EARLY SETTLERS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 252, 12 July 1918, Page 8

EARLY SETTLERS

ANNUAL REUNION The Early Settlers' anil Historical Association' (if Wellington held its annual meeting on Wednesday evening in Uinlber's Hoonis, Courtcnay I'laue. Tlie president, itr. J. !•!. Jenkinson, was in * the chair, and there was a large at--0 tendanco of members. » The annual report stated:—ln prcsent- ? ing this, the third report since our in--1 ception, vouv executive (loe.s so with u somewhat mixed l'eelings. 'fhe work of the association hits been held in abeyance " very much owing to the general upset oc- : ensioned ]>y the world war now raging. In May, JIM", members met to farewell 3 our ex-secretary, Mr. It. X. Lyon, on the 1 eve of his departure on active service. ' At that meeting it was resolved that wo 1 should renew our activities, that meetings be held at least quarterly, and that 1 Dominion Bay and Anniversary Day be " celebrated in a tilting manner. It was 3 also agreed then that the present c.iecu- ' live should hold ofiice lor the term of I' the war. Your committee, however, 1 thinks that as the term is still too in- " definite, and that a number of those elected on the committee are nimble to , attend meetings and enrry out the objects of the association, a general meet--1 ing should be called and a few more [ good workers added to the committee. During the past fourteen months we have elected 17 tie.v members, and we ' now have a nominal roll of 2(10. We " have, however, since our last general ' meeting lost a number of interesting and useful members. Among tlieni we might make special mention of Mr. A. H. Turnbull, Mr. Enoch Tanks, Mrs. Maxton, : Mr. Donald Eraser (of Bulls), Dr. Boor ' (of Nelson), Captain Bell, Mr. John Stev- - ens, Mr. Flyger, and others. We ex- ' press our deepest sympathy with Iheit 1 relatives in tho loss they liave sustained, ! which has been our loss as well. AVe ■ must in the natural course of events expect these losses, and wo must, there- ' lore, do our best to get more new memI bers. There is plenty of room for more I young active members to continue the ■ work of their pare.its, or to hand on to ' ! future generations their record, and on . 1 this depends the future of this association. The financial position of the association must l>e considered. By the balance-sheet .submitted it will be Been that our expenses have been very heavy in comparison with our receipts. Our credit balance is small, the greatest proportion being held in 'War Certificates." In moving the adoption of tho report and balance-sheet the president invited 1 suggestions for effectively carrying out some of the proposals submitted by the executive. Ho particularly asked for 1 assistance in devising a scheme for (he proper housing and preservation of the historical records connected with tho Dominion and the provincial district of Wellington. The motion was seconded by Mr. John Smith, and supported by Mr. H. Daysh (Wairarapa) and Mr. L. G. West, of I'nlmerston North. Incidents and Records. Mrs. C. Morris (a descendant of Captain r. G. Moore, who arrived in Wellington in 1810) related some interesting incidents connected with Captain Moore's early life in and about AVellington in the forties. The speaker said Captain 'Moore owned the first vessel belonging to Wellington—the Jewess—which vessel was wrecked ut Kapiti Island. Miss Alien presented to tho association a number of interesting documents, including a burgess roll of Wellington Borough for tho year 1843, and a copy of the New Zealand "Colonist" (published ■ in Wellington), dated April, 1813. Mr. T. W. Staee said he had plans showing the position of the Maori pas and fortifications in and around Wellington, and out as far as I'aekakariki. He would have much pleasure in presenting (he plans to tho association as a historical document connected with the curly days. The principal part of the information on which the plan was drawn was, he said, supplied by Mr. Elsdon Best, the well-known authority on Maori lore. Sir. C. M. Luke mentioned that it was exactly 4-1 years eince he landed in ; Wellington. He strongly supported the suggestion to secure a permanent home for the association. Ho suggested that a committee should bo sot up to wait on the City Council in order to enlist, the support of that body in tho work of the association. Mr. George Jones, Petone, referring to the early days, mentioned that ho arrived in Wellington 5!l years ago, and that he jiut up the first gas-holder, on the then oeach, where the present gasworks are ?,icatcd. Election of Officers. The election of officers resulted as follows:—President, Mr. J. E. Jenkinson; vice-presidents,. Mesdames J. Earle. A. Carter, S. Brown, Messrs. L. G. West flVairarapa), J. B. Hnreoiirt, J. Smith, H. Days'n, L. M'lCenzie, L. Stowe, P. Wilson, C. jr. Luke, and Dr. A. X. Newman, JI.P.; committee, Mesdames Jl. L. Dawson, CI. Morris, E. Sidey, E. J. Moore, E Red ward. J. M. Edwards, 11. Morris, Jlessrs. W. E. Moore. 3?. A. 'Wright, JLl'., Thomas Smith, If. A. W. M'lCenzie; secretary, Mr. W. A. EdJ wards; treasurer, Mr. T. W. Staee; auditor, Mr. C. D. Morpeth; editor of Journal, Mr. P. Galvin.