THE GOVERNOR RESIGNING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 15055, 26 July 1912, Page 7

THE GOVERNOR RESIGNING.

I APPOINTMENT IN INDIA. I * ROYAL COMMISSION. I t OED ISLINGTON CHAIRMAN I V A PUBLIC SERVICE INQUIRY. ■■'IS::'■:;:;■ ' —- I : - By Telegraph.-!'"** A*-Copyright I ". ' (Received July 25, 9.20 p.m.) I'* 'London, July 25. I - t. is understood that Mr. E. S. B ,Ji mfl (Parliamentary UnderI fSSSnf State for India), when 1 '■" S X* V Indian Budget state ' I h .Ton Tuesday next, will announce fhe ppo ntment of a Royal Commis- • •I to inquire into Indian Public • Sices, under the presidency of I■'! ford Islington, Governor of New Z ?int 'Islington is resigning the : heirship of New Zealand to take up the chairmanship of the Commission. I*: THE RETIRING GOVERNOR. LORD ISLINGTON'S CAREER. Sir John Dickson-Foynder succeeded I Tor( Plnnket as Governor of New Zea- ' * hiv in April, 1910. On his appointment * he'was crated to the rank of baron and to since been known as Lord Islington. : : 1 A sort of the lata Rear- Admiral John - BounnasUr Dickson, C.8., Lord Islington was born in 1866. He was" educated at Harrow* and afterwards spent some time . \ at Christ Church. Oxford. From the •■ •' University' he settled down to study life and affairs in earnest. Incidentally, he served for three years as a lieutenant in ." the 3rd (Militia) Battalion Royal, Scots . " (Lothian Regiment). As a wealthy squire, he took a keen interest in the county .- . yeomanry of Wiltshire. When the South African War broke out the Wiltshire* volunteered for service. Then a captain, k■■"' ha took the field in the Western Transvaal, serving under Methuen in the long_ guerilla campaign which followed on the pitched battles of Modder River and Masersfontein. He was in the field for 10 rootths, acting during part of the- time on . the staff of Lord Methuen, and his servms were acknowledged by the D.5.0., th* medal, and three clasps. Returning to England he found himself irresistibly carried off by the demands of ■ . public life. He had entered Parliament I first in 1892, as Conservative member for the Chippenham Division of Wilt- : shire.' At the elections of 1895 and *' 1900, when he was opposed by Mr. ir J. Thornton, he' increased his ma-' ; jority to 508 and 585 respectively. On i- the latter occasion, in common with many " other; candidates, he, was in active service ?; on-, the veldt, and his election was based on the ek-ctors' knowledge of their representative, and upon an election address telegraphed from South Africa. ' A strong freetrader, he found himself at variance with the Unionist party when tariff reform ,was definitely adopted as ' part of the programme, and in 1905 he ■ decided to leave the parjby. This bare outline of his Parliamentary -work does not show Lord Islington as more than an. '*-• ordinarily active politician. As a matter 'of . fact he was extraordinarily active, and returned from the Boer War .to be loaded deeper and deeper -'• -rith political duties every year. Being a strong believer in Imperial Federation he was delighted to obtain the position of Governor of New Zealand, as it gave him an opportunity to assist in the- movement in a position removed from controversial " politics. Lord Islington has seen more of the ! aspects of Imperialism than usually falls , to the lot of individuals. His interest in the then engrossing subject of the relations between England in India and her J Asiatic neighbours, led him to the East in 1895, when he made a lengthy tour of -(• the north-western frontier, examining all -the passes and strategical approaches ; along a distance of 1300 miles. He was :i also in India on other occasions. The ' work of Royal Commissions and private '•-,.. business have taken him several times to the United States and Canada and the West Indies, and, too, he has seen something of South Africa in the making. In. politics he was always something of an independent. Referring to his secesson from the Unionist ranks on the subject of tariff reform, he once remarked casually: "I had been out of touch with them before on a good many subjects." His adhesion to the Liberal party,, too, was of an equally independent character. A largo owner of property in London he entered the London County Council in 1898,. representing St. George's, Hanover Square. Though a Moderate the Progressives elected him chairman of the Housing of the Working Classes Committee, and during his tenure of office some of the most important of the Council's schemes were carried out. Another Select Committee, of considerable interest to the colonies, was presided over by Lord Islington, namely, that on , wireless telegraphy. Then, also, he was a member of the important Commission which inquired into the- tube railways of the metropolis, and presented the report upon which the regulation of these systems is based. He was also a member of the Commission on London TrafSo, which sat for three years. In this capacity he paid a, visit to the United States to examine the methods of traction in use in American cities. During his stay in New Zealand hits sincerity and his fixed habits of business promptitude have assisted him when dealing with the business that came before him, and hie suavity and his genial bonhomie have endeared him to all classes of the community, and the news of his retirement will be received with general regret. A keen sportsman Lord Islington has been able during his term of office as Go- ' vernor to devote time occasionally to yachting and shooting, and when in Auckland during the season he never failed to take frequent cruises in the yacht Viking on tho Waitemata. He was a keen enthu- , siast in reepecfc to agriculture, and while • in Now Zealand he has kept in close touch with the falrming community, and on several occasions has given practical addresses to gatherings of farmers on the subject of agriculture. Lord Islington also : - mado a point of studying the social life ,i, of the Dominion in all its aspects. During her stay in New Zealand Lady Islington has taken an active interest in all charitable institutions. She has taken a particular interest in the welfare of the mothers and children in the Dominion, and through her activities many a homo has been, brightened.