DEATH OF SIR WM. FRASER

Otago Witness, Issue 3619, 24 July 1923, Page 7

DEATH OF SIR WM. FRASER

TRIBUTES IX PARLIAMENT. (From Our Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 16. After an illness lusting only a few weeks Fir Win. Fraser died this morning. About three weeks ago while working in his ch.ce he became ill and consulted his doctor who advised him to go into a privato hospital where he would have the benefit of the bestnursing and attention. He appeared to improve considerably in health and was well enough to leave the hospital, but after a brief absence had to return there. For about a week or more it had been apparent to his friends that he had little chance of complete recovery. Sir William Fraser, at the time of his death, was a member of the Executive, and up till his last illness lie took a part in the Government of the country, so that practically he died in harness. Fir William had been for many years an outstanding feature in the Reform Party, and during later years in the Government. Though an elderly man when he took office he astonished all who came in contact- with him, both in regard to his mental alertness and his tireless physical energy. As Minister of Works lie made many a rough trip through the bark country, and lie heir] his own in these journoyings with men many years his junior. He was noted for 1 is frankness and lus straight dealing with those with whom lie had to transact public business. He had especially a sound knowledge of the country's finarp’e. It was during iris term as Minister of Public Works that the Lake Coleridge hydro-electric scheme was completed and brought into operation, and the plans perfected for the greater developments proposed by Mr Parry, inobuling the Mangahso, W aikaremoana, and the W aikato schemes. --* s Minister of Mines lie also did good work, for mining was a subvert in which he had taken a keen interest cl! his life. , He was married sr* 1871 to a daughter of the late Alfred f'heltham Strode, R.M., Dnneoin. ITis wife died manv vears ago. He is survived by a daughter. Miss Fraser, of Wellington, who is a pianist of more in&n ordinary nihility. Uilcp T\is daiififlitor, Sir William was keenly interested in music, and was a constant attendant at all the best performances given in Wellington for many vears. In the House of Representatives this afternoon the Prime Minister moved the usual motion in regard to the death of a member of Parliament. In doing so he said the late Sir William Fraser was bom in India, in 1810. and was the son of Captain Hugh Fraser, sth Madras Light Cavalry He was educated at Elizabeth College f Guernsey). Victoria College (Jersey) and the L.vcee He Brienx (Brittany). He arrived in Wellington in September 1858. and proceeded to Dunedin where lie followri! pastoral pursuits as a run-holder in the Dnnstan district from 1862 to 1893 He was elected in 1866 as a member of die Provincial Council of Otago for the Dnnstan district.. Tn 1877 he was appointed member for the first Vincent County Council. and in 1883 he was elected chairman. OT'dipyincr that post rontinuouslv until 1833 He was eleefed a member of the House "of Representatives in 1893 for the Wakatinu eeetorate. and sat continuously for that electorate until 1919, when he retired He •n*?oi0 npO wV* ,h “ Council in 1919. When the present Government assumed office m 1912 he was apm.ioled Minister of Public Works and nnTiPib. holding those portfolios until the date of his retirement He was a memoer of the Rank of New 7 f . n i.,„ r i Assets Realisation Board., and was a db-ec-tor of several well-known financial institutions He acted as learler of the Legislative Council during the absence of Sir r raneis Bell at the Geneva Conference, and he was Minister .n charge of the rients on the occasion of the visit of IT R~TT the Prince of Wales to New Zealand He was knighted in 1918. and was appointed ' ""inlander of the Victorian Order IT, 1920. rie was 83 years of age at the time cm his cleath. By the death this morning of Fir Wilham Fraser.” added Mr Masse v “there rame to an end one of the most useful careers in the history of the country. I am speaking as one who knew him, and knew him well and intimately. We took Hie oath of allegiance as members of this lb.me toget.ier in 1894. and were members ol the films party f. r r.-anv vears working together and finally sitting 'on the same bench. TTe was one of my Ministerial colleagues practically from 1912 to the date o-r Ills death. I have already indicated that he was elected to the Provincial Council of Otago very early in his career. At that time he was always looked on as one who was a trusted public man. After he took his seat in the House of Representatives he was not long in making his mark. At that time the country was suffering from a most •erious depression. The banks, financial in-

stitutions business men, and men on the land were suffering very serious losses, so that it became necessary to call a halt in expenditure. In that year the Bank of New Zealand had to ask assistance from the State, and Mr Fraser, as he was then known, rendered very valuable sendee in the financial legislation succeeding the crisis. I have a very good recollection of the events that transpired at that time. The opinion of Mr Fraser was often asked and nearly always accepted on financial matters by members not only of bis own party, but on both sides of the House. He was appointed a member of the Bank of New Zealand Assets Realisation Board, and did extraordinarilv useful work in assisting in winding-up the estates and avoiding any loss to the State. He was an active and energetic Minister of Public Works for a number of years, and was favourably known, not only in Otago, but in every part of New Zealand He was a loyal and enthusiastic citizen of the Empire and the country. During the strenuous years of the war he never wavered in the opinion that our first duty was to defeat the enemy and to maintain the integrity of the Empire. He was a gentleman in every sense cf the word, trusted and respected. He has gone to his rest full of years and honours, and has left behind a memory and reputation which the public men of to-day and the future might well emulate.” Tile Leader of the Opposition (Mr T. M. Wiiford) added his tribute to that of the Prime Minister. He agreed with all that Mr Massey had said in regard to Fir William Fraser-s knowledge of finance. “Sir William Fraser was very fortunate," said Mr Wi’fford, “in being a man who bad a first-class education which undoubtedly contributed largely to the high place lie attained in the public life of the country. He could right be said to have devoted the j whole of his life to the public service. I ; was associated with him for two years dur- j ing the war, and I know from what took j place during these years that the tribute j paid by . tne Prime Minister was well I merited. He was a gentleman whose \ thoughts of Empire were always on a higii j, plane as regards duty and service, and j now that he has laid down the burden j these who have not realised his work in the | past will feel that it falls to the lot of few J public men to carry on so thoroughly and I effectively the obligation of public duty as j fully as Sir William Fraser. Air H. E. Holland joined with the Prime i Minister and the Leader of the Opposition j in their expressions of regret. It had not j been his privilege, he said, to have the | same close association with him as had I those two hon. members, and he had not j come into as close touch with him in de- I partmental matters as had other members [ of the House, but they all recognised the I long service he had given both to the Par- j liament and the party with which he was I associated. Jn connection with his death ! he wished to extend the sympathy of his I party to the Government and to the party j to which the hon. gentleman belonged, and . it condolences to the relatives he had left ; behind. Air J. Horn, as member for the Wakatipu district, said he had known the late Sir 'William Fraser for 45 years, and had been in almost daily contact with him ever since. He assured the hon. members that he was beloved in the district that he had so long represented in Parliament. He (Air Horn) was on the opposite side in politics, and had contested an election with Sir William Fraser, but it had been a mostpleasant contest. Sir William Fraser had left many friends who would never forget him. The Hon. G. J. Anderson said lie had known Fir William Fraser when he (Air Anderson) was a boy on the goldfields in ! the early 'seventies, and so he was aware of the good work Sir William had done in a mining community up to the time oE liis death. There was no one in New Zealand who had such an extensive knowledge of the mining laws of the country as liehad. In his young days he was a brave mail, and his bravery was conspicuously shown or. one occasion when he rescued a child from drowning in the flooded Alolyneux River. 'That action was remembered many years afterwards and he (Air Anderson) recollected a meeting that was rather hostile to Air Fraser, at which a man, who was the child he had saved, took charge of the meeting and insisted that on account of his bravery the whole meeting should vote for him. He was loved by his constituents in Central Otago, both as a man and as an employer. At one meeting which | he (Air Anderson) had reported in the elec - i tion contest of 19C5, a white-headed oid ; shearer came up from the audience to the ! platform and shook hands with the candidate, remarking- at the same time that lie was the best, employer he had ever had and one of the finest men he had ever met. The people of Otago and Southland would remember Sir William Fraser for many years, not only as a politician, but also as a man. Alessrs G. W. Witty, T. K. Sidey, Hon. Sir R. IT Rhodes, and Sir George Hunter also paid tributes of respect to the deceased gentleman. i

On the motion of the Prime Alinisfer the House adjourned until 7.30 p.m. A CANTERBURY TRIBUTE. CHRISTCHURCH, Julv 16. Paying a tribute to the late Sir William Fraser, Mr H. J. Marriner (chairman of the Railway Committee of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce) said the people of Canterbury particularly were indebted to Sir William Fiaser in his capacity of Alinister or Public Works, during the war. When money was light and a crisis arose with regard to the carrying on of the work in connection with the 'Otira tunnel, strong pressure was brought to bear on all Ministers in favour of dosing down the work, or at least of cutting down the amount- of money requited. The arguments in favour of this course were logical, but at a critical moment Sit William Fraser, having carefully considered every detail, decided that the wisest and most economical course was to push the work, through to its completion. As everybody now knew, his efforts in this connection were successful. Since he left office his successors had carried on this work, and it was the irony of. fate that Sir William Eraser should be taken when the linking up of the East and West Coasts was an accomplished fact, and on August 4, the date fixed for the official opening of the Otira tunnel, his kindly presence would be much missed TRIBUTES IN LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL. 'From Oun Own Correspondent. 1 WELLINGTON, July 17. When the Legislative Council met, at 2.30 p.m. to-day, a formal notification was read to the effect- that the seat of the Hon. Sir William Fraser had become vacant by his death. The Leader of the Council (the Hon. Fir Francis Bell) said the message emphasised to all that the seat of one known well by them was vacant. Eightythroe years of age and 65 of them in New Zealand, more than 60 years having been spent in the service of the country, was his record. He came to New Zealand as a mere lad and eventually settled in Central Otago. He held the unique record of representing for 23 years continuously a constituency which he had left for good. He was for seven years Minister of Public Works. The country was marked in many parts with the works which were carried out under his control. A hen he entered the Legislative Council he did so not unknown, and, in addition, he entered with a fine public record. Before lie joined the Council he had been knighted, and later he was honoured by the Prince of Wales. He was able io do his work with no apparent fatigue, and in that respect- he was remarkable, ancl as Alinister of Public Works he was known as a man of great honesty and sincerity of purpose. From the Prime Minister right down through the Cabinet all were proud of their association with him, and all sincerely mourned his loss. He moved —‘‘That the Council should record its sense of the services rendered by the late Sir William Fraser and express its sympathy with his relatives.” The motion was seconded by the Hon. Sir William Hall-Jones, who said Sir William Fraser had done good work in the war Cabinet, and as Alinister of Public Works he was a man cf courage who was not afraid to say “No” when he considered it bis duty to do so. The Council would heartily sympathise with his relatives. The Hon. Fir Edward Alitclielson paid a tribute to the ability of Sir William Fraser, and said that his advice to the Prime Alinister on financial matters was of great value arid was availed of to a very considerable degree. The loss was great. The Hon. -T. B. Cow endorsed the tribute p iid by the Leaders of the Council, and added that the man who had passed away was of a type which could well be noted by the younger generation —a type which had done so much to mould this country. The Hon. Sir Walter Buchanan said that Sir William Fraser made his mark as soon as he entered the House of Representatives. He was respected by the people on all sides of politics. He was an upright man whose memory would live. The Hon. .J. Grimmotid, who knew Sir William Fraser back in the digger days, described his old friend as one of Nature’s gentlemen. An honest, man was the noblest work of God, and Mr Grimmond felt. he could say no more than that. Sir William Fraser was an honest- man. The Hon. R. Aloore spoke of the value of Sir William Fraser’s advice in financial matters, and remarked that during ihe absence of Sir Francis Bell abroad he had conducted the business of the Council in a manner which was a credit to him. In bis political life he had set an example which others could follow with advantage. The Hon. R. Scott, -whose -acquaintance with Sir William Fraser dated back to boyhood, said the man they mourned was generous and broad-minded. He was a

man with a standard of honour which could well be followed by the rising generation. The motion wa3 agreed to, and the Council adjourned as a mark of respect to the memory of the deceased. ALEX A NDR A" F SY AIP ATHY. vFrosj Our Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 17. The funeral of the late Sir William Fraser will take place to-morrow morning. The town clerk of Alexandra has telegraphed to Air Massey as follows:—“The Alavor, councillors, and burgesses of Alexandra- unite in expressing regret at the death of Sir William Eraser —the earliest pioneer of this district. It is here he is most honoured and respected and here he was best known.” BODY INTERRED AT KARORI. WELLINGTON, July 13. Members of the Ministry, the Legislative Council, the House of Representatives. Government House, the Supreme Court Bench, the Public Service, and many public bodies, as well as a great number of personal friends, attended the funeral of Sir William Fraser this morning. An impressive service was held at the Pro-Cathedral, conducted by the Bishop, assisted by Arch,deacon Johnson. The body was interred at Earori. WAKATIPU'S SYMPATHY. '.Froa Ufa Own Correspondent.) Queenstown. July 18. The Lake County Council this morning passed a resolution of sympathy with the daughter of the late Hon. Sir William Fraser in her bereavement. Feeling reference tvas made by the chairman and councillors William Ai'Kibbin and George Reid to tlie death of Sir William Fraser, who so worthily represented the Wakatinu electorate in Parliament for £6 years. Many monuments to Ins memory existed in this district in the shape of fine bridges, which were due largely to his able advocacy of th.e country’s need of them. Not oniy would Sir William be gratefully remembered in Wakatipu for all he had done for it, but his memory would be revered for bis splendid services to the dominion, for his love of the land of his adoption, and for his intense love of Empire. The council also adjourned til! noon as a tribute of respect for his memory. MESSAGE FROM PRINCE OF WALES (From Our Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, July 18. The Prime Alinister has received a telegram from the Prince of Wales expressing sympathy with the relatives cf Fir William Fraser. It will be remember'd that Sir William Fraser was Minister in charge of the arrangements oil the occasion of the visit of the Prince of Wales, who, on the eve of ills departure, created him a Knight Commander of the Victorian Order. Sir William Fraser came to New Ze-a----h rid in 1858, going at that time to an uncle in the Shag Valley district. In 1862 he settled in Central Otago, where he was for many years engaged in pastoral pursuits. He occupied Earnsc-leusfh Station, and the Frasei River was named after him. When the Dnnstan rush broke out he was brought into close contact with the mining population which flocked to the district, and most of the meat came from his station. Sir William Fraser quickly earned the esteem and respect of his fellow-mem bers on both sides of the House, which he first entered in 1894, and this he retained through all the years. As a Alinister of the Crown. Sir William Fraser was able and industrious, and it is perhaps not too much t.o say that never in the history of the country was the important Department of Public Works more fairly and conscientiously administered. He did particularly good work in connection with the institution of the hydroelectric supply schemes of ihe Government-, the reading of the backblocks, and the extension of the railways at a time when, owing to the war, these functions could only be carried o-n under conditions of unusual difficulties.