OTAGO EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2818, 18 March 1908, Page 95

OTAGO EARLY SETTLERS' ASSOCIATION.

As the outcome of the jubilee celebrations, the Otago Early Settler*' Association was established in 1896, with the following officers :— President, Mr E. B. Cargill; vice-presidents— Messrs Arthur J. Burns, J. Walker Bain, Donald Reid, Sen., John Reid, Di T. M. Hocken, *nd Rev. W. Will; committee— Messrs Donald Reid, jun. (chairman), R. N. Adams, Peter Ban*, Robert Knox, Hector Mercer, F. J. Monson, T. K. Sidey, James Smeaton, W. G. Somerville, John Wood, Dr Fulton, Dr Will ; hon. treasurer, Mr George C. Proudfoot : auditors, Messrs W. T. Monkman and F. J. Mo.lson; htm. secretary, Mr P. Duncan. Later on Mr L. Langlands succeeded Mt Duncan as secretary. The objects of the association were to promote a spirit of brotherhood and friendship among the early settlers and their descendants by means of social intercourse, to inspire a feeling of veneration for the .pioneers of Ota^o, to hold social meetings, to collect andi preserve books, papers, a»d articles of historic interest, to- keep a record of the early settlers, and to encourage a love for country and to strengthen the patriotic bonds that united New Zealand to the Homeland. Brief as has been the time which has elapsed since its • formation, the president (Mr E. B. Cargill) and two • vice-presidents (Masons A. JT Burns and , J. Wv Bain) hare joined the great majority. Mr Donald Reid, sen., has , been the respected and active president for the pa6t few years, and to him, and also to the energetic secretary (Mr L. Langlands), is largely due the success that has attended the association. There has been collscted the most valuable and rare collection of articles, documents, and books connected with the early history of Oiago. We are indebted to the association and its secretary for permission to republish many of the photographs which' appear in the illustrated portion of this issue. As the result of a canvass for subscriptions, a sufficient fund was raised to justify the association in erecting a building to accommodate its valuable jollectiqn and provide offices for the secretary and a hall where the members may hold social functions and foregather to discuss their experiences in the early days. This building will be opened with fitting ceremony on Monday, March 23, the sixtieth anniversary of the arrival of the 1 Joha Wickliffe. Preparations are in progress to appropriately mark such an important occasion. The details were not available when,,thiß portion of the issue was sent j to press, but they will be found set out, lin another column. It is to be hoped that the result of these preparations will be, in the words of the motto of the association, to ' - Eeaniinarte Otago's pioneers To fame undying in the dying y«axß.