PERSONAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 10 September 1940, Page 4

PERSONAL

Messrs Letham (Napier), Barrott, ) Royal, Parnell (Palmerston North), . Edey, Whittaker (Wellington) are at the Hotel Midland, Masterton, today. 2 The death has occurred of the Rev f Charles Connor, Napier, a well-known i minister of, the Presbyterian Church r in Hawke’s Bay, in his eighty-fifth s year. ’ The Hon R. Semple, Minister of National Service, left Wellington for the Waikato by the Limited express ’ last night. He expects to return to ’ Wellington at the end of the week. ) Messrs W. Davis (New Plymouth), r H. V. McCormish, L. Bosher, H. S. j Leake (Wellington), were recent guests , at the Prince of Wales Hotel, Master- > ton. i The Rt Rev H. St Barbe Holland, ■ Bishop of Wellington, who recently underwent an operation, has now returned to his home from hospital. After a short stay at Bishopscourt, his i Lordship will go away to continue his i convalescence. A decision to send a call to the Rev. P. Gladstone Hughes, Auckland, was unanimously reached at a congregational meeting of St. John’s Presbyterian Church, ’Wellington. The charge became vacant on the departure of the Rev. J. R. Blanchard to Adelaide. Mrs Takau Love, who has become Queen of Rarotonga, was a visitor to Masterton yesterday with her two daughters, Princesses Moko and Ina, and her mother-in-law, Mrs H. Love. The two Princesses are pupils at St Matthew’s School. The death occurred at “Burnside” Private Hospital, Masterton, this morning of Mrs Rachel Smith, widow of the late Mr C. Heaton Smith. The late Mrs Smith was 85 years of age and had resided in Masterton for the past fifty years. She is survived by one daughter, Mrs S. J. Gilman, Masterton, and a granddaughter, Sister Mavis Chisholm, now serving in Egypt with the New Zealand Army Nursing Service. The interment will be private. Lieut.-Colonel W. A. Ebbs, who has been appointed Chief Secretary for the Salvation Army in New Zealand, will arrive at Wellington tomorrow by the Limited express from Auckland, with Mrs Ebbs. Lieut.-Colonel Ebbs is a Londoner by birth and entered Salvation Army work 32 years ago. During a career marked by distinction and devotion he has served in corps and staff appointments in Great Britain and America; as divisional officer for Paris, France; as assistant to the territorial commander for Belgium; and as territorial commander for Italy. Well known as a master mariner and a veteran of the Union Steam Ship Company’s service, Captain Richard Edward Smith, of Herne Bay, Auckland, died on Saturday at the age of 92. He joined the Union Company’s service in 1877, two years after the company was founded, and he remained continuously with it for 34 years. With two short breaks, additional periods of employment brought the total to nearly 40 years. Over his service he commanded some 50 of the company’s vessels. In all, he spent 66 years at sea. A Press Association message from Wellington states that Mr Bernard Allen, the New Zealand Manager of United Artists (Australasia) Proprietary, Limited, died suddenly this morning at a private hospital in Wellington. Mr Allen was born in Brisbane and was 49 years of age. He came to Wellington in 1929 as the New Zealand Manager of United Artists Proprietary. Limited. He was a keen golfer and fisherman and made a number of deep sea fishing expeditions, being successful with swordfish off Cape Brett. The death has occurred in Hamilton of Mr George Walter Hugh Vercoe, aged 71. Mr Vercoe was born at Otahuhu and started business as a stock auctioneer at Tauranga. He later en- t tered into partnership with Sir George I Elliot at Tauranga as a stock and sta- 1 tion agent. For many years he was ; one of the principal auctioneers of the i Farmers’ Co-operative Auctioneering J Company, Limited. Hamilton, and in ( 1928 he founded the firm of G. W. 1 Vercoe and Company, Limited, be- i coming managing director, a position he held up to the time of his death, i He was associated with Mr T. Wilson, t Waimai. in a thoroughbred stud which s produced Wiltshire, the winner of the i New Zealand Grand National Steeple- r chase two years in succession. The stud s also produced winners of the Great Northern Steeplechase.