BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25517, 10 June 1948, Page 4

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES

MAJOR-GENERAL SIR HOWARD KIPPENBERGER, KB.E. General Kippenberger had one of the most distinguished records in the 2nd N.Z.E.F. Leaving New Zealand as a lieutenant-colonel in command of the 20th Battalion in 1940, he distinguished himself in the Greece and Crete campaigns. For gallantry in Crete he was awarded the -D.SX).; and the citation made special mention of his complete disregard of danger and considerable tactical skill in organising counter-attacks while suffering from a sprained ankle and loss of sleep. In later campaigns in the Western Desert and in Italy *Sir Howard Kippenberger* added to the laurels he won as a commanding officer. The list of actions in which he took part is almost the list of the New Zealand activities. On several occasions he commanded the division when Lieutenant-General Freyberg was in command of higher formations. He was seriously wounded in the Cassino area in 1944, when he stepped on a mine. He spent several months in hospital, and both his feet had to be amputated. Before the New Zealand Division’s final campaign in Italy he returned to visit his comrades and was given a reception such as has fallen to the lot of few commanding officers. His appointment as Official War Historian was warmly received, and for the last two years he has been in charge of a specially-recruited staff in Wellington engaged ,in compiling the story of the. country’s record during the war. Before the war Sir Howard Kippenberger was a solicitor in Rangiora. He served in the First World War. He was a keen supporter of territorial training in the years before the last war and was a close student of military history. An officer in the territorials since the end of the First World War, Sir Howard Kippenberger was commander of the Ist Battalion of the Canterbury Regiment at the outbreak of the last* war. He is president-elect of the New Zealand Returned Services’ Association. MAJOR-GENERAL SIR NORMAN WEIR, K.B.E.

Major-General Sir Norman William McDonald Weir .has been Chief of the General Staff and first military member of the Army Board since 1946. From the outbreak of the last war until, about the end of 1940 he was officer commanding the Northern Military District. When the Duntroon Military College, New South Wales, opened in 1911 General Weir was one of the first 10 New Zealand cadets to be admitted, and he graduated from there in August, 1914. He was immediately posted to the Auckland Battalion and served on Gallipoli, where he was badly wounded and invalided back to New Zealand. After a. prolonged convalescence he was able to take a post as musketry instructor .at Trentham and Featherston. After the war he served in several parts of New Zealand and for a term was Haison officer in Australia. He commanded the New Zealand contingent which went to Britain for the Coronation of J£ing George VI and was later attached to the War Office for a short time. After being in command of a home defence division in the Central Military District during the recent war General Weir went to Egypt with the rank of brigadier. During the desert campaign from Wadi Tamast to Tripoli he was attached. to the New Zealand Division and stayed with it until after the battle of Medenine. After the Allied break-through of the Mareth Line he was attached to operational headquarters of the Bth Army. At the end of the North African cam-, paign he ’attended a higher commanders’ course in Palestine and then acted as officer in charge of administration of the 2nd N.Z.E.F. during the absence of Brigadier W. G. Stevens. When Brigadier Stevens returned to Egypt, General Weir was appointed commander of the 6th New Zealand Division and New Zealand troops in Egypt. He returned to .New Zealand in August, 1944, to take up the appointment of quartermaster-general. SIR DONALD CAMERON

Sir Donald Cameron has been Mayor of Dunedin since 1944. He_was born in Dunedin 71 years ago ana educated there. He joined the staff of an engineering firm in 1891 and retired 12 years ago, having risen from office boy to director. In 1906 Sir Donald Cameron was elected to the St. Kilda Borough Council and four years later served a term as Mayor of the borough. He was elected to the Dunedin City Council in 1935 and from 1938 to 1944 was chairman of the electricity committee and Deputy-Mayor. Since 1932 he has been a member of the Otago Education Board, and he was a member of the Otago High Schools’ Board from 1939 to 1946. He is a member of the Otago University Council. A member of the Musselburgh School Committee for 21 years, Sir Donald Cameron is also a life member of the School Committees’ Association. For many years Sir Donald Cameron has been connected with the Methodist Central Mission and he was vice-president of the Methodist Conference of New Zealand in 1936. Sir Donald Cameron has always taken a keen interest in swimming, cricket, and Rugby football, and more recently in bowls. He is a former president of the Dunedin Bowling Centre and the St. Kilda Bowling Club. He is a former champion of champions Otago singles player and a former singles champion of the St. Kilda Club. MR B. L. S. DALLARD, C.M.G. Mr B. L. S. Dallard, C.M.G., is Under-Secretary for Justice, Control-ler-General of Prisons, RegistrarGeneral and Chief Probation Officer •of the Justice Department. He was born in Christchurch, educated at the Rangiora High School and Victoria University College, qualifying as an accountant. In 1907 he entered the Audit Office, and in 1916-18 he was in charge of audit for Imperial Government Supplies. He was advisory accountant to the Board of Trade from 1917 to 1924. For the next two years he was an inspector in the* Public Service Commissioner’s Office, and he was appointed Controller-General of Prisons in 1926. He was Assistant Public Service Commissioner from 1929 to 1933, and became Under-Secretary for Justice in that year. MR W. R. BRUGH, C.B.E. Mr William Robert Brugh was born in Port Molyneux and educated in Dunedin. Admitted to the Bar in 1899, he first practised law' in Balclutha and Invercargill. Mr Brugh’s civic activities have centred mainly about the Early Settlers’ Association and educational work in Otago. He has been a member of the committee of the Early Settlers’ Association for 17 years and president since 1945. He served on the Otago Education Board and the Otago High Schools’ Board for many- years and has been a member of the council of the University of Otago since 1934. MR F. T. M. KISSEL, 1.5.0. Mr F. T. M. Kissel retired in March from the position of general manager of the State Hydro-electric Department. He entered the Public Works Department in 1905 after graduating from Canterbury University C.ollege. He was engineer-in-charge of the first installation at Lake Coleridge between 1911, and 1915. In 1922 he went overseas to study latest developments in hydro-electric engineering and soon after his return he was appointed chief electrical engineer to the Public Works Department. On the formation of the State Hydro-electric Department in 1945 he was appointed general manager. MISS NGAIO MARSH, 0.8. E. Miss Ngaio Marsh has a distinguishes career as a writer, theatrical producer, and artist. She is one of the world’s leading authors of detective novels, and in New Zealand she has a high reputation for repertory work. Miss Marsh was educated at St. Margaret’s College and the Canterbury University College School of Art. She then joined the Allan Wilkie Shakespearean Company in a tqur of New' Zealand and went to England in 1928. In partnership with the Hon. Mrs Tahu Rhodes in Chelsea she undertook house decorating. Since 1934 she has written detective novels at the rate of one a. year. All have been popular and some have been translated into foreign languages. In 1937 and 1938 Miss Marsh travelled in Europe and was back in New Zealand at the outbreak of war. She became a head section leader in the Red Cross Transport Service. In. recent years she has produced several Shakespearean plays for

the Canterbury University College Drama Club and others for repertory groups. MISS E. M. SPARKES, 0.8. E. Miss Emily Margaret Sparkes, 0.8. E., haa> spent 24 years nursing in St. Helens hospitals and for the last 10 years has been matron of St. Helens Hospital, Christchurch. Miss Sparkes was born in Christchurch and took her general training at the Christchurch Public hospital. She decided to specialise in midwifery and later did Plunket training in Dunedin and gained her post-graduate nursing diploma in Wellington. Before she was appointed matron of the Christchurch hospital, Miss Sparkes was matron of St. Helens Hospital, Invercargill, for five years, and before that was submatron at the Dunedin and Wellington hospitals. . . WING COMMANDER F. R. DIX, 0.8. E. Wing Commander Dix has been commanding officer at the Royal New Zealand Air Force station at Wigram for about two years. He was born in Wellington and educated in Marlborough, and was the first pilot to be trained by an aero club in New Zealand. In 1930 and 1931 he served with the Royal Air Force in Britain, and in 1935 he joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force as a regular officer. During the recent war he served in the Pacific. DR. P. L. FOOTE, 0.8. E. Dr. Foote was medical superintendent of the Buller District Hospital for more than 30 years until he retired about a year ago, and is still a consulting medical officer to the hospital. Dr. Foote has always taken a great interest in the Westport district and has been prominent in many sporting activities, particularly boxing and swimming. For many years he was a referee for the Westport Boxing Association. He is a past president of the West Coast Swimming Association, and of the Westport Swimming Club. Dr. Foote was also a president of the Westport Jockey Club. A graduate of the Medical School, Otago University, Dr. Foote completed his studies in Britain and was on the staff of Guy’s Hospital, London. MISS MART ENRIGHT, M.B.E. Miss Mary Enright is lady editor of “The Press.” For many years sne has been prominent in social work in Canterbury. She has been a consistent worker for the health camp movement, wls chairman of the health camp committee when "Glenelg” was opened, and still holds the position. A member of various health camp administrative bodies. Miss Enright is also a member of the Dominion advisory board. In the last five years Miss Enright has been a regular visitor to the Cashmere Sanatorium and is a member of the Sanatorium Serv*ce Committee, a vice-president of the South Island Tuberculosis Association, and of the Dominion Federation of Tuberculosis Associations. Miss Enright is also an executive officer or committee member of the Women’s Auxihary of the Navy League, the British Sailors' Society, the Victoria the English-speaking Union, Red Cross Society. Friends of St Helens, and Nelson College Old Girls' Association in Christchurch. For IB h . e . was on the committee of the Christchurch Ladies’ Golf Club and was honorary secretary for several years.

MISS C. E. M. ROGERS, M.B.E. Miss Rogers retired about two yearsago from the Young Meri’s Christian Association, Christchurch, where she had been matron for many years. Miss Rogers was one of the original party of the New Zealand Volunteer Sisterhood which went to Egypt with the troops in 1915. There she was associated with the Y.M.C.A. and worked in the association's clubs in Cairo and m the desert. She later served in various New Zealand Army camos in England and went to Paris when a club was started there. On her return to New Zealand after the war Miss Rogers became matron of the Y.M.C.A. m Christchurch. During the recent war she had a particularly busy time, and was responsible for organising hundreds of women volunteers who staffed Y.M.C.A. clubs and canteen at camps in Canterbury. When Miss Rogers retired she went to Rangiora to live with her sister.