DEATH OF MR SAMUEL VAILE

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 91, 17 April 1913, Page 7

DEATH OF MR SAMUEL VAILE

PASSING OF AN INTERESTING ' PERSONALITY. ■PIONEER DAYS RECALLED. ' '~ One bf the interesting links with the noneerHfe'of Auckland, and a bighlyateemed citizen passed away yesterday n the person of Mr. Samuel Vaile, who lied at his residence,; Twyford, Arney ioad, Remuera,' at the ripe age of 85 'ears.;. ■';-';'■ "' ■'". '"'-■- ' .The r deceased gentleman was a native if London, having been born at Kensingon in IS2B, the second son of the late dr. George Vaile. In the year 1843 he trrived with bis parents in Auckland, andihg' Christinas DaJy from the larque Bangalore, fellow passengers" beng Captain JFitzroy, the second- Goverlor of the colony; the late Judge Chapnan, father of the present judge; and leveral others whose names are pr'omina*with the infant- life of New Zealand, ri his early life JMr. Vaile was trained or the architectural profession, but he vas destined to many of the changes in cene and oceupation'so often associated vith the men' of the pioneer days, nei•ner was the spice of adventure lacking" n his experience. In 1850, fired by the iccounts arriving frbrii the CalifoTnian Voldfields, he joined a party to try bis brtunes on the field's, the other mem>ers were Baron de Thienry, and Messrs. lugb Carleton; Allan Kerr-Taylor (late >f Mount Albert), arid Walter Brodie, all low dead.; They were destined, howiver, never "to- reach California on that 'oyage, for'bh March 23, at 10 p.m., bey sighted Pitcairn Island, and as tanking water was short on the vessel, .he captain' bore U p for the island to' eplemsh his supply. Next day, Sunday heir vessel, the barque Noble, tacked owards tbe shore, standing on and off, vhile.aJrraiigements'were made with the slanders for procuring fresh water. But he islanders refused to take off water m the Sabbath,, so a party, including the :aptain and the ftmr passengers, pulled ishore. Mr. Walter Brodie, in his book, Pitcairn Jslandj" which relates the ncident oi the marooning, states that ifter.visiting the settlement and attendng a wedding sen-ice which was at the •ime taking plajce in the church, the our voyagers were invited to his home >y the minister, Mr. Nobbs. "About ! p.m. one of the islanders reported that iur vessel had carried away her fore'ard, which we thought stran S e, as there iad been, but little- wind during the norning. ... ° - After a short time, however, we saw • he vessel under easy siiil, showin ff no ;ign of any mishap. T J»e captain then ook his leave of u s all, as they intended leeping on board the barque Noble that tight, but previous to going the captain jave us leave to remain ashore all niirht nddmg us to be ready to go on boW lie following mornino-." » Next .morningtherT was a strong east viiid vvith ram, and no sign of the Noble. mt upon, climbing, to the top of the ook-out range, about I,oooft above sea evel the Noble was discerned about 0 miles distant trying to gain the island, lhe hve passengers who were ashore vished to get off to her, but the. islanders lissui-ded them from the attempt on eeount of the high sea.runainf The lext day, March; 27, the vessel was seen bout 40 miles to the north-west of the sland, 'standing to the eastward.. The '''WJ'-jrSJ 'itiy wasJline" and clear.: and* !i the party on shore .-were highly de.ffhted at the news,: having feared the irevious.-day that, the vessel might bu ilown off, The next morning, however, he joy was dampened by the sight of the Coble, still standing to the eastward; bout 20 miles distant. Mr.- Brodie goes in to relate: "At 10 a.m. she was a title to/the eastward of the island. ■ At 1 a.ni.'we all proposed going off to her li whaleboats belonging to the island. Die islanders would have willingly pulled is put had she showed any inclination o wait for lis." But no such inclination .•as displayed, and as the wind was by oiv increasing it would have been folly o think of catching her. About an hour iter noon she was out of sight, leaving <s totally unable to account for her proeedings. My own opinion is that she emained by the. island until Tuesday ight, when the weather appeared very msettled, and the captain, thinking'there ?as no chance of-' beating to, windward n such a hulk of a vessel, shaped his ourse for.. California.' ~ .. . llere. we rere, five of us, left upon an island, .ithout a change of clothes or linen, and. ot a sixpence in our pockets; but, lcky for us, left perhaps with little. oubt, upon the most moral arid religious dand in.the world, and..amongst the lost kind-hearted, hospitable, and generus islanders ever met with." On April 11 the barque Colonist, from .delaide, via Auckland,, and bound. for jnerica, put in short Of provisions, and he party,: after much persuasion, for she 'as a crowded ship, were taken on board, long with some barrels of limejuice, 'hich the kind-hearted islanders filled _r them as a new start in life, Before mbarking, the members of the marooned arty hid to'embrace the entire. populaion, " including the j last surviving ahitian woman who had been connected •ith the Bounty mutineers. . And Mr. 'ailc took with him the sole coin -on he'isiand. a threepenny piece, which he -ore on hi 3 watebchain to the day of his eath. He was; carried to Honolulu, -here he remained about a year, engaged i,the timber trade. Upon his return to Auckland in the allowing yeai', Mr. Vaile opened a genial store on the corner of Queen and wanson streets, and afterwards a rapery business on the corner of Queennd Wyndham streets, in partnership -ith his'brother, the late Mr. John Ripon Vaile. The two brothers also built .home for themselves in Wellesley treet, on the Freeman's Bay slope, the ibuse, a well-built one of wood, Still ccupying the site. The site of their ihsiness premises was that now occuii'ed ,by the .National Bank, ahd as the irni prospered the building which at resent stands on the corner was erected n English pavia blocks, imported for he purpose. The premises were subequently sold to the Bank, and the irothers opened new' ones in Queen Street. Mr. Vaile, among '■ other enteririses, was a shareholder in the first teamer, the William Denny, to trade mt of Auckland, and, was onboard when in her maiden voyage to Sydney the iteamer came to grief near the North -ape. In 1801 he sailed for to ivy for his fiftil. and remained at Home 311 the end of 1869, devoting most of lis spare time to. working, among the fjondon poor. While in England he was Jleeted a Member of the Society of Arts ind-Sciences, a Member of the Inventors' Institute, and a Fellow of the JRoyal Horticultural Society. While at Home he ; married a daughter of JMr. E : C. JEa'rle, of Rochester. In 1876 Mr. Vaile's old' business was wound up, and he established the existing busines* of Samuel Vaile and Sons, land and jstate agents, starting business in Sborfc•wnu, Iv 18SS he; ih_t V

stage.system-for railway administration; the advocacy of wliidH he 'regarded'" as the work oi his life. "In 1886> a Parliamentary Committee,... after exhaustive inquiries, recommended a trial of the System, but the. Government, fearful of a loss in the" then stressful" state of the finances, took no action in the inattei. Jin 18S8 Mr..Vaile formed a syndicate, which offered tb lease the Auckland railways in order to-give-'the system apractical trial, but this 1 was also declined by the Government. No later than in February last Mr. Vaile published a pamphlet on the subject, ix-jaX almost his last' expressed thoughts were a hope that he. would be spared to see-his system put in effect for the benefit. of • the; public On three' occasions' he ) unsuccessfully contested' an Auckland seat for' Parliii'-' ment, and was always keenly. interested' in the commercial progress of the city. He was a representative of the Auckland Chamber of Commerce at the J Commonwealth celebrations, and was for long a member of" the Chamber's Council. He was the first honorary life member of the Council, hayhrg been so> elected lost year. About' a '.week ago Sir, Vaile returned from a' visit .to Rotorua, and. was taken ..seriou&ly ill last Saturday, gradually sinking add passing peacefully' away yesterday" afternoon. He is survived by his widow,' two. sons (Mr. E; Earle Vaile and Mr.- H. E. Vaile, of Samuel Vaile and Sons) arid two unmarried daughters, his eldest daughter, the late Mrs. R. W. de Montalk, having predeceased him. The funeral will leave deceased's late residence for Purewa at 2.30 to-morrow afternoon.