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ROKEBY HALL.
OPENING OF THE BUILDING.
THE STRUGGLE OF THE SITES.
An important stage, if not, indeed,
the concluding chapter, in a stirring
episode of local history, an Iliad with-
out its Homer (unless, indeed, the poet
whose verses were circulated on Satur-
day is an aspirant to that position),
was marked by the opening on Saturday
of the recently erected hall at Roke-
by. As a contrast to the storm and stress
which has for years waged round the
hall site, the day for the inauguration
of the new hall was brilliantly fine, with
a serene and clear sky, and visitors
could fully appreciate the peaceful old
world charm of Rokeby, tucked away
in a world of its own on its little
plain, with the blue, sunlit waters of
Ralph's Bay in front, and the hills
behind, and on either side. If Risdon
is excepted, Rokeby is the oldest set-
tlement east of the Derwent, and it
ranks amongst the very oldest settle-
ments in Tasmania. In the early days
it was relatively more important than
it is now, for it lacks room for ex-
pansion, but it is a very pleasant
place, with an air of solid, if quiet,
prosperity. It is honourably distin-
guished for the excellence of its cricket,
amongst other things, and has probably
produced more good cricketers in pro-
portion to its size than any other com-
munity in Tasmania.
The history of the Rokeby-hall goes
back a good many years, and, indeed,
the sustained efforts of which the pre-
sent hall is the outcome began nearly
seven years ago. Union is strength, but
there has always been a good deal of
disunion in Rokeby over the hall ques-
tion, which has naturally caused diffi-
culties in such a small community.
When the project for a hall was first
mooted, the Government offered a 90
years' lease of a piece of ground ad-
joining the police quarters. Objections
were raised to the site, and this pro-
mising offer never bore fruit. Indeed,
it has proved a hard task to give the
hall a local habitation, and there has
been a battle of sites nearly as long
as the ten years' siege of Troy. The
present hall stands on the eastern side
of the cricket ground, and not far from
the old stone church, with its square
stone tower, and the ancient church-
yard in which lie the mortal remains
of " Bobby " Knopwood, and of many
another old-time worthy. The rival
site lies on the opposite side of the
recreation ground, and over the respec-
tive merits of these two strenuous
struggles have been waged, the local
contests being varied by appeals unto
Cæsar in the shape of the Clarence
Council. However, the custom site won
out, and the hall has been built on
a piece of ground given by Mr. Free.
Now that the new hall is an accom-
plished fact, the opponents of this site
may consider it wise to bury the hat-
chet, but apparently one, at least, was
not prepared to allow, the occasion to
pass without a fling at the other side.
This took the form of a set of verses
printed under the heading of " To Com-
memorate the Opening of the Rokeby
Hall,'' which were circulated on Sat-
urday, and set forth the poet's view of
the war and its outcome. The iden is
certainly an unusual one, and it would
perhaps not be desirable for it to be
too widely imitated. The poet's lan-
guage is certainly more forceful than
polite at times.
There was a good attendance at the
opening of the hall, and many visitors
came from Hobart, Bellerive, Cam-
bridge, Sandford, South Arm, and other
neighboring centres. Parliament was
represened by the Warden of Clarence
(Hon. J. Murdoch, M.L.C.), Hon. A.
Morrisby, M.L.C., and Hon. J. W.
Evans, C.M.G., M.H.A., while the
Clarence Council was strongly repre-
sented.
The Worden said he was glad
to see such a fine hall. They
know there had been a good deal
of difficulty, in getting it there, but
he would not go into that. The hull
had cost £200, and the piano £50, and
the committee had £150 in hand, which
left a debt of £100. The committee
were naturaly anxious to reduce this,
and, in spite of the dry season, he
hoped they had come with thejr poc-
kets so well lined that by the end
of the day there would be a substan-
tial part of the lacking £100 in the
hands of the committee. He had been
told that some doubt had been express-
ed whether the hall was not on pri-
vate land. The chairman of the hall
committee (Mr. John Smith) informed
him that those doubts were quite un-
founded, and that the ground on which
the hall stood did not belong to any
private poison, but that the hall was
built on its own ground. (Hear, hear.)
He hoped that would clear up any
doubt on the matter. He hoped this
hall would be of benefit to the people
of Rokeby and their children of after
them, and had pleasure in declaring it
open. (Applause.)
The now hall is 50ft. in length by
30ft. in breadth. Part of the space
is taken up by a platform, while the
floor is specially built for dancing. The
hall was built at a cost of £200, the
builders being Messrs. Sheppard and
Huxley, of Hobart. Tho trustees, of
the hall are Messrs. John Smith, J.
Reynolds, and V. Chipman, while the
hall committee consists of the trustees,
together with Messrs. W. Free, E.
Young, A. Calvert, C. Percy, L. Pear-
sall, and J. Pearsall. The secretary
is Miss Jessie Young, who has acted in
that capacity ever sinco a start was
made to collect funds for the hall near-
ly seven years ago, and to whose efforts
the completion of the work is largely
due.
The hall was gay with flags, and
specially decorated in honour of the
opening ceremony, while one side was
devoted to the stalls of a fair in aid
of the hall funds, and afternoon tea
was served in a tent outside. Good
business was done during tho afternoon,
and again in the evening, when the fair
was again open, with the added attrac-
tion of a dance. T'he stalls and stall-
holders were as follow :- Produce,
Messrs. J. Smith and W. Free, and Miss
Molly Free ; plain and fancy stall, Miss
Pearsall ; toys. Miss K. Pearsall ;
sweets, Miss Harvey ; cakes, Misses
Muriel and Annie Calvert ; afternoon
tea, Mrs. W. Free, Mrs. Beard, and
Mrs. Hanslow, Misses Winifred, Maud,
and Dora Hanslow, Ina, Enid, and Irene
Free, Suckling, and Nurse Percy.
A cricket match between Rokeby and
Sandford was played during the after-
noon, and excited a lot of local in-
terest.
In the evening, guessing competitions
were run under the management of
Mrs. Clements. A dance was held, the
music being provided by Miss Sophio
Chipman, Mrs. Brain, Mrs. Sheppard,
and Mr. D. Free.
There were a large number present,
so much so that, instead of the hall be-
ing too large, there was not sufficient
room for the dancers. People from
Sandford. South Arm, Cambridge, Rich-
mond, Campania, Bellerive, Wedge
Bay, Glen Huon, and Hobart were pre-
sent.
The takings for the day exceeded £30.
$