PERSONAL.

Taranaki Daily News, 13 May 1920, Page 4

PERSONAL.

Mr. F. \Y. G. McLeod and Mrs McLeod returned to New Plymouth last niglit.

Mr. Newton King was re-elected chairman of the New Plymouth Harbor Board at 'the annual meeting of the board yesterday.

Mr J. C. Cooper, of Masterton, who leaves for England in a few days' time, has been entertained at farewell socials and made the recipient of presentations during the p&st week in the Wairarapa.

Messrs M. Eraser and P. J. Hill, who have been to Wellington on business connected with the Taranaki Hospital Board, returned to New Plymouth by last night's mail train. A Melbourne cablegram reports the death of Lieut.-C'olonel Sir George Steward, Chief Commissioner of Police, who was killed while driving his own motorcar, whicll overturned wlieu he was attempting to avoid a collision.

An Ottawa message says that Sir Arthur Currie, formerly commander-in-Chief of the Canadian army in France, has accepted the position of Principal of M'Gill University. This post was offered to Sir Auckland Geddes who, how.ever, has become Ambassador to the •United States.

Mr. William John Birch, the first white settler in the Moawhango district, died yesterday at Mar ton after a long illness, aged 78. lie acted as brigade major tinder Colonel M'Donnell in the Te Kooti troubles. He was the founder of the Farmers' Union, and took a keen interest in it from its inception. Mr. C. H. Burgess, the Government nominee on the New Plymouth Harbor Board, took his seat at the Board meeting yesterday. A welcome was extended to Mr. Burgess, and to Messrs. J. McCluggage and C. McGuiness on their re-election..

Among those present with the early pettier? at Petone -on Friday was Mr. R. C. Kirk, grandson of the eldest daughter of the Rev. John Hobbs, who arrived in New Zealand in 1823 as a missionary to the Maoris. Rev. Mr Hobbs was present when the first settlers landed in ISW, and after that he tramped all the way back by the West Coast to Auckland. While in what is now Wellington, in 1539, Rev. Mr. Hobbs purchased the whole of Te Aro flat from the natives for mission purposes.'

Following upon the retirement of Mr. Frank Bodle, late manager of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company at Aucklad, and the promotion of Mr. H. 0. Nolan to the post, -Mr. George Shand has been appointed assistant manager, and will leave shortly to take up his new duties. Mr. Shand was formerly manager of the company's Napier branch, and upon discharge from military service returned to Wellington, where lie was attached to the company's inspection department.