CITIZEN'S DEATH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21868, 2 August 1934, Page 11

CITIZEN'S DEATH

ME. WILLIAM ELLIOT . I PUBLIC-SPIRITED GIFTS DOMAIN ENTRANCE FUND SUM OF £IO,OOO PROVIDED By the death of Mr. William Elliot, of "Eienil worth," Mountain Road, » Epsom, which occurred at Townsville,. Queensland, on Tuesday evening, Auckland has lost a very fine type of publicspirited citizen. Following their custom of the last three years, Mr. and Sirs. Elliot left Auckland only about a month ago to spend the remainder of the winter in Townsville. Aucklanders have long known how much they owed to Mr. Elliot for. the v,'inter gardens in the Domain in their present greatly extended form, but his latest generous benefaction to the city was concealed under a veil of anonymity. It now, however, becomes fitting io disclose that the offer made two months ago to the City Council to provide £IO,OOO for appropriate entrances to tho Domain came from Mr. William Elliot as another token of his regard for the city of his adoption. That sum has been set aside in trust to be utilised in accordance with plans approved by his architect and by the City Council. Mr. Elliot was born in Jedburgh, "Roxburghshire, 76 years ago, and was educated at the Jedburgh Grammar School. He was married to Miss Janet Oliver Madder at St. Bcswell's, Roxburghshire, on July 4, 1884, so that their golden wedding was celebrated less than a month ago, just after they had left for Australia.

Mr. Elliot and his brother George, now Sir George, with whom he had always been closely associated, were in business as publishers in Glasgow, until in 1891, with two other brothers, Mr. A. M. Elliot and Mr. J. Elliot, and a sister, Miss A. M. Elliot, they came to New Zealand in the Rimutaka. The brothers William and George went to Tauranga, where they engaged in flaxmilling enterprise, and bought the Bay of Plenty Times. When they left Tauranga some years later it was to come to Auckland and establish the business of W..„and G. Elliot, financial agents. Mr. Elliot never enjoyed very robust health, and it was really on that account that he first came to New Zealand. For the past 10 years or more he has not engaged in active business apart from several important directorships that he held. He was a director of Jlilne and Choyce, Limited, and of the Leyland-O'Brien Timber Company, Limited, up to the time of his death, and he retired only • some six months ago from the directorate of the Auckland Meat Company, Limited. Enlarged Winter Gardens Mx. Elliot's part in the larger winter $ garden scheme well deserves to be recalled. Out of the profits of the 19121913 Auckland Exhibition, the committee. which #au over by Sir George Elliot, made a substantial donation which Enabled the first winter garden building to be erected. Thill, however, was only a part of the scheme, which provided for a pergola and courts joining two winter houses. Mr. Elliot made £4OOO available for erecting the present tropical house, and with the assistance of Mr. H. T. Goldie succeeded in raising another similar «r larger sum to provide the pergola and courts and retaining walls.

Mr. Elliot's recent donation to provide for worthy approaches and entrances to the Domain was probably suggested by the city engineer's report on possible improvements to the Domain. The intention was that the fund should be augmented by other similar donations, and Mr. Elliot's idea was that if the money was not sufficient worthily to adorn both main entrances then it should be spent on the Park Road entrance. It was his desire that his own architect should prepare th« plans for approval by the council.

Personal Interests Another way in which Sfcr. Elliot manifested his public spirit was by his support of the zoo, and it was he who gave to it the first collection of birds. He was a most retiring man, and his quiet, modest disposition only added to the esteem in which he was held by those who knew him. Bowling was his pastime, and of the Auckland Bowling Club, with which h© was long associated, he was president in I9OS and 1909. He was a gr£at reader and had amassed a fine library in his Ihome, He was also a lover of art and had choice collections of paintings and of china. Mr. and Mrs. Elliot had only one child, a son. who cams to New Zealand with them, and later took up fanning in the Ohaupo district. He died during tha epidemic of 1918. Mr. Elliot has three brothers residing in' Auckland, Sir George, Mr. James Elliot, of Sandringham Road, and Mr. A. M. Elliot, of Owens Road. A sister. Miss A. M. Elliot, died only about a month ago.