FUNERAL OF THE LATE MR. E. H. BOLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11365, 7 May 1900, Page 6

FUNERAL OF THE LATE MR. E. H. BOLD.

Tiie funeral of the late Mr. Edward Henry Bold, M.1.C.E., M.1.E.E., district inspector of telegraphs, took place yesterday afternoon at St, Mark's cemetery, Remuera. The first portion of the burial service was held in St. Mark's Church, by the Rev. W. Beatty, the coffin being borne into the church from the residence by a number of men of the telegraph construction staff. There was a large attendance, among those present being the Hon. Thos. Thompson, the Hon. Wm. McCullough, Mr. Frank Lawry, M.H.R., and a largo number of officials of the Post and Telegraph Department, and other branches of the Civil Service. The members of Mr. Bold's staff bore the coffin from the church to the grave, where the Rev. W. Beatty conducted the concluding portion of the burial service. At the conclusion of the service the Masonic brethren present placed in the grave the usual sprig of acacia. The chief mourners were Mr. C. E. Bold and Mr. Francis. There was a large number of wreaths forwarded by various branches of tho telegraph and telephone staffs, and also from the linemen of telegraph construction staff, from Napier telegraph staff, and from the head office. Wellington. Mr, Biss, Chief Postmaster, Auckland, represcsented the secretary of the Post Office Department (Mr. W. Gray), and Mr. W. S. Furby, telegraph officer in charge, Auckland, represented the superintendent of electric lines (Mr. J. K. Logan). At the time of Mr. Bold's somewhat sudden death Mrs. Bold was away on a visit to the East Coast, and only arrived yesterday morning from Gisborne. accompanied by her eldest son, Mr. C. E. Bold. The deceased gentleman leaves six of a family, two sons and four daughters. The second son is at sea.

We give to-day some additional particulars concerning the late Mr. Hold, which will bo of interest : —Mr. Bold was born at Clitheroe, Lancashire, in 1841. On the completion of his High School curriculum lie entered upon a course of mechanical engineering at the workshops of Messrs. Bridge and Barnes, of Aldington. Lancashire, and later entered the laboratory of Mr. John Sieber, for the purpose of pursuing the study of chemistry. In 1861 he left England for Victoria, and at the request of the Government, undertook the setting out of the telegraph line from Tallarook to Avouch Attracted bv the gold discoveries Mr. Bold landed in Ohigo in the early part of 1863, and was till the end of 1864 'in the Otago Roads Department. In the early part of 1865 lie entered the employment of the Canterbury Provincial Government, as assistant mining engineer and surveyor, and while so employed accepted the position of telegraph engineer. At. thai, time there were only two telegraph lines in the North Island, one being from Lyell's Bay to the Hutt, and the other' controlled by the military authorities, irom Auckland'to Waikato. Shortly alter the completion of the line to Napier the Chatham Island prisoners, under To Knoti, escaped and landed on the east coast. The prosecution of the telegraph line via Taupo, was, however, determined upon, notwithstanding the hostility of a section of the native tribes, and in 1868 Mr. Bold was sent by the Government over tho country between Napier and Tauranga with full power to acquire concessions for carrying the wire through native territory. This mission carried to a successful issue the work of construction of tho line to Orimnni, as well as' that of a strategical road cutting through the centre of the North Island, devolved upon Mr. Bold. Covering parties of armed constabulary were employed in some cases to protect the workmen* and redoubts occupied by detachments of the same force were erected for the protection of the works. On the establishment of the Public Works Department in New Zealand Mr. Bold was transferred to that department as road engineer for Taupo and the East Coast, and carried out many important engineering, surveying, and architectural works. In 1878 Mr. Bold retired from the public service, but before the expiration of that year was offered tho position of inspector of telegraphs for the East Coast. This position lie accepted and retained until transferred to Auckland in 1894 to take up a similar position. Apart from his attainments as a civil engineer, and as an officer of the Telegraph Department, Mr. Bold had reached a high standard in other scientific branches of learning, and occasionally gave lectures in connection with his profession at the Y.M.C.A.