GOLDEN WEDDING.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12564, 19 January 1903, Page 12 (Supplement)

GOLDEN WEDDING.

A CHAPTER OP EARLY HISTORY. Mr and Mrs John Scott, of Castle street, Duuedin, who celebrated their golden wedding in December, may both, bo classed amongst the list of Old Identities, having arrived in Dunedin from Scotland close on 40 years ago, j They were born near Glasgow, and Mr Scott. has had a most eventful career. Learning his ■ trade as an engineer, he was for many years leading engineer of the mail-boats running between Glasgow and Londonderry—steamers which, as far back as 1858, had it speed of 16J knots an hour. During the American civil • war his employers sent him out to run the i blockade, and there he had some exciting ex- ■ periences. Being of that restless disposition ' common to the proverbial Scotchman, Mr Scott, ranch ngaiiist the wish of bis employers, . decided to seek his fortune in New Zealandthen much spoken of at Home,—and in ' October, 1863, accompanied by his wife and ' children, he left the Old Country, arriving here early in 1864. Being desirous of leaving the sea, he started an engineering shop at Milton, then a busy ■ centre of the goldfields traffic. Money, however, was scarce and hard to co!-, lect, and in 18C5 he commenced sawmilling a few miles out from New Plymouth. This venture was also shortlived, for he had to abandon it after, a few months on account of a recrudescence of the Maori war, following the withdrawal of the British troops. Moving on again, he found employment in fitting up the Auckland Gasworks. After this ho once more took to sea life, aJid saw servico under the Government in tho old Sturt, and later on was one of the pioneer engineers of the West Coast trade. Amongst his many anecdotes of the early days on the Coast, Mr Scott tells of his.'first visit to Hokitika, when the ateniner

was moored (o the trees on Hie bank of the river, and pigeons were shot where Hokitika now stands. Having been'successful ai part owner of the steamer Murray, he, like many others at that time; saw in prospective a huge fortune in'qiurtz-iecfing. Selling his interest ill his profitable craft, he embarked his capital and labour in Kee/ton mines, then just opening out. In common, with many, he found there was more glitter.than gold, and 1873 found him engineer of'the old- Samson, so well known in tiie Diinedin-Oamaru trade, and which, along with the Maori ajid Golden Age, formed the nucleus of the Union Steam Ship Company's fine fleet. Failure to wrest a fortune- from the hidden treasures of the earth by means of quartz-reefing did not deter Mr Scott, from turning his attention to dredging, and 1881 found him with thn dredge Eureka racing to get ahead of Messrs'Kincaid mid M'Queen, who were building the.. Dunedin dredge. Mr Scott won the raw, and is proud of having turned the first bucket by steam on tho Jfolyneux River. The project was not a success, it, being left to others at a later time to reap the reward of, Mr Scott's and Messrs Kincaid and M'Qui'on's genius and enterprise. Mr Scott retnmed to'Dunedin, and with his son (the late Mr John 0. Scott, also an engineer of repute) was engaged by.tho New Zealand Refrigerating Company to fit iip the first freezing machinery in New Zealand, at (he Burnside Refrigerating Works. For 15 years Mr Scott was managing engineer for the company, and is still retained by them as supervisor of their loading operations. Though now well on in years, Mr iuid Mrs Scott nre hole and hearty,- and enjoy splendid health. On tlic golden wedding iwinira-ssry. they were f), O recipients of many, congratulations from all parts of the colony. At the family gathering a photograph was taken, and this shows Mr and Mrs Scott surrounded by 41 descendants, including 28 grandchildren. ' Councillor Thos. Scott is the eldest son of (ho marriage, and Messrs W. and U. Scott, tailors, of Princes street, are also sons.