THE MAKERS OF OTAGO

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21028, 17 May 1930, Page 14

THE MAKERS OF OTAGO

PIONEERS OF THE PROVINCE. Written for the Otago Daily Times. By Condor. XIX—EDWARD BOWES CARGILL, 1823-1003. The seventh son of the large family of Captain Cargill, Edward Bowes, was born at Edinburgh on October 9, 1823. His education he received first in Edinburgh, and afterwards, when his father moved to the cast of England, at the Grammar School at Norwich and at Pcrone’s School. Education did not hold him for long, for at the age of 14 he was apprenticed to the sea in the mercantile marine. There he spent the nest six years, visiting during his travels Australia and the Dai East, In 1844, having attained his majority, he settled down at Colombo, in Ceylon, in the service of the Bank of Western India (afterwards the Oriental Bank). From this he moved into a mercantile office, and eventually went into business as Dowdall, Cargill and Co. Later they took' into partnership Andrew Nicol, brother of the founder of the great Bombay firm of W. Nicol and Co., ana they continued to trade under, the name of Nicols, Cargill and Co. In 1855 Cargill moved to Melbourne, where he was in business for a while as Eastern importers. He left in 1857 on a visit to the Old Country, and in the following year came out to settle in Dunedin. For the first' two years after landing he was in partnership with John Jones as Jones, Cargill and Co., merchants, shipping agents, and shipowners. This was dissolved in 1861, and Cargill was then joined by his brother John as merchants in Princes street. On the discovery of gold in -Otago their business rapidly, though they had the misfortune to be burned out in December, 1861, and again in February, 1864.

While Jones and Cargill were associated they purchased the paddle steamer Geelong, which was the first steamer to ply, under a provincial contract, between Lyttelton, Dunedin, and Invercargill, She first appeared in Dunedin in 1859. Then came the City of Dunedin, specially built* for the firm, but not‘delivered until 1863, after the dissolution of the partnership Cargill nevertheless retained his interest in her. Jones and Cargill together projected the Otago Steam Navigation Company, for which ships were built on the Clyde to run in the intercolonial trade. The first of these, the Scotia, arrived in March, 1864, but on her first voyage to Melbourne Ae ran on the rocks near Jie Bluff. The Albion, which arrived in May of the same year, the partners sold for service in the East. The City of Dunedin sank with all hands on board in June, 1865, and only the Geelong was left. She came to her end near Whangape in 1878. Meanwhile the firm of Cargill and Co, was making good headway. It was the first to import sugar direct from Mauritius (in 1862). The Genevieve, which brought it, was wrecked at the Heads, but most of the cargo was salved. Thu_ company also imported some of the earliest tea shipments direct from China Another interesting business in which the., were concerned was the agency for the Scottish firm of Patrick Henderson and Co., whose ships carried the emigrants fOi Otago under the Provincial Government scheme. For some time the Hon. G. M‘Lcan was ■in the firm as Cargill and M’Lean, and on, his retirement Mr W. C. Gibbs came in and the firm was styled Cargill, Gibbs and Co. In 1881 the business was purchased by the British and New Zealand Mortgage and Agency Co., which -was formed for this purpose by Messrs Cargill, Tolmie, Gihos, Joachim, and others. The company had considerable investments in station lands in Otago and suffered heavily in the slump towards the end of the ’eighties. This was just before refrigeration came to the rescue of the pastoralists of New Zealand. Sheep which had been purchased at 30s had to be boiled down. Tba company was not able to weather the storm, and was wound up in 1889. Cargill, in common with other shareholders, suffered severe financial loss. He had also been disappointed in the meat-pre-serving works at Green Island, in which he had invested much money in the oelief that there would be a good market for canned meat. Discouraged by these misfortunes, Cargill retired from business and looked after his holdings in a number of large companies. He was a director of tin New Zealand Refrigerating Company, the Mosgiel Woollen Company, the. Union Steamship Company (on the first board), the Trustees Estate and Agency Company, the Westport Coal Company, the Walton Park Coni Company, the Provident ami Industrial Insurance Company, and the old City and Suburban Tramway Company (before it sold to the city) ; and a founder of the National Insurance 1 Company and the Colonial Bank (of which he was for two years president). In public life Cargill was always to the fore. In the Provincial Council be represented the Western District in 180263. In the next Council, 18G3-07 he sat for Dunedin, and was for a month or so Provincial Secretary; but ho was defeated at the general election in 1867. He again successfully contested the seat in 1871, and was again in the executive, but was defeated once more at the elections of 1873. While in the Council he introduced resolutions aiming at the free selection of land throughout the interior of the province, but they were withdrawn in favour of another scheme. In Parliament Cargill represented Bruce from 1862 to 1805, but retired at the general election in the latter vear. He stood for Parliament once more, for Dunedin Central in 1887, but was defeated by Dr Fitehctt. He was a man who never curried favour, and was too outspoken to ingratiate himself with the electors. Cargill was a member of the old Dunedin Town Board, of the Otago Harbour Board, and of the City School Committee. In 1870 and 1871 ho was elected a member of Hie City Council. When the jubilee of the province was about to be celebrated it was considered fitting that a son of the first superintendent should occupy I lie position of mayor of Dunedin, and Cargill was duly elected to that post in November, 1897. Education always had in him a strong supporter. He was a member of the High