PERSONAL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 309, 8 February 1910, Page 5

PERSONAL.

Mr. J. Lomas, Chief Inspector of Factories, was in town yesteruay. Mr. Harry Curtis, son of Mr. C. P. Curtis, is spending a holiday in Taranaki. It is understood in Dunedin that Mr. J. G. L. Hewitt, a local solicitor, has been appointed to the magistracy, ami that he will leave Dunedin shortly to take up duties at Hokitika.— Press "wire. At Kawhia on Friday an old resident in the person of Mr. Valler died from the effects of a paralytic stroke, whljh iad rendered him unconscious for some days. He was 79 years of age, and had been m Kawhia for several years. Mr. Noei Carless, employed on the WaiEi Grand Junction Company's engineering staff, has won the New Zealand School of Mines Scholarship, the examination for which was held in December. The scholarship entitles the holder to free attendance at either the Auckland or Otago University, and carries a bonus of £SO per annum. The Taranaki County Council yesterday passed a resolution congratulating Colonel Collins, "an old Taranaki boy,"' npon his promotion to the position of Auditor and Comptroller-General. The chairman, in endorsing the, motion, said that he was glad of the opportunity of expressing his appreciation of the ci >■-!], courteous and obliging manner in whi-li Mr. Collins had treated him in any business transactions—in fact, he treated people as a man should. In the course of an interview, Mr. J. X. Tait, who has just returned to Melbourne from London, stated that among those who will probably undertake tours tinder the Tait banner within the nexv year or two are Mile. Esta d'Argo (formerly Miss Hettie Holroyd); Mr. Percy Grainger, pianist nad Grieg enthusiast; 3liss Florence Schmidt, a cultured Australian at Home (now the wife of Mr. Derwent Wood, a well-known sculptor); and last, but not by any means least, Miss Clara Butt and Mr. Kennerley Rumford. who were so well received "n New Zealand in 1908. Sir George and Lady Davies, of llobart, are at present visiting Wellington. Sir George, who has been Speaker of tile House of Assembly, Tasmania, sin. e 1903, is a member oi the firm of Davies Bros., Ltd., and of the Mercury and Tasmanian Mail, Hobart, of which he ke«»me general manager. He has been member for Fingai since 3585. and was Mayor of the city of Hobart for s: x years. He was captain of the Commonwealth rifle team competing at Bislgy for the Kolapore Cup. and is a retired lieutenant-colonel. As a cricketer he represented Tasmania against A'.l Englafla.

General Sir ArtHur "Dorward, D.S.O, arrived \n Wellington last week from Australia, via eoutlern ports, in con.tisuatiun cf a lour through the Dominion. He served in the Afghan war, 1878-80 (despatches and medal), the Burmese expedition, 18S5-BS, for his services receivi> g the thanks of the Indian Government (despatches twice, D, 5.0.. and clasp); Chinese expedition. 1900. He commanded the British, American andJßussian troops at the action nea~ Tientsin, and the British, American and Axistrians at the capture of Tietsin ci'> in, July, moo (despatches, K.C.B). He commanded the allied troops in th.: defeat of the Boxers near Tientsin in August, and subsequently in the expedition to Tu Lin. General Dorward was . commissioner at Wei-hai-wei from 18!)!) to 1901, and commanded the troops at Shanghai till 1902, when he was orderfid home. Tie also commanded the troops in the Straits Settlements from >1903-5. Writes Mr. P. Galvin in the Dominion anent old Feilding identities:—"'My r-'-jpiembranee of the Manchester Corpoii.tion officials is that of a set of the most kindly gentlemen ever sent out to colo iSse ?he district. Mr. Halcomb?. who was then th 3 official head-piee.', >vas a regular Si,r Charles Orandisonr He wns a nephew of Sir William Fox's (or his lady), and had been secretary to the Wellington Provincial Council "for some time. He sad also acted as editor rxf |the Wellington Independent in the days of Mr. Thomas Mackenzie, who is still, I am pleased to say, residing amongst us in his old home in Ghuznee stre»t. I never saw Mr. Haleombe out of temper, and I often severely tried it myself in my efforts to extract news about the settlement. I often found him as clfflse as Kir Robert Stont in the days of his Premiership. Mr. Halconibe would have been in his element in the British Hous-i of Commons, or he might have adorned the House of Lords. But. like many men of his stamp, he was not afraid of hard work, when there) ■was need to do it, and I heard of h<rn in later years as a pioneer settler in ! the Urenui district, Tarauaki. milking cows night and morning on his dairv farm."