ABOUT PEOPLE

Southland Times, Issue 21577, 15 December 1931, Page 6

ABOUT PEOPLE

MINISTERIAL. The Hon. W. Downie Stewart, with his sister, Miss Stewart and his secretary and the Comptroller of Customs, Dr Craig, arrived in Auckland yesterday and leaves for Honolulu to-day. In the morning he received a deputation from the Chamber of Commerce in private. Interviewed, Mr Stewart declined to comment on Saturday’s cable from Ottawa saying it would be improper to speak now on questions that would be the basis of negotiations. Mr Stewart and party are due to return to Auckland on January 25. Mr E. J. Wallis has joined the staff of P. H. Vickery, Ltd., as salesman. Mr D. McDougall, M.P., arrived in Invercargill from Gore by the express yesterday and spent the afternoon in the city. Mr and Mrs T. Harrison, Robertson street, who are spending the Christmas holidays at Caroline, leave for their vacation to-day. Mr S. Dickey, of Christchurch, a former resident of Invercargill, motored through during the week-end and leaves again on Tuesday for the north. Mr J. B. Mawson, Director of Town Planning, returned by the Monowai from a trip abroad in the enjoyment of accumulated leave of three years (states a Wellington Press Association telegram). He visited England, Canada, and the States. Although he travelled unofficially he will report of the department of his investigations overseas. Mr R. P. O’Connell, of the Fields Division, Palmerston North, wins the essay competition relative to the scope and organization of grass land work in New Zealand. There were 23 entrants drawn from all parts of the Dominion and included prominent workers from the main organizations engaged in research or instructional work connected with grass farming advancement. —Palmerston North Press Association message. The death occurred in Nelson on Sunday (states a Press Association telegram), of Mr E. J. Allen, a retired bank manager. As manager of the local branch of the Bank of New Zealand he was closely associated with the business development of the city. Joining the Bank at Westport, Mr Allen who was a son of Mr G. Allen, one of Wellington’s early settlers, was stationed at Greymouth, Hokitika, Kumara, Ross, Reefton, Masterton, Wellington, Opunake, Feilding, and New’ Plymouth, coming to Nelson in 1901. Mr Allen was in his 80th vear and is survived by his widow and one son, Mr K. Allen, of the Bank of New Zealand, Featherston. Mr H. L. Gibson, who for the past four months has been acting-district traffic manager of railways at Dunedin and has been promoted to the position of local district traffic manager, joined the railway service as a cadet in 1897, in Dunedin. As the first 22 years of his' service were spent in various stations on the Dunedin section, he may be said to possess a good knowledge of the requirements of the district. In 1919 Mr Gibson was appointed traffic inspector, and, later, transport, officer in charge of the Invercargill district, whence he was transferred four years later to Christchurch as transport officer for the Canterbury district. He was later transferred to Dunedin as transport officer, and he occupied that position for two years before being again appointed to Christchurch, first as transport officer and later as outdoor and indoor assistant traffic manager for that district. He returned to Dunedin in September last as acting district traffic manager.

A private cable message received in Sydney last week announced the death at Durban of Mr Edward Branscombe, the well-known concert manager, who . was touring South Africa with his Westminster Glee Singers. Mr Branscombe was associated for many years with concert activities in Australia and New Zealand. In his early career he was a soloist at Westminster Abbey, where he was engaged for 10 years. He first visited this part of the world with an English concert party, which included Miss Thudichum, Miss Marion McKenzie, and Mr Douglas Powell, and at the close of this tour began his enterprises as concert director, managing the entertainments of the Chemiavskys when they originally appeared there. One of his most successful ventures was with the Scarlet Troubadours, who proved so popular that the tours of this organization in various parts of the British Empire lasted for more than four years. Equally marked success attended his various companies of Westminster Glee Singers, in 1900, and later.