E. D. REEB.

NZ Truth, Issue 946, 12 January 1924, Page 11

E. D. REEB.

: "Judge a violin by its tone, and a mah by his principle," is a motto of Evan Deyereux Rees, the pioneer bontbuilder of the Avon, whose home and boating sheds ■■ near the Fitzgerald Avenue bridge, and adjacent to the club houses, have constituted a landmark to 4 the wayfarers on the river for about five decades past. Mr. Rees, who is a native of. Montgomery, North Wales, arrived m Wellington by the Robert Small, m 1858. Thereafter ft two years' sojourn m Nelson, and the lad from Wales came to Canterbury' m 1861 settling iri Chrlstchurch. At the time of its acquisition .his estate by the riverside was a. paddock was^e, enclosed by a wire fence. A lngoon or so nearby lent variety to tho vista. In the early days Mr. Rees was connected .with the Union Rowing v Club — which developed from the Railway Rowing Club— and also with the Canterbury Rowing Club, and for these two institutions he built many fine pleasure nnd racing craft. In the latter days of his boat-building activities^ Mr. Rees was principally associated with the Canterbury Rowing Club, A prohilnent'featuro on his property to-day is one of the U.R.C.'s first boating sheds, a real old-fashioned structure. Mr. Rees did not take an active part In rowing contests, but won pno aquatic event — a canoe race nt Sumner, m a canoe made by himself. With rowing men m general he, regrets, tho gradunl fallowing of the Avon — when he first knew the stream there was tleen water at every corner of it, and m his oninlon the decrease m the depth is due to mud blocking un many of the springs m the river-bed. By the hour the old river man can talk of the oarsmen of days gone by. but ho hazards no opinion as to whether they were ahead of the present.day devotees of the sport. A notnble oarsmen of whom he talks is Bill y Hearne, who brought a crew from, the West Coast nnd annexed the £150 stake at an oldtimo Kainooi regatta- Hearno later went to Wellington and a Canterbury crew stroked by Pat Duncan, decided to test his mettle then. Duncan's crew secured the loan of the Sablna, a coxswninless boat, from the U.R.C. nnd to Roes wn« allotted the task of fixing the self-steering gear. He journevwt to Wellington to sea the race, which took place at potono. and hnd the pleasure of seeing Canterbury win and take the stake of £160. "They wore «6od times m those days." stntea Mr. Reos. Other clubs with which Rees was associated In course of business were tho Kniapol. I,vttclton and Heathoote, the Inst-nnmed now fad*d out. Subsenuent to boat-bulldlng, Mr. Pp»»s took up "fiddle," guitar and mandolin making, and m respect to violins Is accepted ns an export by leading musicians and an authority whos<» opinion is worthy of every respect. At tim** fancy hns wafted him to the colIpctfnn of stamps, coins, nnd Maori ourinn. and for many years ho waH n landing 11«rht m the homing plerwm fnncy. hoth ns f jud«re and an exhibltnr. Truly is Mr. Reos, "a mnn you cinn't meet ov<*rv dnv." May his Innings long continue to be played on as frtid and peaceful a wicket as up to date.