After a gambling loss in Dunedin, a stolen horse, nearly robbed in Clyde, saved by a fiddle wielding dwarf, a run in with the Burgess Gang up the Buller Gorge, thrown out of Murphys bar in Nelson, a fight with Big Ben Thompson in Kaikoura where he met Flossie who had a real talent as a fiddler. They set out for Christchurch stopping at the Hurunui Hotel having held its license continuously since 1st July 1860.
The Pubs cook Paddy O’Rourke was the best Arthur decided. Paddy had cooked in the gold fields but left in a hurry after putting a laxative in his irish stew to pay back a bunch of minors who had stolen his two mules. Arthur talked Paddy into coming to Christchurch to cook at The Little Fiddle Bar and Paddy promised not to fiddle with the stew. But Flossie fiddled all night much to the delight of the locals not to forget Arthur of coarse who was enamoured by her in more ways than one let alone her fiddling prowess.
Arthur, Flossie and Paddy finally arrived in Christchurch reminding Arthur of Ireland and England with its stone buildings, rose gardens and cathedral still under construction. This was the place for The Little Fiddle Bar he thought. Flossie too was convinced and they even spotted the place to build where it stands today. On that spot Flossie and Arthur were married by the Archdeacon Mathias and six months later Arthur Shand the 2nd was born.
Needless to say a lot of fiddling had taken place between the happy couple along with an abundance of Flossie’s violin playing. Unfortunately Arthur received a letter from Guinness & Sons demanding he return to Dublin where he was required to report his findings in New Zealand.
Whilst he, Flossie and little Arthur were there Arthur sent two Irish builders back to Christchurch to commence construction of The Little Fiddle Bar which took some years to complete some saying they just ‘fiddled about.’ In the meantime Paddy cooked for a few pubs in Canterbury all the time perfecting his menu for the The Little Fiddle.
Arthur and family returned to Christchurch in 1908 where he fired his appointed manager of The Little Fiddle Bar taking over with young Arthur and Flossie becoming famous for their boisterous hospitality, Paddy’s now famous fare and if you wanted a fiddle this was the place to be. Flossie adopted a cat she called ‘Diddle’ after the riddle the cat and the fiddle but Arthur reckoned she named ‘Diddle’ after him.
Arthur died in 1910, the headstone had a fiddle etched into the granite with the words ‘Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle cause Arthur loved pussy’.
After a gambling loss in Dunedin, a stolen horse, nearly robbed in Clyde, saved by a fiddle wielding dwarf, a run in with the Burgess Gang up the Buller Gorge, thrown out of Murphys bar in Nelson, a fight with Big Ben Thompson in Kaikoura where he met Flossie who had a real talent as a fiddler. They set out for Christchurch stopping at the Hurunui Hotel having held its license continuously since 1st July 1860.
The Pubs cook Paddy O’Rourke was the best Arthur decided. Paddy had cooked in the gold fields but left in a hurry after putting a laxative in his irish stew to pay back a bunch of minors who had stolen his two mules. Arthur talked Paddy into coming to Christchurch to cook at The Little Fiddle Bar and Paddy promised not to fiddle with the stew. But Flossie fiddled all night much to the delight of the locals not to forget Arthur of coarse who was enamoured by her in more ways than one let alone her fiddling prowess.
Arthur, Flossie and Paddy finally arrived in Christchurch reminding Arthur of Ireland and England with its stone buildings, rose gardens and cathedral still under construction. This was the place for The Little Fiddle Bar he thought. Flossie too was convinced and they even spotted the place to build where it stands today. On that spot Flossie and Arthur were married by the Archdeacon Mathias and six months later Arthur Shand the 2nd was born.
Needless to say a lot of fiddling had taken place between the happy couple along with an abundance of Flossie’s violin playing. Unfortunately Arthur received a letter from Guinness & Sons demanding he return to Dublin where he was required to report his findings in New Zealand.
Whilst he, Flossie and little Arthur were there Arthur sent two Irish builders back to Christchurch to commence construction of The Little Fiddle Bar which took some years to complete some saying they just ‘fiddled about.’ In the meantime Paddy cooked for a few pubs in Canterbury all the time perfecting his menu for the The Little Fiddle.
Arthur and family returned to Christchurch in 1908 where he fired his appointed manager of The Little Fiddle Bar taking over with young Arthur and Flossie becoming famous for their boisterous hospitality, Paddy’s now famous fare and if you wanted a fiddle this was the place to be. Flossie adopted a cat she called ‘Diddle’ after the riddle the cat and the fiddle but Arthur reckoned she named ‘Diddle’ after him.
Arthur died in 1910, the headstone had a fiddle etched into the granite with the words ‘Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle cause Arthur loved pussy’.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ARTHUR’S INTREPID JOURNEY DOWNLOAD THE SIX JOURNAL ENTRIES BELOW. FIDDLY DEE!
