FORMER MANAWATU RESIDENT'S ESTATE.

Shannon News, 19 July 1929, Page 3

FORMER MANAWATU RESIDENT'S ESTATE.

£40,000 FORTUNE FOR AUCKLANDER

MISLEADING REPORTS DENIED

The following telegram, refers to a farmer resident of Shannon, Mr G-erhard. Engles, who was at one time well-known in the iMaiiawatu. He settled first at Fitzherbert, and later came to Shannon. He will be remembered by the older generation of settlers.

Much interest, has been aroused by \ report from Wan Francisco that the estate of the late Gerhart H. Engcls, valued at about £40,000, has, been awarded by the Superior Court of California to Andrew Gray, a member of the well-known firm of Messrs Gray ami Cockroft, land and estate, agents, of Auckland.

After reading newspaper repo.ts of the case, in which several distant relatives contested the will, one would imagine that Engels was a most strange sort of person, abandoned :n his childhood and living in his old ago friendless and peculiar.

"Nothing could be further from tho truth than reports of the case which were sent from Ban Francisco," said Mrs. Andrew Gray this morning at her residence, Grand View road, Renruera. '•Engcls is represented by some witnesses as quite an eccentric sort of man, of no learning and,altogether not a very likeable person. As a matter of fact, he was a man of aristocratic lineage, a man of culture and a most charming and loyal frond. It is most distressing to people who knew him well to read such misleading statements about him as appear to have been made by some of" th" interested witnesses in. the case.'-'

It seems that Engcls, who was a naturalised British subject, was born in Holland and came of an old and distinguished family. One- of the witnesses in the case spoke 01 Engels a* having been abandoned in childhood, but from what Mrs. Gray said this morning, he must have been very carefully educated. He received his first schooling in Holland and was then sent across to Scotland, where ho attended an agricultural college, as he intended to go on the land. Many years ago he migrated to New Zealand and soon after arriving, he joined the colours .and fought during "the Maori War. ' He afterwards settled in the Manawatu district, where lie had a sheep station. He was wellknown in that part of the island, and during his residence there, he occupied quite ""a prominent position in the life of the district.

After living there for a- very long rime, he found the climate w-as 'not suitable, and a few years back, wen;, to live in California. He liked the climate and American ways, so do cided to end his days , there, but .he did not live there all the year round. He was a gnat traveller, and would go off during the winter to the Rivicr:\, or Algiers, or some other winter resort. .

During his residence in California, Engcls paid frequent visits, to New Zealand and "took much pleasure in looking up friends. Some of the witnesses in the San Francisco Court would suggest, by their testimony that he was a morose man. neglected and eccentric, but Mrs. Gray, who knew him for yn.-irs, says he was the reverse. Like many old people, ho mav have got rather introspective towards the "end, but he was a most charming man to meet, an excellent conversationalist and most interesting. He was at home in France and Italy as far as language went, and Mrs. Gray says she thinks ho also knew Russian. At any rate, he spoke several languages and was a well-read man of the world.

In the. report of the case, mention was mndc of the fact that the money left bv Engels was to be used by Gray during his lifetime,-and afterwards wa< to bemused to found a college. Mrs. Grav says she understood" the idea' in Engels' m'nd was to found a college for" research work. Mr Grav belongs to a family wellknown in 'Auckland. His father used io be in business in Shortland street a? an importer of scientific and mining apparatus. Thorc' were several sons, some of whom were keen yachti.n«: moii, and at one lime they owned the famous racing y-ich* Rainbow.' A good many years ago the family removed to Vancouver and Andrew Gray was tho only one who elected io ni main in Mew ZoahuU. Ho is at present in having been called there bv the case, bul is returning next I'ionth bv the Makura.