Page 571 - Reading Mercury

Sat 17 Sep
WOKINGHAM CHARITY CARNIVAL
Town’s Revels For Local Institutions.
A FULL DAY OF FUN.
Big Procession a Climax to a Lively Effort.
Wokingham threw off its usual air of solemnity and demureness on Wednesday
when it held its third charity carnival. The inhabitants and residents from the
surrounding district entered into the spirit of the occasion. The carnival was easily the
most successful ever run in the town, and the Mayor (Ald. A.E. Priest), who took part
in everything that was going on, described it was being a “truly wonderful day.”
There were the usual entertaining events, but the big feature was the procession,
which easily surpassed anything which had been done before. In fact it was such that
it would have done credit to any town.
Various new features were introduced this year and proved highly successful.
CROWNING OF THE CARNIVAL QUEEN
The town seems to have remained more or less immune from the disease of the Yo-
Yo, for the entries did not come up to expectations by a long way. Some of the young
competitors apparently lost their form when confronted by the crowd, while others
made their Yo-Yo’s behave, the competitor held hers in her mouth, and no surprise
would have been occasioned had someone else dangled theirs from their feet. Mr.
F.A. Lyon, the secretary of the Royal Berks Hospital, judged the contest, while the
Mayor watched the competitors closely. Afterwards Mr. Lyon and the Mayor were to
be seen in the Market Place experimenting with a couple of Yo-Yo’s.
Apparently the majority of the inhabitants considered the horticultural show was not
in keeping with the spirit of the carnival, for the entries were disappointingly small.
The features of this were a beautiful floral display by Messrs. Sale and Son, Ltd. and
the tremendous size of some of the apples entered for competition. Mr. Goddard of
Bear Wood, had the duty of judging the entries.
CARNIVAL QUEEN CROWNED
The crowning of the Carnival queen, Miss May Staniforth, took place in the Market
Place in the early afternoon, the ceremony being performed by the Mayoress. The
queen was accompanied by her lady-in-waiting and trainbearers and was greeted by
the Mayor and Mayoress. Dressed in white, she made a charming figure, and it seems
that no better choice could have been made. After bouquets had been handed out, the
queen departed for her flower-bedecked lorry, and the Mayor received his Royal
Highness, the Rajah of Muckabout, his wives and some of his forty thieves. After
some incoherent babblings these visitors also left, three worthies from Embrook
arrived to demand the freedom of that distinguished river-side resort. The arguments
of one Monty Brooks, who was apparently worried by his womenfolk, Emma and
Cissie Brooks, were not particularly lucid, but he announced that Embrook’s
inhabitants would no longer be subservient to anyone. The arrival of a somewhat
human mare, designated the Mayor-elect of Embrook, apparently influenced the
Mayor of Wokingham, for he granted them their charter of freedom. The mare (or
Mayor-elect) seemed overjoyed at the result of the negotiations, and the formation of
Embrook’s corporation will be looked for with lively anticipation.
The Carnival queen and the Mayor and Mayoress then left for the carnival field,
where a comic football match was staged. The football was of the “all-in” type, and,
in fact, one of the forwards was heard to complain that he had been bitten in several
places by an opposing back. Hockey sticks and umbrellas came in useful, but no one
seemed to be greatly concerned about the ball. The contestants wore weird garbs,

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