Liquor for rugby players

O. Reid winning the final of the 100 yards handicap at the Dunedin Amateur Athletic Club's meeting at the Caledonian Ground on March 12. - Otago Witness, 23.3.1910.
O. Reid winning the final of the 100 yards handicap at the Dunedin Amateur Athletic Club's meeting at the Caledonian Ground on March 12. - Otago Witness, 23.3.1910.
The cost to the Otago Rugby Union of providing alcoholic liquor for visiting football teams was a subject upon which a question was preferred to the chairman of that body at the annual meeting on Saturday night.

Mr Leonard, who asked the question, said he thought the item was one that should be done away with.

He did not think it right for any athletic body to provide liquor for young men.

This sentiment was greeted with some applause.

Mr Campbell, in replying to the question, said it had been a time-honoured custom that when a team visited Dunedin they should be received by the president of the union and the committee and their healths drunk.

Of course, the men were not asked to take it if they did not want it, and he was very pleased to say that he had noticed, particularly in the case of visiting teams, that a good many of the men did not take anything but what was called "soft stuff".

He thought it was not a practice of the Rugby Union to spend money on alcoholic liquor-that was a thing they had always put their face against,-but on a team visiting Dunedin there was some little formality to be gone through.

In regard to the custom of Sunday drives to visiting teams, also, the chairman added that it was the expressed wish of the New Zealand Union that these should be discontinued.

• The Lake County Press learns that mining is being pushed ahead with much vigour in the various mines in the Skippers district.

Messrs W. Gordon and M. Seffer are prospecting at the branches, with encouraging results.

In this locality, the head of the Shotover, there is a big field for enterprise.

In the early days of the diggings portions of the branches were profitably worked, but there is a very large extent of likely country yet untried.

Lower down the river the Branches Syndicate has started operations under the management of Mr J. S. Collins.

The mode of operations will be hydraulicking, and the ground to be worked the river bed.

Unfortunately, for the last three weeks the river has been too high to permit of operations being commenced.

The plant has been tested and works well.

- ODT, 21.3.1910.