OBITUARY

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXI, 21 December 1937, Page 4

OBITUARY

THE REV. S. (Hi I KEITH

Tin- dralh ocruiTtM.l suddenly ,on Him-1 day iit Ins residence, Mount Eden, Amkland, of t-lii! liov. S. (irillilii, n "i'll-; known Methodist minister. Mr (irillilii, I who was 78 veins ol ngc, had to his cicdif a record of pioneering ncliieveuiriil in tin* set vice of his Chinch. Although on the retired list, he had regularly been, doing supply .work. Mr Grillitli arrived in New Zealand; from England in 1880 and enrolled as a ! private student at the Wesleyan College,! eondneted at I lie Three Kings by the late ’ I!ev. Thomas Buddie. In 1881 he was! accepted as a candidate for the ministry and appointed as a conference student, j but• -was 'called upon later in the same i year to act as a student supply at Wei-j iington. In 1882 he was appointed to hi s' liist circuit lit Pafmelston North, and after two years there bee;ime second minister in the Grafton circuit, being in charge of I’arnell and Newmarket and places beyond. Transferred in 1886 to Tauranga, lie was involved in the aftermath of the Tarawera eruption, and was one of the ollieiating ministers at the funeral of the European victims, the llaszaril family. Then followed a period of 38 years' miniitiy in many parts of New Zealand, in-cluding-Te Aramutu, Mahnrangi, l'r;inklin, Upper lli,ones. Mount Albert, Pcvnuport, Ciiristelinreli, and Dunedin In 11)20 while in Dunedin Mr Griflitli retired from circuit- work and settled in Auckland. Beside rendering service as a preacher when required, lie engaged in various eonnexinnal others, l-'or ten years lie was secret-ary-manager of the Methodist orphanages j ot Auckland, and for some time lie was! treasurer of the Auckland Ministers' As-! socintiou and a member of the hoard ol ; directors of the British bailors Society. l He is survived by his wife, a daughter, and two sous. Mr and Mrs,Griflitli eele- ; lira ted their golden wedding less than two years ago. IWItS M. EDEN

Mrs Marion Eden, whose death occurred in her 77th year at Spring Grove, was the eldest daughter of the late Mr and Mrs W. Ilastilow. who came to New' Zealand in the ship Donna Nita in 1800. It is interesting to note that tire first red deer were brought to New Zealand in that ship. The late Mrs Eden was married in 1862 to Mr Thomas G. Eden (who predeceased her by 23 years) and the w'hole of her life has been spent in the Waimea south district. She was the devoted mother of seven children, Mesdahies T. W. Silcock. Auckland (deceased). Reg. Field Grcytown: W. T. T. Jones. Palmerston North; A. S. Robinson, Hamilton: Messrs R. G. Eden, A. W. Eden, Wakefield and E. T. Eden, Taranaki. She was of a retiring disposition but where she could be of service to any one in trouble she was always to the fore. The esteem in which she was held by the community was indicated by the large attendance and the number of beautiful lloral emblems received at the funeral which took place at Spring Grove cemetery.