dramatic incidents in racial assimilation, social developments and economic adjustment; the principal leaders in peace and war, and the thundering speed of a young, lusty nation in a hurry to grow upall in the most colourful cavalcade which the modern stage permits. This ° pageant is something new. National historians-Dr. Guy Scholefield, Lindsay Buick, James Cowan-have. collaborated in choosing the incidents and checking the details. That beau ideal of theatrical entrepreneurs, Maurice Ralph, is managing producer. The caste has been chosen not only for playing capacity, but in some cases

NYYYY YSIS SII III ISI PPP IAAP AAI i a SS os a ts ss SS eS SS, remarkable physical likenesses have been detected between those selected fo act and the great historical figures whom they represent. There will be a Marsden that his greatest friend might say "hello" to; a Hobson’s choice that might be Hobson’s twin; and an unrelenting Te Rauparaha who, in the hush of the Town Hall, will make hearts quake again-as they did in the days of long ago, on the edge of a raupo swamp or in the depths of a kauri forest. The key features in New Zealand’s 100 years of dramatic progress will be presented in a style to stir the imagination and stimulate the pride of New Zealanders in those who spent their lives to make the country fit to live in; who cleared the land, drained the swamps, ploughed the fields, planted the orchards, built the cities, and developed all the other resources of these happily-placed islands-developed them to a point which has given us, of the present day, the lowest death-rate in the world, the great expectation of life, the highest average output per individual of wealth by production, and the greatest field for enterprise and development in the future. Heartening messages of congratulation on the enterprise have been received by the committee from all over New Zealand-leaders in commercial, professional, scholastic and religious spheres are assured that the death of the Old Man in Black is near-and the Confidence Carnival is going to put another big nail in his coffin. Oriental Bay is going to be one of the main points of interest during the week’s jollifications. On the first Saturday of the carnival the Governor-General (Lord Bledisloe) will land by pinnace from one of the warships in the harbour to declare the carnival open.

wNNAARAARANAAANAAAAAAAAAAANAARAANNARARAAAANAAARAARAAAARAARA OU There will be a water pageant in the bay in the afternoon and evening-an affair at which the visitors will have lots of fun, and won’t be expected to spend any money. . On the following day there will be church services in all the principal churches, with a special parade of youthful church-goers and a big sacred concert in the evening. Monday and Tuesday will be the historical pageant that we have mentioned above. Wednesday will be the business firms’ day out. There will be a huge commercial procession through the city streets-a procession that will open our eyes to the vast and varied amount of material that is being turned out of the Dominion’s factories. An eloquent plea for the "Buy New Zealand Made" idea. The procession is not going to be purely commersjal, however. There will be 10 bands to enliven the nroceedings, Maori exhibits and several floats showing New Zealand’s progress from the birth of a nation down to the death of a depression. A rose show in the Town Hall, whippet races, a bombing display at Rongotai by the air forces, military displays and band contests will be the other features of this very gay day. On the next day there will be a big concert with a night tattoo in the Basin Reserve. The outstanding social event of the week will be the Old, Colonial Ball in the Town Hall on the Friday evening. For this event the city’s brightest and best will bring forth crinolines and bell-bottomed trousers from the old oak chest. This is expected to be the biggest affair that Wellington has seen for many years and the scene should be a memorable one. Friday is the big (Continued on page 24.)

Wellington’s: Big Week (Continued from page 13.) shopping day, with Wellington‘s stores displaying their finest wares in new and most effective ways. Renovations have been speeded up. New paint and new shops or shopfronts meet one at every turn. There will be a huge exhibition and selling effort by retailers that will crowd the city with visitors from morning to night. . ATURDAY is.to be the big and final flutter, with trains and special cars pouring thousands of people into the city from the Wairarapa, Hawke’s Bay, and Taranaki. The afternoon’s gaiety commences at 2 o’clock with the floral fete and battle of flowers, a carnival masterpiece in itself, but also a ecurtainraiser to the business girls’ huge organised drill and athletic display at the Basin Reserve. At night there will be torchlight processions to ‘the Town Hall, gloriously decorated with the pageantry of the country’s progress. Here the results of the princess competition will be deelared, a programme of dancing staged by Miss Kathleen O’Brien’s pupils, and then the coronation. And so, to use the words of one of New Zealand’s well-known politicians -words that have become almost as familiar in this: part of the world as those that Gladstone used in eighteen-something-or-other (what were they, anyway ?)-the country will be well and truly round the-no, we just can’t bring ourselves to say it! ‘Nevertheless, it’s going to be a whopping big week, and Wellington wants the whole of Néw Zealand to be there to ahare | in: the raieties,