OBITUARY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 65, 16 March 1908, Page 3

OBITUARY.

THE LATE MR. WALTER DUFAUR.

Mr. Walter Dufaur, for many years a familiar figure in Auckland, died suddenly at his residence in Ponsonby on ° Saturday night. For a considerable time h the deceased gentleman had been troubled a with heart affection, and on Saturday *>. night he retired to bed about" 9 o'clock, si apparently in his usual health. Some' C little time later his wife spoke to him, but received a reply in gasps, and in a' P moment Mr. Dufaur had breathed his " last. Dr. Lindsay was summoned, but on v his arrival could only pronounce life to fl be extinct. Dr. Lindsay had attended a Mr. Dufaur for some time past, and was able to give a certificate, so that an in- *> quest will not be necessary. Mr. Dufaur v had spent practically the whole of his life ° in Auckland, and had won TJie esteem and * regard of a very large circle of friends. ° He was a son-in-law of Mr. T. X. Alase- n field, leaves a son and one ° daughter to mourn their los 3. E The remains were interred at ? the Purewa Cemetery this after- " noon. The business premises of Mr. E. s B. Dufaur (brother of the deceased) were a closed to-day, as also were those of Mr iT. T. Masefield. "" s DEATH OF MR. JOHN FITT. | The news of the death of Air. John Fltt, who for several years filled the Mayoral ' chair of the borongh of Parnell, will be * received with regret by his many friends and acquaintances. Mr. Pitt passed away ' ;at his residence, Campbell-terrace, yestcr- ! day morning, at the age of sixty-two . years, after an illness extending over four I months. Mr. Fitt was one of the earliest, ' if not the earliest resident of Parnell, ; i having been born in that district in IS4S. For many years he was closely identified with the public life of the borough, and, with the exception of two years spent in Australia, he has lived in Parnell all his life. He was tho son of Mr. John Fitt, who came from Australia in 1845, and was educated in Auckland. After leaving school he was apprenticed to the joinery trade, and at the age of nineteen he went to Australia, returning to New Zealand. On the outbreak of the Thames gold rush he went to that district, and met with success on the goldfieids. Returning to Auckland, he spent four years in learning the soap trade, and then entered into partnersliip with Mr. C. Wood, estabj lishing a business which is still in existence, lie first entered public life in 1806, when lie stood as a candidate for the Parnell Borough Council and was returned at the head of by. a large majority. He held a seat on the Council for six years, and then, at the request of a large number of ratepayers, stood for the Mayoralty, the financial affairs of the borough being tJien in a very critk-al condition. Mr. Pitt, who was elected unopposed, succeeded in placing '.he aflairn of the borough on a satisfactory basis, and held office as Mayor for four years. He was a staunch believer in the necessity for adequate sanitation, and during i his regime was inaugurated the drainage j scheme, which has placed the borough in rts present highly satisfactory position in the matter of public health. For several years he represented the borough on the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, and it was his characteristic that he devoted as much attention to the adminj istration of public funds as to his own business, with the result that he achieved success in both. His word was his bond, and his genial, sympathetic nature raade him very popular among all with whom he came in contact. Vp till the. time he was seized by illness he was very hale and active, and for scvrr.il months he I Viorc .an agonising illness um.-ompln.m----j inply. In his youth, Mr. Fitt was callfd i upon to serve in the militia at the time of [ tho Waikato war. and his capabilities I quickly resulted in his elevation to the rank of non-commissioned officer. He is survived by a widow, three daughters, and two sons, the eldest, Mr. Frank Fitt, being a member of the Parnell Borough Council. Tho funeral will leave his late residence for the Symonds-street Cemetery at 2.30 p.m. to-morrow.