OBITUARY.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9705, 19 April 1897, Page 2

OBITUARY.

MR JOHN SCOTT CAVERHILL.

. Early on Saturday morning another of onr earliest colonists, Mr John b'cott Caverhill, Sassed away. Mi" Caverhill was born near edburgh in May, 1820. The deceased gentleman, came of au old Scotch family, well versed in sheep bleeding, and Mr Caverhill, from his youth upwards, took a keen interest in. all kinds of stock, and was a first-rate judge of all kinds of animals. Sir CaverhilJ, finding insufficient scope for his energies in his native village, emigrated iv 1539 to Australia, where for some yeara he was taking cattle overland for the late Mr Hawdon, Lieutenant (now Sir George) Grey and others. At the suggestion of Sir George he came to New Zealand early in the forties, and engaged in contracting for the supply of meat for the troops during the early Maori wars. While thus engaged he was captiu*ed by the Natives, and was for some time a prisoner of the renowned chief Te Rauparaha. Being an expert horseman, Mr Caverhill was employed by the Maoris to break in some horses for them, and after a while he was enabled to select one of the fleetest, by means of which he effected his escape. He then found his way to the Middle .{aland, and, associated with Sir Charles Clifford, was for some time engaged in selecting station properties, principally in the Nelson district, for various persons. He lumself became possessed of the now wellknown Cheviot Hills property, and alea took a lease from Messrs Greenwood 'Brothers of the Motanau station, which at that time was a very large one, and used chiefly as a cattle run. Upon Cheviot Hills being purchased by the late Hon. W. Robinson, Mr Caverhill purchased the Hawkawood estate, where he resided many years, and early commenced its improvement by planting, grass seed sowing, and a careful selection of merino sheep. Hawkswood was afterwards bought by the late MiJohn Macfarlane, but prior to its.sale Mr Caverhill removed to Highfield, where he carried on improvements on the same principles as he had done at Hawkswood. On the disposal of Highfield to its present owners, Messrs Wharton and Co., Mr Caverbill removed, with a considerable sum of money, to the North Island, settling first at New Plymouth and then goiug to Hawera. There, through impaired health, declining years aud unfortunate investments in Maori leases and other causes, he lost the whole of his early gainings, and at the last was in very straitened circumstances. He will, however, long be remembered as having been one of the most generous aud kindhearted of men, and many persons, now living in good circumstances, owe their first start in life to his kindness and assistance, and jit is well-known that no swagger ever applied to him in vain for food or shelter. Always a lover of pure stock Mr Caverhill spent large sums in perfecting whatever class he had, and was never without something good in either sheep, cattle, horses, or dogs. The deceased gentleman was a warm supporter of the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association from its early days, and the last occasion on which he officiated as a judge of short horn cattle was at the November show of 1890. In 1852, the first lot of cattle brought overland from Nelson to Canterbury was driven across the Hurunui by the late Mr Caverhill. They comprised the Bow and Arrow brand, 500 in number, including eight pure bred bulls, said to have been large-framed Teeswater looking cattle. They were supposed to have descended from Patter McQueen's famous cattle bred in the Hunter River district, -and ou reaching Canterbury were disposed of to the late Mr J. T. Brown (Mount Thomas), W. D. Wood (Riccartou) and the late Rev. J. Raven (Woodend). Those sold to the last formed the nucleus of the late Mr J. Bowie's dairy herd. Before it was dispersed, Mr Caverhill's herd comprised the largest number of pure cattle held by one person in the country. It included Duke and Duchess, Kathleen O'More, Beatrice, Dairymaid and Miss B'arrison, besides the bulls Lord John, Conrad and Regicide. . In 1855, Mr Caverhill married Miss King in Lyttelton, who, together, with four sons and "three daughters, survives him. The eldest of the former is the popular manager of the Bank of New Zealand, Kaiapoi> and the eldest of the latter the wife of the Rev. L. M. Isitt. The eldest son, William, was a victim of the disastrous fire in Hawera some time ago. Owing to the very short notice given of the death, only thoee relatives and personal friends of the deceased who could be privately communicated with on Saturday were enabled to attend his funeral yesterday afternoon. But a large, number of telegrams of sympathy with the bereaved family, besides many floral tributes, were received. The interment took place at the Linwood Cemetery. The Rev. Dr. Elmslie, assisted by the Rev. L. M. Xsitt, officiated afc the grave.