SIR DAVID MONRO.

Otago Witness, Issue 2181, 19 December 1895, Page 11

SIR DAVID MONRO.

fIR DAVID MONRO was born at Edinburgh in 1813. lie was a descendant of the celebrated Monroes, who for generations had been professors of anatomy in Edinburgh. He studied at the same seat of learning, taking his degree of M.D. in 1836, and completing his medical studies in various Continental schools. In the latter part of 1841 he left England for New Zealand amongst the first of the Nelson emigrants, arriving early in 1842. Shortly after his arrival he was made a magistrate of the colony, and from this date he took a very active and especial interest in New Zealand affairs, particularly those connected with the settlement at Nelson. In 1844 lie accompanied Mr. Tuckett, the company's surveyor, on his search for a suitable site for the New Edinburgh settlement. As a frequent contributor, and for a time editor, of that excellent paper, the Nelson Examiner, he constantly advocated the right of Representative Government. In 1849 he was elected a member of the Legislative Council for the southern districts of New Zealand, and in 1854 represented Nelson in the first Parliament. In 1861, following Sir Charles Clifford, he was elected Speaker of the House of Representatives, an office which he held until his retirement in IS7I. He was knighted in 1865. He opened the Nelson Exhibition of 1873, on which occasion he delivered a most interesting address reviewing the history of the province. His death occurred in February, 1877. One of his daughters is married to Sir James Hector. Sir David Monro was a cultivated gentlemen of dignified presence, and must always be enrolled amongst New Zealand's early distinguished colonists.