MR R. M. MORTEN.

•The death of an old Canterbury colonist, Mr Richard May Morten, at the age of eighty-_ix years, is announced. Mr Morten was 'born in Buckinghamshire, England, educated at private schools, and brought up to tho shipping trade. He left England in 1809 in the ship Yorkshire for Victoria, and after a short stay in Tasmania, settled in Canterbury in 1860 as a " sheep farmer iat llakaia. Mr Morten subsequently purchased Mount Pleasant a block of 6000 acres, and also acquired Ahuriri at Tai Tapu which contained 4000. acres, and also Waipara and White Rook, two small sheep stations of about 1200 acres each. Soon after Mr Morten came to Christchnrch he bought the land which forms the site of Morten's buildings, paying £3760, which was at that time considered an extremely high price. How good the investment proved, however, time has shown. Mr Morten was long interested' in the Canterbury A. and P. Association, and was ono of tbe oldest members of the Canterbury Jockey Club. For a time he kept his own racehorses, and was for many years a steward and a member of the club committee. Mr Morten married in 1871, and leaven two sons.

The late Mr L. A. Elerig was well known throughout the Dominion in years gone by as traveller for the firm of Skelton, Frostick and Co., with which he was connected for a very long time. Th© deceased gentleman was also identified very intimately with both craft end capitular Masonry, being an old member of the Canterbury Lodge 1048, and also of several of the Royal Arch Chapters, etc.