Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Wednesday 30 October 1889, page 7


DEATH OF MR. WILLIAM

WESTGARTH.

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(BY CABLE FROM Otra CORRESPONDENT!.)

LONDON, OCT. 28.

Mr. William Westgarth, late of the firm of Messrs. Wm. Westgarth and Co., colonial agents and brokers, London, died suddenly to day, aged 74 years.

THE CAREER OF MR. WESTGARTH.

Another of the few remaining links which connect us with " the old colonial days has passed away. Our cable message conveys the news, which will be received with pro-found regret by a large number of colonists throughout Australasia, that Mr William Westgarth, the head of the London house of Messrs. Wm Westgarth and Co, Australian agents and brokers, and who was amongst us only a few months ago, has been cut off by death at the age of 74 years After his return to London from his Australasian trip at the end of last year, Mr Westgarth had an attack of pleurisy, and was led by the state of his health to retire from business. Later information seemed to indicate that he had to some extent recovered, and the message from London is therefore to that extent right in saying that the end was sudden.

The late Mr. Westgarth's connection with Victoria as a colonist belonged to an era the very recollection of which is now rapidly passing away, but though almost a third of a century has elapsed since he became a resident in the world's metropolis, he retained to the last an intercourse and a business relationship with the colonies and with colonists of such an intimate nature as to justify his being claimed as an Australian from first to last In financial circles his position has been unique, and his whole career has been one of great netMff, afloat, upon the whole, of equal prosperity The eldest surviving son of the late Mr John Westgarth, of Edinburgh, one of the Surveyors General of Customs for the United Kingdom, he was born in that city on the 15th June, 1845 He came of on old family of the Westgarth's, of Unthank-one of the smaller landed properties of the county Durham, situated near Stanhope in Wear-dale where his great grand uncle, Justice Westgarth," a local magnate of his time, is still a remembered name. He was educated at the High schools of Leith and Edinburgh, and at Dr Bruce's Academy, Newcastle on Tyne, an institution which has been fertile in boys who have been to high positions in the world, including Robert Stephenson, Sir Isaac Lowthian Bell, and Sir Charles M Palmer, M P , parent of the great steam collier interest At an early age Mr Westgarth entered the office of Messrs. George Young and Co, of Leith, who had been for some time in the Australian trade, and where, from the glowing accounts of the colonies which passed through his hands from time to time, he at last formed the design of emigrating to the new settlement of Port Phillip, which was at that time invested with a halo of undefined romance in the eyes of many enterprising young men in the old country, alike by the wonderful stories of its early prosperity and still more by the effects of the publication of Sir Thomas Mitchell's exploration of "Australia Felix," a name which, in surprise and admiration at the beauty of the scenery and the fertility of the soil, be bestowed upon the large central area of that Port Phillip district which is now

the colony of Victoria.

Mr. Westgarth sailed from Leith on July 11, 1840, a young man of 25, and after a voyage of 141 days reached Port Phillip on the 13th December following. The near settlement was then in the most primitive stage of its existence. Melbourne had been laid out only three years before, and when Mr Westgarth landed the population of the place was only between 3,000 and 4,000, and perhaps a fourth of these had been recently shot out of immigrant ships, and were merely waiting for employment or settlement The population of the whole district did not much exceed 9,000 The new comer retained to the end of his days a vivid recollection of his first night ashore, and a record of it is to be found among his published reminiscences. He had engaged to spend the next day, which was a Sunday, with a young friend at his " country Beat," on Richmond Flat, where he had constructed, mostly with his own hands, "a sort of hat or wigwam, under an unchallenged equaltage." The friend was engaged in a store for long hours on Saturday night, and it was

past 11 o'clock before the two started from town for the walk across country. The rain had been pouring all night, and it was pitch dark. They got into Collins street, but had much difficulty in keeping its lines where there were not post-and-rail fences round the vacant

allotments After floundering helplessly about in the foundation cutting of a new house, they at length emerged upon the open of the present Fitzroy gardens, where for a time they could keep to the bush track only by trying the ground with their feet or fingers. Finally they lost the road and were unable to regain it, and wandered about for the rest of the night in the pouring rain, to find themselves when the day broke close to the Yarra, between Hawthorn and Studley park. Three years afterwards Mr Westgarth was a spectator at a grand corrobboree of natives within a mile to the north of the pre-sent General Post office, in which 700 aborigines of all ages and both sexes took part These incidents are sufficient to indicate the stage of development at which Mr. Westgarth found the infant city. He was unfortunate in the precise time of his arrival, for the settlement was passing through a period of depression, which happily proved to be of short duration Turning his attention to mercantile pursuits, Mr. Westgarth entered into business as a merchant and general importer, and in 1815 he was joined by Mr Alfred Ross, and the firm of Messrs Westgarth, Ross, and Spowers was ultimately established in premises of modest pretentions in Market street. From the outset Mr. Westgarth threw himself with great hearti-ness into every movement which had for its object the advancement of the settlement, and he became quickly recognised as one of the leading spirits of the place Every half year for some years up to 19 Id, he issued a printed report, commercial, statistical, and general, on the district of Port Phillip, with the view not so much of pecuniary profit as of disseminating information relating to the settlement When the merchants of Melbourne founded the Chamber of Commerce in 1851, he was chosen as its first president, and was re-elected for the following year For 18 months he was a member of the National Board of Education, and assisted in founding the Melbourne Mechanics' Institute, from which the present Athen turn in descended. Upon the establishment of the Bank of Victoria he was appointed deputy chairman, and he promoted the formation of the first Melbourne Gas Company.

The influence of Mr. Westgarth was not confined, however, to purely local affairs. In the struggles made by the colonists against the importation of British felonry through the medium of Van Diemen's Land he took a prominent part He was one of the founders of the Australasian Anti T transportation League, and a subscriber of 100 guineas to its funds, and has acted as hon. secretary to the Melbourne branch of the organisation. In 1850 Mr. Westgarth entered public life as the representative of Melbourne in the Legislature of New South Wales. The Legislative Council Bat at Sydney, and Mr Westgarth was there again in 1851, represent-ing Melbourne in the "separation" session, when the Port Phillip province was erected into the separate colony of Victoria. In the agitation which led to this separation be took a very active part, and when the desired consummation was brought about, and Victorian affairs were placed under the control of a Legislative Council, partly elec-tive and partly nominee, he contented to offer himself as a candidate for the representation of the city of Melbourne. The number of rate was three, and there were

seven candidates. Mr. Westgarth headed the poll, and he had as his colleagues the late Sir John (then Mr.) O'Shanassy, and Mr. J. S. Johnston. The last-named gentleman is still with us, but the only other members of that first Victorian Legislature who survive are Mr William Campbell and Sir Francis Murphy, though the clerk of the House, Mr. John Barker, has continued to occupy his accustomed place during the whole of the intervening period.

Mr. Westgarth held his seat for the first two sessions, during which he was generally recognised as the leader of the popular party a the Legislature. In July, 1852, he obtained the appointment of a select committee to inquire into the subject of prison discipline, and the management and employment of

prisoners. In the same month he carried a protest-in the shape of a series of resolutions against the transportation of convicts to Victoria or any other of the Australian colonies. In the month of September following, he submitted to and carried through the Legislature his once famous bill " to prevent the introduction into Victoria of convicted felons and other persons sentenced to transportation for offences against the law a measure better known as the Convicts' Influx Prevention Bill. In September, 1852, he moved that a proportion of the grant in aid of public worship should be given to the Jews-a proposition which was lost by one vote only. During the same session, he secured the passage of the Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Bill and the Hobson's Bay Railway Bill, and also obtained the adoption of a resolution in favour of the assimilation of the colonial tariffs, and of opening negotiations with the other Australian colonies on the subject. It may be added that it was at his suggestion-a suggestion made in order that the question of the constitution might he duly and properly considered that the that increase in the number of members of the Legislative Council was made.

The discovery of gold in 1851 and the opening up of the Ballarat gold-field brought about changes which were as surprising to the Melbourne merchants as they were to the world at large. Mr. Westgarth visited Ballarat a fortnight after the discovery, and as senior member for Melbourne in the first Parliament and first president of the Chamber of Commerce, was regarded as a person of great distinction. He addressed the diggers from a tree stump, and endeavoured to persuade them to adopt a more economical method of using the stream that ran through the valley, find was then conducted to a small claim," and picked out about 7s. 6d, worth of gold from a handful of dirt In May, 1853, Mr. Westgarth resigned hiaaeatandleftthecolony on a visit to England. This was his second trip to the mother country, the first having been made in 1343. Having married while in England, he returned again to Victoria in October, 1854, when be found the colony con-vulsed by the conflicts between the authorities and the diggers, which culminated in the outbreak at Ballarat, and the exciting events of the Eureka Stockade. A commission of inquiry was just being formed by the Governor-the late Sir Charles Hotham and Mr. Westgarth accepted His Excellency's invitation to become one of its members. The commission included an interesting gathering of early as well as prominent colonists - Fawkner, O'Shanassy, J. F. Strachan, and John Hodgson. Mr. Westgarth was chosen chairman, and the extraordinary diplomatic tact which had to be exercised in arbitrating between the aggrieved miners and the authorities was amply evidenced in the successful settlement of the difficulty which was so quickly and so permanently effected by the commission. The commission recommended, but failed to secure, a general amnesty to the rebels, who were afterwards tried but acquitted.

Business matters called Mr. Westgarth again to England in 1857, and be resolved to settle permanently in London, founding soon afterwards the firm of Messrs. Wm. Westgarth and Co., colonial agents and brokers, and for the last 30 years a recognised authority in all matters of Australian finance. The field of! business, that of the Australian and New Zealand securities, which to-day is so widely developed, was just budding at the time of Mr. Westgarth's return to London, and his intimate knowledge of colonial affairs and rare sagacity in large financial transactions enabled him in the course of a few years to make it entirely his own. He became the centre of the syndicates of speculators who have chiefly controlled Australian loans, and his clients placed implicit confidence in his judgment. In the year 1905-6 show the remarkable growth of this business during the past 20 years there were only about £13,000,000 of Australasian stocks in all, of which ten were Governmental and two municipal. The business circulars of Wm. Westgarth and Co. now deal with 145 millions of colonial Government stocks and 10 million! of municipal and kindred stock. Mr. Westgarth's attention was early called to certain serious defects in the form and mode of issue of the colonial loans, which seriously affected both the issue price obtained for them and their subsequent standing in the market. The loans were of course In comparatively small amounts at first, and there was an almost general habit on the part of the colonies of issuing each successive loan as different as possible in all particulars from its predecessors. Thus came an intermin-able variety of small stocks, which, owing to their smallness, had but little negotia-bility, and in this divided way were at times so small as to be refused Stock Exchange quotation. The colony of New Zealand was a great offender in this respect, but its special disadvantages became at last so obvious that New Zealand was the first to move for the principle of " consolidation." Twenty years ago when Mr. (now Sir William ) Fitzherbert went to England to attain this purpose, and took Mr. Westgarth and the Crown agents into his councils, a five per cent con-solidation was successfully and advantageously accomplished. Besides this advantage of consolidation, he was the first to explain the further great advantage of a registration or inscription system for the loans, which was at length adopted, at the instance chiefly of Sir Saul Samuel for New South Wales, and Sir Julius Vogel for New Zealand.

Having taken a prominent part in originat-ing the Melbourne Chamber of Commerce, and proved its usefulness, Mr. Westgarth turned his thoughts towards establishing a like institution in London, where he was much struck with the absence of such an institution. Repeated attempts had previously been made to form such a chamber, but each had been attended by failure. For many years Mr. Westgarth was equally unsuccessful till the mayoralty in 1880-81 of his old friend, the late Alderman Sir William McArthur, gave him the opportunity he had desired. The Mayor warmly took up the cause, summoning Mr Samuel Morley to his aid, as well as his brother, Mr. A. M'Arthur, M.P. The result was that after much trouble the chumher was successfully launched In July, 1881, and it has continued to increase in strength and usefulness. Before this time Mr. Westgarth had attended as one of the representatives of the Melbourne Chamber of Commerce the Tariff Centres which was held in London at the instance of Canada, with the object which, however, was not much advanced-of binding the empire tonether in more intimate trade relations.

The opening of the Melbourne Centennial Exhibition last year induced Mr. Wentnorth to visit once more the scene of his early career. The hearty reception which he met with throughout the whole of Australia will be fresh in the minds of our renders. Accompanied by his wife and one of his daughters he visited Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales, and Queensland, and in each colony he was asked to accept the honour of a free railway pass. It was 31 years since he had left the colonies, and the changes which he saw on every hand filled him with gratification. He took the opportunity of urging upon the colonial Governments the wisdom of issuing their loans at the rate of 3 per cent, instead of at large premiums, and he delivered an address on that and other matters before the Bankers' Institute at Melbourne, He was also entertained at a banquet by the Melbourne Chamber of Com-

fierce, and the value of his work in connection with the colonies was highly eulogised Upon the voyage out from England Mr Westgarth utilised his leisure time in writing an interesting volume of reminiscences, under the title of Personal Recollections of Early If flour is' and Victoria, to which be added before publication a few comments upon the aspect of the colonies in 1886. He also published a volume entitled A Half Century of Australian Progias But these were by no means Mr Westgarth s first attempts at authorship As early as 1848 he published a History of Victoria, in which much valuable information 18 preserved, and in 1853 and 1857respectively he wrote works of an historical nature, dealing with the growth of Victoria and the chief incidents in its early history The first of these books was entitled Reform, or Australia Felix, being an Historical and Descriptive Account of the Colony and its hold Mines, and the other Victoria and Us Gold Mines In addition

to numerous pamphlets on financial questions Mr Westgarth contributed to the Encircle alia Britannica the articles on " The Goldfields of Australia, Melbourne, "Sydney," and '"Tasmania," and he was the writer of the article on "Australia' in Chambers's Encyclopedia It will surprise many of his old friends to learn that be even entered the field of fiction, though in a modest way from time to time he gave birth to short tales and novelettes, and for some reason, known only to himself, He selected the immersion Examiner ( Tasmania) as the outlet for his creations for many years his contributions have been regularly published in that journal under a nom de plume

In private life Mr Westgarth was of a quiet though genial disposition, methodical to a degree in his habits, and unostentatious in his mode of living It has been already stated that he retired from the London business a short time ago, and the work of the firm is now being carried on by the former junior partner, Mr W Devon Aatle Mr Westgarth leaves a wife and three daughters, two of whom are married, one to Dr Voelcker, analytical chemist to the Royal Agricultural Society, and the other to Mr W G L Spowers, one of the proprietors of The Argus ________________