Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1889 - 1931), Friday 11 April 1919, page 7


PEKSONAL.

i. Most of the Federal Ministers are pro-posing to take a short vacation at Easter. ? Mr. Watt (Acting Prime Minister) will »a

out of Melbourne for a few days. ' Mr. Websçcr (l'osfniaster-Generall will leave to-day for Sydney, and Mr. Poyntou (Act-ing Minister*for the Navy) and 'Mt". Glynn (Minister for,Home and Territories), :or South Australia. Mr. Greene (Minister of , Customs) has already Itiit for Ids consti-

tuency.

Messrs. G. H. Knibbs (Commonweal:!* Statistician) and H. 0. Allan arrived in Adelaide yesterday to continue their work as Commissioners to enquire into ithe mc

Mr. G. H. Knibbs.

! thod of taxing owners of leaseholds on , Crown lands. They were accompanied by 1 Mr. W. Benjamin, representing nie Pas I toraliets' Association, aud Mr. II. H.

Trebilco (secretary).

Our London correspondent announces by cable the death of Mr. John W. Billiatt, the last survivor of Stuart's exploring ex-pedition, which crossed, the continent ol' Australia from south to. north and planted ? the British flag on the shores of the Indian i Ocean on July 31, 1862, and carne back . with iiim, traversing many miles of fcerri ¡ tory where white man had not- previously

penetrated. They set out from North

j Adelaide, marched to the shore of Van Die

men'sGulf, in the Indian Ocean, Where the Union Jack wa« hoisted, and then re-traced their steps, the double journey oc-cupying 16 months. The 'distance direct was 2,000 miles, but detours added another 1,000 miles, so that altogether 5,000 miles were covered. Mr. Billiatt liad oí late years been hiving at Exeter, where-in 1913 . lie confided to a '"Lloyd's News" represen. , tative a full account of the perilous journey, ' reproduced in "The Advertiser" of July 29. I "There were ben of us in the party," he i «aid, '""with 72 horses, only 29 of which we ¡brought back. I ivas the only English I man in the group, Stuart being a Seotch i man, and the others colonials. The party

comprised-and here a reference i« made to 'Stuarfs Joursal,' a presentation copy of which has been carefully preserved these many years-J. M. Stuart (leader), W. Kekwick (second officer). F. W. Thrinj (third officer), W. P. Auld (assistant), Ste-phen King, J. W. Billiatt, J. Frew, II. Nash, J. McGorrcry, and F. G. Water-house (naturalist)." During his visit to England, the Premier of South Austral.'.*, (the Hon. A. H., Peake) specially visited Exeter to hand to Mr. Billiatt a gold watch from the peoole of South Australia. Mr. ¡Billiatt 'was born in Lincolnahire, near Grantha'm, nearly 80 years ago, and live 1

for 30 years in Australia. Mr. Billiatt will be well remembered with love and deep re-spect by a liirge number of the leading citizens of to-day. For many years he con-ducted what was known as Billiatt's Gram-mar School, at St. Leonards, Glenelg. There was much rivalry between that institution and the Glenelg Grammar School, conducted by the late Mr. F. Caterer, and the Glenelg Educational Institution, conducted by the late Mr. M. Mitchell. It waa always a question which ivas the best, and the head-masters entered into the competition with as.much enthusiasm as the scholars. It mattered not whether it was in the class-rooms or on the sports field, every en-couragement »ILS ¿riven by the headmasters. Mr. Billiatt was a regular attendant at St. .Peter's. Church. Glenelg, and duriug the re-building of that church lent much valuable

aid.

Mr. James Pearce (father of Senator Pearce, Minister of Defence) died on Thursday morning at his residence, Port-rush-rond. Glen Osmond, in his eighty-sixth year. He was born in Altarmnn parish, Comwall, in 1833, and arrived in Australia

in 1851 by the Ascendant. He followed the calling of a blacksmith for many years working at Mount Barker, Red Hill, and Alma. It is thought that he was one of the oldest members, if not the oldest, of the Mount Barker' Oddfellows' Lodge, he having. been associated with it for over 60 years. He leaves seven sons (Messrs.

Henry Pearce, Mdaug: Charles Pearce, . Horsham: William Pearce, Alberton: George Foster Pearce, Minister of De-fence: Edward Pearce, Alfred Pearce, and I Frederick Pearce, Western Australia) and

two daughters (Mrs. Jelly, Sandwell, and Mrs. Hatwell, Wagga). '

The Rev. Frank P. tToseland, who. with Mrs. A. L. Grieg, is the deputation to South Australia this year from the London Missionary Society, arrived by the ex-près« from Melbourne yesterday. Mr. Jose-land has had a notable missionary

career He left England in 1887 fe* Ajnoy- 'China), where for 25 yeais lie .labored. Tie.has seen a wonderful growth ih' Christiaiiitj* in China, .and has .-liared in much educational work. The mission at A moy was established in 1844, but that

j the missionaries are not even now entirely

j free from danger in that comparatively

1 Christianised centre is proved by an exci:- , j ing incident which ocourred last June.' j Ait 1 o'clock one morning the manse was i attacked by about a dozen armed bandits, who smashed open the door and threw down a number of explosive bombs.. The robbers ransacked the house, took away what valuables they could carry, and then set fire to the place. They have not been traced. Mr. Joseland, wio has a wonderfully interesting story to tell, has received word from London that 'he is

to take up missionary work in Samoa. Mrs. . Grieg, who comes from Hankow, China, is expected to arrive next week.

At a meeting of the Advisory Board ' of Agricultura on Thursday a resolution . was received from the Kndina D strict Conference expressing appreviation of thj services ot the Government Vcterinaiy Surge-on (Mr. F. E. Place) and the hop« that he would soon be restored to health. It was stated by members that Mr. Place was recovering from the effects of an acci-dent that he met with some months ago.

Dr C Duguid, of Adelaide, will be leav-ing shortly by the Asean iu« for Scotland for further study, but hopes to return to Adelaide in about-twelve mouths. He saw active service with the A.1.F., being at-tached to the 2nd Stationary Hospital at El Arish. His brother, an* Anzac, and one- of the original member.* of the 8tU Liiht Horse, was killed at Gaza. Since his return from the front DT. Duguid has done excellent work in the interests of returned soldiers at the Keswick, Torrens Park, and Bedford Park hospitals.

Mr. William "Pritchard, of Gladstone» 'street, Prospect, who will to-morrow cele-brate his 03rd birthday, still enjoys . .ila in a measure permitted -to few men' 'Jt years his junior. His sight and hearinj are nearly as good as in his youth, an I i lie has a fund of humor which » irrepres-

sible. "I have been lu holy orders for 76* years," he said yesterday, with a twinkle in his eye. "For over three» quarters of a century I have been lookinj after the soles of men." This is an allu-sion to the fact that he wa» a bootmaker from the age of 12 until he was 88. Mr. Pritchard was born in Marüforoiigh, Wilt-shire, in 1826. When he was four yean* of age his parents took bim to live ia Hampshire, and _ he attended a. bnnquet during the festivities which marked the coronation of Queen Victoria. When li years of ago he was apprenticed to a boot-maker, l'or the first yenr he received no wages; during the second, year 2d. a dav» and iu the» last year o: his apprenticeship 6/ a week. Later he *>|Vent 16 years m London. He carne to South Australi* in 18,)/, and started in business at Hind-marsh. After about twelve years "there he went to Yorketown, and on the death of his wife, in the early eighties, ho came to High-street, Kensington. For 75 years lie has been a member o: the Manchester Unity Oddfellows. »Since 1857 he has not

bceu out of »he State.

Mr. B. W. Bagenal, Australian represen-tative of Messrs. W. W. Pownall & Co., has just returned to Melbourne, and hope» I to be discharged from the A.I.F. at an .early date. He will then visit South j Australia.

I Mr. G. T. Lane has been elected preai I dent of the Institute of Accountant«;

for tue current year. Mr. Lane waa I one of the founders of the institute in

1885. Of these gentlemen only six sur-vive, Messrs. J. Hi Fry, V. Lawrance, Q. T. Lane, Harry Turner, J. E. Thomas, and

W. L. Ware.

Lieutenant-Colonel 'R. R. Baldwin, after " 40 years of service, has severed his coa» ; neetion with the Big Store to engage in j farming pursuits on Kangaroo Island. He

was recently tendered n farewell by tho . , staff In making him a presentation of ,

a desk, oflice chair, and Morris chair Mr. ' Pennytield said Mr. Baldwin was for six ' years at the Port Adelaide branch and

for .14 years a representative of John Martin »t Co. in the country, and no lirm had had a more worthy representative than lie was. Messrs. O'Deiikaud Scott also referred to the high esteem in which Mr. Baldwin W.IB held by all who knew him and said Mr. Baldwin had won high rank iu the military forces, having rise to the command of the 24th Light Horse Regiment and commanded on three occa-

sions transports' to and from Australia. J

Our Sydney correspondent reports tha

death, of Mr. Clifford Love, head .and« founder of the firm of Clifford, Love, and

Co. '-He.was in business for over sixty ?". years in Australia, and "vas one of tht pioneers of Australian manufacturiii!:%

Mrs. Ann Harrison has died at the New-

ington Home, Parramatta River, Syd-ney, at the extraordinary age of 108 years. She came to Australia at the age of 28

from County Clare. Up to a few days be fore her death she was very active and in good health.

Our Perth correspondent telegraphs:

Dr. Golding-Bird 'has forwarded his resig- ^ nation of the diocese of Kalgoorlie 'to . the Archbishop of Perth as metropolitan of the province of Western Australia. The bishop's . resignation will take effect on July 31, but he avili probably be leaving somewhat earlier. The bishop recently underwent an operation for throat trouble, and specialists'advised him to seek mora temperate and less dusty conditions.