Sunday, 7 December 2014

1914-12-03


“The Carnival of Nations, under the auspices of the Dundas relief auxiliary opened last evening with a very large audience in attendance.”

          Hamilton Spectator.   December 3, 1914.

          It was a remarkable event, involving countless hours to produce something that would attract a lot of visitors. It was the hope that the visitors who would contribute to the relief fund in aid of dependents of soldiers left behind after the men volunteered to go to war.

          The Spectator coverage was detailed in hope that the article would induce many to visit the Dundas Music Hall over the next several days:

          “The hall is a veritable riot of light and color, and is a scene of beauty from one end to the other, and is worth a visit from every resident of the district.

          “It is very creditable to the ladies and gentlemen who have worked so hard to make the effort a success.

          “There are a great many booths, in which goods of all kinds can be bought, and all the proceeds go to the Patriotic fund, which is an inducement for the people to buy.

          “The booths are extremely pretty, and so are some of the girls, and the costumes are worth seeing if there were no other features. They include Scotch lassies in tartan, brunette maids of India in white turban, saucy Irish girls and a sweet lot of Dutch girls in very pretty dresses.

          “Some of the exhibits which are not for sale are of great interest. One of these is a great topographical war map of Europe.

“ Another is a map model of the Kiel canal, the German navy bottled up and Haligoland with its great fortresses and the British fleet in the front. It is made of sand and was greatly admired by all and helps to give an idea of the scene of action in European waters. It was made by the boys of Robert Hope’s Sunday school class, and is a very clever piece of work.”1

1 “Function in Aid of Local Relief : Carnival of Nations in Dundas a Success”

          Hamilton Spectator. December 3, 1914.

          In addition to the displays, there were musical performances, and informative lectures given on the war.

          The Spectator reporter ended his account by stating his regret that “space will not permit an account of all the good things to be seen, and those who have not seen the show should go tonight by all means as it is one of the best things put on in Dundas for some time.”1

No comments:

Post a Comment