OBITUARY

COL. G. MITCHELL

SOLDIER AND CITIZEN

The death occurred in a private hospital in Wellington last night of Colonel George Mitchell, D.5.0., manager of the Wellington Show Association,, aged 62.

The late Colonel Mitchell was born at Balclutha. He started his military career in 1898, when he joined the Clutha Mounted Rifles. He served in the South African War with the First

Contingent and remained with the Clutha Mounted Rifles until 1908, when he transferred to the Otago Mounted Rifles and subsequently to the Southland. Regiment. He was with the latter regiment in New Zealand with the rank of major until October, 1914, and he left for service abroad with that rank in the Second Reinforcements."

During his service in the Dardanelles Colonel Mitchell was twice wounded. He then went to England and was appointed temporary lieuten-ant-colonel in the Reserve Group at Sling Camp in October, 1916. During part of 1917 he commanded the base depot at Etaples, in France, having been promoted to substantive rank as lieutenant-colonel .in March of that year. He was awarded the King of Servia's Medal, Kara George, with sword, fourth class, in- November, 1916, and was mentioned in dispatches in November, 1917. On his discharge in New Zealand in 1919, Colonel Mitchell again linked himself with the Southland Regiment with the rank of major, and he was placed on the retired list in October, 1927. -

On his return to New Zealand Colonel Mitchell took up his residence in Wellington. He won the Wellington South seat in Parliament in 1919 but was defeated by Mr. R. McKeen, the present member, in 1922. For some years he was a member of the Wellington City Council and the Wellington Harbour Board, of which he was chairman for two years. He was a former chairman of the Board of Governors of Wellington Colleges and a former president of the Wellington Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to : Animals, - as well -as a member of the Dominion executive of the Federation of the S.P.C.A. since 1932. At the time*of his death Colonel Mitchell was also a member of the executive committee of the National War Funds Council, the executive committee of the War Relief Association of Wellington and its subsidiary committees, chairman of the Wellington branch of the Soldiers' Civil Reestablishment League, and deputy chairman of the headquarters of the league, representing the National War Funds Council, a member of the executive of the Wellington South Afri-' can War Veterans' Association, and a former member of the executive of the Dominion body, a member of the Wellington Free Ambulance Board, of which at various times he had acted as chairman, a member and former president of the Wellington Returned Soldiers' Association, and a director of several Wellington companies.

At the time of his joining up with the N.Z.E.F. in 1914, Colonel Mitchell was manager of a wholesale business in Invercargill. He was manager of Munt, Cottrell and Co., Wellington, for some time after his return to New Zealand, and became manager of the Wellington Show Association in 1924.

Colonel Mitchell was twice married, and he is survived by his second wife, formerly Miss Birdie Christina George, of Wellington, who is at present in a private hospital, and by three sons and two daughters- of the first marriage. .' They are Squadron-Leader Allen Mitchell, of the Royal Air Force, Egypt; Mr. Alexander Mitchell, of the Public Trust Office, Hawera; Mr. John Mitchell, of Wainui-o-mata; Miss Muriel Mitchell, of the Greytown Hospital; and Miss Aden Mitchell, of the Wellington Hospital.

The funeral will take place tomorrow at 11.30 a.m. from the mortuary chapel of E. Morris, jun., Kent Terrace, to the Karori Cemetery.