THE LATE GENERAL TAYLOR.

New Zealand Herald, Volume V, Issue 1443, 3 July 1868, Page 7

THE LATE GENERAL TAYLOR.

Thkeh will be found in our obituary list this morning the notice of the death of the above officer, who has been for many years a settler in this province. General Taylor was an old Indian officer, and the father of Charles John Taylor, Allan Kerr Taylor (Morningside), and W. J. Taylor, Esqs. (Tamaki). General Taylor wns born on the 2nd of December, 1790, nnd was the third son of the Rev. Dr. Taylor, of St. Enoch, Glasgow, well known as a distinguished preacher in that city, and for many years one of the Chaplains (for Scotland) to his Majesty King George the 111.

General Taylor went as a cadet to Madras m 1806. Hie commissions date as follow: — Ensipn 3rd July, 1807 ; Lieutenant 27th August, 1811- Captain 4th September. 1£22; Major 25th September, 1835; Lieutenant-Colonel 13th June, 1840 • Lieutenant-Colonel Commandant 4th September, 1849; Colonel 28th September, 1850; Maior-General 25th November, 1854; Lieuten-ant-tieneral 28th March, 1865. This distinguished officer served with the 39th llegiment (Madras Native Infantry), with the Jlurnool Field Force in 1839, and with the expedition in China in 1842. As Brigadier he commanded the Saugor and Nurbudda district (Central India) from 1849 to 1855, and came to New Zealand on sick leave after a continuous service of nearly 50 years. Returning to India General Taylor finally retired on furlough and settled in this country in 1857, since which time he has been a resident at tho Tamaki.

THE FUNERAL. The funeral of the late General Taylor, of the Tamaki, took pUoeon the 30th ult., and was Urgelyat tended both bv reaidontJ in Auckland and settler, of tho Ta-naki dietriot. The obsequies Wero announced to take place at 1 p.m., and prncieely at that hour the procea»ion left the deceasod'e late residence. fc!«veral persons, relying upon the usual unpunctuality of «uoh ceremonies, were in consequence rather late. The coffin was drawn in ft very handsomely furnished hearee, drawn by four horses, driven by Mr. F. Quiok.; Following upon the hoarse were three carriages oontnining the chief mourners, eons and grandeong of the deceased, after which came a long lino of equipage* containing many of our leading

citizens and country gentlemen; a large number also accompanied the procession on horeoback. 'Ice- funenl g9rTioe was performed at -tho new Pieibyterian ihuroh burying ground by the Kbt. Sir. Maekay, who afterwards delivered it short but impreisive addrees, alluding to the deceased's wellknown virtues and goodness of heart, and concluded }he ceremony with prayer.

SUDDEN DEATH OF MAJOR TIGHE. It is our sad duty, to hare to record, in the mournful event of the 25th ult., the loss of one of our most respected and influential citizens. Major Tighe, who resided in "Wellington-street, left his office as usual on the previous day, and went home, when he seemed to be in perfectly good health. On the morning of the 25th, however, he was suddenly taken ill, and before Dr. Hooper, who had been immediately sent for, could arrive, the gallant officer had expired. Major Michael Tighe was bom a soldier, his fathor having been shot at the battle of Maida, in Sicily, where the 58th ilegiment -was engaged in 180b", the child being with the baggage at the time of the action. Accordiug to the then system of the British Army, the boy joined the 58th Eegiment as drummer at 12 years of age, which was in the year 1811. At the age of 18 he enlisted into the regiment as a full private, and serred in the West Indies from 1816 to 1822. Whilst the regiment was in Ceylon from 1826' to 1839, the Major served at the depot, principally in Ireland. In 1845 he received his commission as ensign, and shortly afterwards pro-' ceeded to .New iiouth Wales. He got his lieutenancy in 1853, and his captaincy in 1858. For several years Major 'i ighe was adjutant to the detachment of the regiment stationed at the Bay of Islands. In 1858 the 58th proceeded to England, where he sold out, and returned to New Zealand in the following year. He then became adjutant of the Militia, and afterwards major commanding volunteers. The deceased gentleman was about seventy years of age, and his loss will be deeply felt both by the military and civilians of Auckland. Although as an officer he was a strict disciplinarian, yet the militia under his chargp respected him deeply as a kind-hearted and amiable gentleman. An inquest was subsequently heard, when the jury, after hearing the medical evidence, returned a verdict of " Died from natural causes."

THE FUNERAL, Some delay hadbeon occasioned by the adjournment of the inquest, but it had been known that Sunday would be the day on which the body of the gallant officer would be committed to the tomb, and in the interim there was great interest manifested respecting the funeral, and much desire was felt that it should be carried out well. The Auckland Rifle, Naval, Artillery, and Cavalry Volunteers had been summoned to attend the funeral procession, and mustered at their usual places of rendezvous at the time specified. We do not recollect to have seen a better muster of the various corps for many a day. Early in the afternoon a stream of spectators commenced pouring along Hbbson-street, Greystreet, Karanghape Road and other thoroughfares, by which a sight of the funeral cortege might be obtained.

About 2 p.m. several hundreds of persons were assembled between the junction of Pittstreet and Wellington-street and tlie deceased's house, and many were the- tokens of respect shown to the deceased officer in the shape of the mourning dresses generally adopted by the crowd.

One by one the various corps marched down Wellington-street from their various mustering places and took up their position in the order of procession, About three pm. the coffin was borne out of the house by old members of the 58th regiment and placed upon a soldier's hearse —a gun carriage. The mournful procession then moved on in the order of march: —

Firing Party of the Auckland Rifle Volunteers. The Volunteer Rifle Band. Naval Volunteer Band. The Band of the 18th Royal Irish Regiment. The Auckland Naral Volunteers. The Auckland Artillery Volunteers c Capt. Tole. 011 Capt. Dinnin. Capt. Hardington. g w> Captain Heaphy. c '-3 Capt. Morrow. ° a Capt. Hovan. Chief Mourners: Captain Du Moulin and Stfn, and His Honor J. Williamson. Former Members of She 58th Kegiment. Auckland Volunteer Cavalry. Citizens of Auckland. Commissioner Naughton and the City Police, Non-commissioned Officers of the Volunteer Corps. Officers of Volunteer Cavalry. Rifle Volunteer Officers. Officers of Naval and Artillery Volunteers. Men of the 18th Royal Irish Regiment. Offioere of the 18th Royal Irish, Royal Aitillery, and Commissariat. Private Oarrieges.

When the procession.began to move, the Rifle Volunteer Band commenced a solemn air, and were followed by the Band of the Naval Volunteers and the 18th Royal Irish, who relieved one another at intervals; and during the whole distance from the deceased's residence to Symonds"street, the solemn strains of the band awoke the echoes of the still air. The programme of the music performed by the 18th has been kindly supplied to us by Bandmaster Quinn, and is as follows: — . March, B flat, minor, Beethoven. March, F minor.

Eoslin Castle. . ■ The Bifle Volunteers, who formed the firing party, marched with reversed arms. At the junction of Pitt and Hobson-streets a dense crowd was assembled to view the procession, and on both sides of Weilington-street, as far far down as the residence of the late <»alknt officer, the footpath was lined with eager spectators. From the Scotch Church, along Pitt Terrace, and along Karangahape Boad, both sides of the way were absolutely crowded with lookers on, whose respect to the memory of the departed was testified by the universal uncovering of the head as the mournful procession passed on. We cannot describe the scene that presented itseli to the eye from the junction of Karangahape Boad to the chapel of the cemetery, better than by saying that it was literally one mass of people, and we shall not hesitate to say that there were not less than 6,000 or 7,000 persons present at the interment. The coffin was covered with a Union Jack, on which were placed the deceased officer's sword, cap, gloves, and spurs, upon arrival at the gntes of the cemetery, the firing party broke into twolines and formed alane, leaning upon their reversed arms, through which the procession moved up to the doors of tho Chapel. The coffin was then borne by old 58th men into the Mortuary Chapel where the usual service was performed by the Verv Bev. Walter Macdonald, and the " De Profundi*" having been sung, the ooffin was again taken up by the gallant soldiers, old comrades, and was conveyed to I its final resting place, preceded by the omciating priest with the usual accompaniments. lne Uemces having been concluded and tke cornn

lowercu into the tomb, three volleys were firedover the grave by the Aucklaud Volunteer Bifles, after which the various corps r-eformed oa theroad, and marched off to a lively air, to be dismissed at their various mustering places. Daring the performance of the service and the firing of the volleys, the cemetery was crowded with spectators, &nd the whole of that part of Symonds-street was one mass of people. Perhaps iio one in Auckland could have commanded more respect than was shown on this occasion to the memory of Major Tighe. Amongst the officers present we noticed Colonels Beatson, Elliott, Nation, Kenny, Balneavis, and Bartleman; Majors Hamley and Wilson ; Captains Brophy, Dinnin, .Freer, Gwynneth, Morrow, Maclean, Hnrdjngton, Horan, Tole, Heapliy, Howell, Guilding, Derrom.Batger; Lieutenants Thompson, Matthews, Cammcll, Mclntyre, Graham, Gilfiliau, Somerville, Kelly; Cornet Donovan; Ensigns Skinner, Mahon, Hassan, Hunter, and i^athau.

There were many other officers present whose names we did not secure, for there was some considerable confusion at the gate in consequence ot the rush made by the crowd which was gathered outside. The inscription on the plate of the coffin was as follows:—Michael Tighe, aged 70 years ; died June 25th, IS6B.