OBITUARY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13946, 4 July 1907, Page 2

OBITUARY

MR 11.' F. SMITH. A cablegram was received in town "early yesterday' morning by Mr H. B. Smith, of Smith and Smith (Limited), conveying • . the sad intelligence of the sudden death in-London on : the Ist inst. of his brother, Robert Fergus Smith, the well-known oil and colour merchant of this city. On Mort- ■ day last the firm received u eablo from its London , agent stating that Mr Smith' had t undergone, ail operation for the removal of gallstones, and requesting them to prepare for the worst—a forecast which proved only too true, Mr Sniith evidently sucoumbing shortly after the operation. ' Mr Smith left New Zealand in March, 1806, for a trip to England, partly for business and - partly for pleasure, and since then haa been travelling extensively in England and on the Continent. His wife and two. daughters, Alico and Saxon, accompanied him to tho Old Country, and were present at the time of his death as .was also his son, Mr Leslie Smith. Th? only members of his family left in New Zealand were his .daughter, Tui .(wife, of Mr Norton Oram, who is engaged in the business) and his son, Briton, who is also in the business. The deceased had been in business in Dun.cditt for fully 30 years, ; and had carried on large branch business at Cliristchurch . and' at, Wellington, the former . being under the charge of Mr Poole (liis brother-in-law), and the 1 latter'under the joint charge of his brothers, Messrs 11. B. and \V. Smith.; \ The business of tho firm has grown very rapidly, and some few years ago it. was converted into a private company. The ,late Mr Smith was an excellent business man, and was greatly respected by a largo ' circle of acquaintances. Though not gene-" rally known, ho was a large-hearted man who performed a great deal ofgood without parading the fact. The extensive and ' pressing nature of the business to a large extent prevented him from participating' in public affairs, but he was a prominent member of tho DUnodin Bowling Club, of which lie was president in the year 1905-6., and amongst other connections lie took great interest .in the Otago Art Society. 1