CHRISTCHURCH QUEUE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 208, 3 August 1937, Page 9

CHRISTCHURCH QUEUE.

BOOKING FOR SPRINGBOKS. SMALLER THAN EXPECTED. Per Press Association. > CHRISTCHURCH, Aug. 3. Surrounded by the greasy remnants of innumerable meat pies, an empty bottle or so, nests of frowsily crumpled blankets and sheets of newspapers, about 30 football enthusiasts greeted the grey dawn in Cashel Street this morning. This was the head of a long queue which was formed to secure seats tor the match between Canterbury and the Springboks on August 21. Th>e queue began to assemble at 9 o’clock yesterday morning, -when the first man arrived at the door of the booking office equipped with a cushion and other aids to comfort. He had the field to himself for eight hours. It was 5 o’clock last evening before the queue was expanded to three; by 6 o’clock there were five, and an hour later 11 men and a woman employed by a speculator took up their positions. The speculator—a well-known publican—treated his “staff” royally. He gave them pies and fish and chips, then at 4 o’clock this morning he sent along steaming flasks of tea and packets of bread and butter.. They were paid los each for their all-night stand. The queue was much smaller than was expected; only about 30 waited all night and a man who arrived at 6.30 a.m. found himself about thirtieth in order. Between 6 and 7 o’clock about 20 more arrived and in the next hour as many again. Between 8 and 8.30 the tail of the queue began to grow at a faster rate and when the doors of the office opened shortly after 8.30 there were about 150 waiting.