The Southland Times THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1942. Death of Sir Robert Anderson

Southland Times, Issue 24875, 15 October 1942, Page 4

The Southland Times THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1942. Death of Sir Robert Anderson

BY THE DEATH of Sir Robert. Anderson Southland loses the most conspicuous figure in its mercantile community. That distinction was attained by a long life devoted with rare industry both to the prosecution of private business and to public service. A brief record of the positions which Sir Robert held on public bodies and of the steps by which he rose to the head of a large and successful business is given in another place. It is fitting to refer here rather to the character of the man.

Sir Robert lived his life, conducted his business and served the public by very definite standards and ideals. He began humbly as a boy without either means or influence, but in his youth and necessity he was blessed with strong physique and sound health, and in addition he had two cardinal qualities that determined his conduct and ensured his advancement. He set himself a straight course and with unflagging determination he kept himself upon it. The days of necessity passed and he reached affluence; but he did not forsake either of the principles which guided his life. He was throughout an admirable citizen, and until the last he was a worker. Because he had himself known what it was to be poor he always had an understanding sympathy for those in need. Because he had himself received assistance and encouragement when he was striving to advance in business, he appreciated the difficulties and perplexities of others and he was ever ready to extend a helping hand. His. own experience enlarged and extended an inborn benevolence and generosity. How many he helped no one will ever know, but very few appeals were made to him, in vain, and invariably he considered them with the insight possessed only by the man who has himself encountered adversity. As a young man he had to make his way in a laborious age—the last twenty years of the nineteenth century. By comparison with those of today the means of communication were then primitive and the hours of work were not restricted by benign authority. To keep contact with his firm’s customers and extend its connections young Anderson, like others, had to get about the country districts by bicycle, on horseback or in a gig, and his day’s work frequently began at dawn and ended long after night had fallen. The “good old days” were in many respects far from good. Enterprise called for great physical exertion and prolonged effort, but, whether it was a good thing or a bad, work in those days was certainly work, and few men worked harder than Robert Anderson.

The claims of business, however, did not interfere either with the recreation which this rising young man’s robust body demanded, or with his desire as a public-spirited citizen to do what he could for the advancement of the community. He found time to take part in athletics, he was a bandsman and a member of the orchestra in the Southland Musical Society, then flourishing. Even when, in later years, the claims of business and the public bodies with which he associated himself made increasing exactions upon his time he maintained his interest not only in the recreations and pastimes of the people but also in everything that made for cultural improvement. He loved music, pictures, gardens, books—and any movement which promised to increase oppoi'tunities for the enjoyment of the fine arts, and those lesser but invaluable arts which enrich all who learn how to use them, at once commanded his sympathy and practical support. His outlook was wide, the range of his intellectual interests steadily increased, and his death ended a full life of achievement, usefulness and magnanimity. Sir Robert Anderson, will long be remembered for his private benevolence, public liberality, and the part he played in the progress of the town and district.