PERSONAL ITEMS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 129, 25 February 1919, Page 4

PERSONAL ITEMS

The Minister of Public Works (Sir William Eraser) lias returned to Wellington from n. trip through the central districts of the North Island. The Minister motored from Stratford to Tc Ivuiti and visited Taumarunui.

The Hon, D. H. Guthrie, Minister of Lands, has returned to Wellington after a prolonged tour of the South Island. Ho has covered a great deal of ground and visi ted many centres and settlements during recent weeks. Mr. Guthrie is planning other tours that will extend his personal knowledge of the needs of the farmers and the work of settlement throughout New Zealand. '

The Hon. W. H. Herries, Minister of Bailways., left yesterday for the Rotorua dista-ict, where he will visit his own constituency. He has arranged to return to Wellington on Friday.

The Hon. A. M. Myers; Acting-Minis-ter of Finance, is expected to reach Weilington this afternoon from the north.

His Honour the Chief Justice (Sir Robert Stout) will probably return to Wellington. towards the end of the present .week.

A Press Association message from Hastings states: The Hon. A. L. BFraser died at the residence .of his father-in-law, Mr. W. Y. Dennett, early on Monday morning, after an illness extending over two years; aged 57. The late Mr. Eraser was born at Kaiapoi, Canterbury, in 1862, and settled in Hawke's Bay in 1881. After some years service as a school teacher, he became an advocate in the Native Land Court, and from 1899 to 1908 represented Napier in the House of Representatives. A tew years ago he was appointed a member of the Legislative Council. For years tho late Mr. Fraser was Chairman of the Native Affairs Committee nf. the House of Representaives.

Mr. Thomas Henry Higgs, of the staff of the A.M.P. Society, died, suddenly at his home in Masterton on Sunday morning. Hq was 56 years of age, and in liis vounger days was in banking institutions in London and Victoria.

The many friends of Mr. J. J. M'Grath, barrister and solicitor, will regret to learn that he has been ordered into a private hospital' to undergo rest and treatment for the next few weeks. Mr. M'Grath, it will be remembered, took a prominent part as a voluntary helper during the irecent influenza l epidemic.

Mr. James Gilmour, manufacturer for the British Empire Trading Company has been appointed by the New Zealand Tobacco Company, Ltd., of Napier, to the position of chief manufacturer, and will also supervise the growing of tobacco by farmers throughout the Dominion. He leaves Wellington on Monday next.

The friends of Mr. J. H. Sharp, a chief engineer of the White Star Line, will be pleased to hear of his release froniMptivitv in Germany, aftortwo years detention, and will 'be glad to welcome hml when he will arrive here to-morrow as chief of the Zealawlic.

Mr. A. Houston,; of the War Expenses Department, who ' went to England on business last year, is returning on the steamer Port Melbourne, which is due at Auckland on March 15.

Rifleman E. H. Smith, of Moeiwa, Bay of Islands, who embarked with drat l Iso. 2f9 on the Port Melbourne, is reported liy Base Records to have nied at sea during the voyage.

The Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke), who is travelling with the Parliamentary Comniittee which is inquiring into the position of our industries, was in Invercargill yfrsterday. He may return to Wellington at tho end of the week.

Private cable advice has been received in Auckland of the death of Sapper U. H Caughey, of pneumonia, in hospital at Cologne, Germany, on February IG. Mr. Caughey was one of the directors of the firm of Messrs..Smith and Caughey,Ltd. He enlisted in the early stages of the war and proceeded to camp, where after examination he was rejected as medically unfit. Ho was determined, however, to get away, and set about to make himseit fit With that object in view he vent to'work on a farm at Northern Wairoa, where he stayed for six months. When, the medical standard was lowered he immediately re-enlisted, and eventually proceeded to the front with the Divisoual Signallers of the Twenty-fifth Reinforcements. He was 29 years of age, and the second son of Mr. A. C. Caughey. Lieutenant Clifford W. IC. Sadlier, 'of the Australian Forces, who ■ has been awarded the Victoria Cross,, is a nephew of Dr. Sadlier, Anglican Bishop of Nelson. Lieutenant Sadlier, who is 25 years of age, enlisted in 1915, and received Ins commission after two years of 6ervl ®®* The act for which he received the c< voted decoration was particularly brilliant. His platoon had to advance through a wood in which a strong enemy post was causing heavy casualties and preventing the platoon from Although wounded he at once ofllected his bombing; section, led them aKftliist the machine-guns, and succeeded in■ the crews.and capturing .two of fe Bv this time his party were all casualties, and lie alone attacked a third enemy machine-gun crew with his revolve!, killing the crew of four and taking tho gun. In doing so he was again wounded. Mr, John Fox, who has recently relinquished the position of manager of tho Returned Soldiers' Club in order to visit England, left for the south last evening to join tho Mamma. Mr. lon was a vice-president of the Patriotic Society Band, and the hand, under Bandmaster W. J- Jupp, present nt tho ship's fiido to farewell Mr. 1 ox, and there were also present, somo hundreds of returned soldiers. Beforo the ferry steamer left wharf farewell speeches were made by Bandmaster Jupp and Mr. Curtayne, to which Mr. Fox ruphod. As the vessel left the wharf flio band pla> - ed "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow and "Auld Lang Sync."