O'BRIEN, LOUGHLIN (1820-1901) was born in Dublin, and came to New Zealand in the forties. He served his articles to the law with Conroy (finishing with Merriman) and was one of the first two solicitors admitted to practise after so qualifying (1851). He represented the City of Auckland in the first Parliament (1853-55), joined the government service in 1855, and held various offices (returning officer and revising barrister; sheriff 1856; registrar of the supreme court 1865-70). In 1880 he was appointed a judge of the native land court, retiring in 1899. He died on 17 Apr 1901.

Cycl. N.Z., ii; N.Z. Herald, 18 Apr 1901.

Reference: Volume 2, page 68

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O'CALLAGHAN, ARTHUR PYNE (1837-1930), who was born in Fermoy, Ireland, graduated B.A. at Dublin University in 1859, and two years later was ordained in the Anglican Church. Arriving in Lyttelton by the Greyhound in 1863, he spent two years in the Oxford parish, and resigned to take up farming in the Lincoln district and on the Peninsula. He was a member of the Springs road board (1882-88) and represented Lincoln in the House of Representatives as a supporter of the Liberal party (1881-88). For some years he was in charge of the lands department in South Canterbury, and in 1897 he was appointed supervising valuer in Christchurch. He retired in 1902 and died on 17 Dec 1930. He was a prominent freemason.

Cycl. N.Z., iii; The Press, 18 Dec 1930.

Reference: Volume 2, page 68

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O'CARROLL, PATRICK JOSEPH FELIX VALENTINE O'NEILL was born at Castlepollard, County Westmeath, Ireland, and educated at St Vincent's College, Castleknock; St Stanislaus College, Rahan; and Dublin University. He studied medicine at the St Cecilia School, the Royal College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Physicians, Dublin. In 1862 he came to Melbourne as surgeon in the Queen of the South. Next year he was medical superintendent of the Star of India, which brought the Australian military settlers to Auckland. He was appointed assistant-surgeon in the militia and was later, at his own request, transferred to the Waikato militia, then to Colonel Lyon's force, with which he saw a great deal of service. In 1863 he was present at the capture of Jonathan's pa and in November he was sent to bring the wounded back from Rangiriri to Auckland and to take charge of native prisoners. For gallantry during a seven days' siege he was promoted captain. He was at the Gate Pa (April 1864) in charge of the ambulance and afterwards attached to the Arawa contingents operating on the East Coast after the murder of Volkner (1865). Towards the end of the year he was ordered to Taranaki and attached to the mounted corps, with which he marched to meet General Chute's force from the south (January 1866). He then settled in Taranaki, where his skill as a surgeon, his generosity and fine human qualities earned him the confidence of the public.

At the time of the White Cliffs massacre (1869) O'Carroll again took the field. In 1874 he was transferred to the Armed Constabulary. In 1881 he accompanied the Parihaka force. In 1891 he was promoted brigadier-surgeon. He married Alice, daughter of Octavius Carrington. From 1880 to 1896 he was associated with the New Plymouth hospital as surgeon and later as medical superintendent. On retiring he returned to Ireland.

Cycl. N.Z., vi; Skinner (P)

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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O'CONNOR, CHARLES YELVERTON (1843-1902), the youngest son of John O'Connor, was born in Gravelmouth, county Meath, Ireland. He was educated at the Waterford endowed school, and apprenticed in 1859 to J. Challoner Smith, M.I.C.E., a railway contractor. After some years with railway construction companies in Ireland he came to New Zealand in 1865, and was appointed assistant engineer (under Dobson) to the Canterbury provincial government, bearing much of the responsibility for the road to the West Coast. In 1870 he was engineer for Westland, and in 1880 he rose to be inspector of engineering for the South Island, a General Government post. From 1883 to 1890 O'Connor was Under-secretary of Public Works. In 1890 he was appointed marine engineer, but the following year he went to Western Australia as engineer-in-chief. There he carried out the construction of the Fremantle harbour and the Coolgardie pumping scheme, and was also general manager of railways. O'Connor was an engineer and economist of outstanding ability. In 1897 he was created C.M.G. He died on 8 Mar 1902.

App. H.R. (N.Z.), 1871-72 D; 1874-80 E; 1882 D; 1883 D2, 1887 D6; 1890 D8; (ii) D1, 3,4; Dr Merab Harris, biography, in Studies of Univ. of Western Australia, Oct 1934 (p); Dobson; Lyttelton Times, 26 May 1881, 12 Mar 1902; N.Z. Times, 12 Mar 1902; The Press, 13 Mar; Evening Post, 11 Mar.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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O'CONOR, EUGENE JOSEPH (1835-1912) was born in County Roscommon, Ireland, and educated at St Omer, France, and at Esker College, Ireland. In 1854 he emigrated to Victoria, and in the early sixties came to the goldfields of Otago. In 1867 he settled at Buller. He represented this district in the Nelson Provincial Council (1869-73), and Westport (1874-75). He was provincial secretary and treasurer. O'Conor was M.H.R. for Buller (1871-75 and 1884-93), and was responsible for passing the Westport Harbour Act in 1884. In 1886 he was chairman of the legislative expenditure committee. He was also honorary chairman of the Westport Harbour Board, chairman of the Buller County Council and a member of the Westport Borough Council. He died in July 1912.

N.Z.P.D., 31 Jul 1912; Cycl. N.Z., v; Who's Who N.Z., 1908.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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O'DONOVAN, JOHN (1858-1927) was born at Ross Carbery, County Cork, the son of Florence O'Donovan, farmer. Educated at a primary school there, he served for a while as assistant teacher at Ross Carbery under the commissioner of national education. In 1878 he came to New Zealand and joined his brother Richard (who was contracting on the West Coast and represented Okarito in the Westland Provincial Council in 1875). In 1879 O'Donovan joined the police force, in which he served for 20 years before reaching the rank of sergeant (1898). In that year he was appointed to have charge of the depot established by Commissioner Tunbridge at Wellington for the training of recruits. In 1908 he became sub-inspector, being stationed afterwards at Palmerston North (1908); as inspector in charge at Invercargill (1911); at Hawke's Bay (1912); superintendent at Dunedin (1915); and at Wellington (1915). In 1916 he succeeded John Cullen as commissioner. O'Donovan was in charge of the detachment which escorted the Duke and Duchess of York in New Zealand in 1901, and in 1920 (as commissioner) he controlled the arrangements for the visit of the Prince of Wales. (M.V.O. 1920). He retired in 1922 (I.S.O.), and died on 8 Apr 1927. O'Donovan married (1892) Josephine, widow of Richard Whitaker, of the Railway department.

Who's Who N.Z., 1924; personal information.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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O'MEARA, JOHN (1856-1904) was born in Melbourne, educated at the model school and at St Francis and St Augustine's schools. He came to New Zealand in 1868. Entering the Post and Telegraph department at Queenstown (1871), he spent 14 years in the service and then engaged in business in the town. He was chairman of the Lake county council for three years and a member of the Queenstown borough council for eight. In 1893 he contested the Wakatipu seat in Parliament against W. Fraser (q.v.) and Larnach, being second on the poll. O'Meara then removed to Pahiatua. At the election of 1896 he won the Pahiatua seat in the Liberal interest and retained it until his death on 3 Jul 1904. For several years he was a Government whip. O'Meara was a keen sportsman and president for some years of the Pahiatua Racing Club. He married a daughter of J. A. Eissenhardt, architect, of Greymouth.

Cycl. NZ, vi; N.Z. Times, 6 Jun 1900, 5 Jul 1904.

Reference: Volume 2, page 70

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O'NEILL, ALLAN (1802-86) was born in County Leitrim, Ireland, educated in the north and trained as a surveyor and civil engineer. He was engaged for some years in the ordnance survey and on railroad construction. In 1842 O'Neill came to Taranaki as a surveyor under the New Zealand Company. The staff being reduced soon after, he walked overland to Auckland, arriving in Sep 1842. There he surveyed the North Shore and Takapuna on behalf of the Government, laid out a number of the Auckland streets and made a map of the district between Auckland and Bay of Islands.

In 1846 he married Annie Sophia (d. 3 Aug 1901), daughter of Captain Henry H. Bell, 64th Regiment (of County Tyrone). He was elected to the Legislative Council of New Ulster (Sep 1852) for the Northern Division. The council was not convened, but in the following year he was returned for Northern Division in the Auckland Provincial Council, of which he was a member until 1865. He was a member of the Church of England and a lay representative on the diocesan synod; chairman of the Takapuna road board and of the Lake school committee. He died on 5 Jul 1886.

Cycl. N.Z., ii (p); Auckland P.C. Proc.; N.Z. Herald, 6 Jul 1886.

Reference: Volume 2, page 70

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O'NEILL, CHARLES, a son of John O'Neill, of Auckland, was by profession a civil engineer. He laid out the town of Milton (Otago) in the early sixties, and with Thomas Kingston and J.D. Baird he explored the country between Wellington and Wairarapa to discover a suitable route for a railway (1867). He practised at Thames and represented the Thames goldfields in Parliament (1866-68) and Thames (1871-75). As provincial engineer in Wellington O'Neill first proposed tramways in the city (1875), and he brought steam trams into operation there in 1878. As an architect he designed many public buildings.

Weston; Beauchamp; Ward.

Reference: Volume 2, page 70

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O'NEILL, JAMES (1819-82) was born at Manor Hamilton, County Leitrim, and came to New Zealand as a youth with his brother A. O'Neill (q.v.). He was in business in Auckland for some years, and took a leading part in public affairs. In 1853 he was elected to represent Auckland City in the Provincial Council and sat until 1857, being for the last year a member of the executive. He sat again for Auckland West (1861-68). O'Neill also represented the City in the House of Representatives (1853-55) and some years later was member for the Northern Division (1861-69). He was then called to the Legislative Council, of which he was a member until 1872, when he retired to live in England, where he died on 24 May 1882. He was interested in the Mechanics' Institute, was a justice of the peace and a visiting justice.

Old. N.Z., ii (p); Auckland P.C. Proc.; N.Z. Herald, 26 May 1882.

Reference: Volume 2, page 70

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O'REGAN, CORNELIUS JOSEPH (1874-95) was born at Inangahua valley, the son of P. O'Regan, farmer. While attending the Totara Flat school, he early showed ability, winning a scholarship which gave him two years' education at the Greymouth High School. From there he matriculated (1890) after a year's coaching by B. P. McMahon, of the Roman Catholic school at Reefton. O'Regan showed poetic sensibility, thoughtfulness and a love of literature; and at the age of 17 wrote poetry of a high standard, with verbal felicity and truth of feeling. He wrote verse for the Canterbury Times, the Otago Witness and the New Zealand Graphic. In 1894 he published a small booklet, Voices of Wave and Tree, containing verse written between the ages of 16 and 20. In 1894 he became schoolmaster at Inangahua Junction, a task to which he devoted himself with enthusiasm. He died on 7 Sep 1895. Another small collection Poems was published in 1896.

O'Regan was a brother of Patrick Joseph O'Regan (1869-), who was M.H.R. for Inangahua (1893-96) and Buller (1897-99); and was appointed a judge of the Arbitration Court in 1937.

Cycl. N.Z., v (p); Who's Who N.Z., 1908, 1924; O'Regan, op. cit. (port. in Poems); N.Z. Times, 9 Sep 1895.

Reference: Volume 2, page 71

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O'REILLY, JEREMIAH JOSEPH PURCELL (1799-1880) was born in Cork, Ireland, educated there and in France, and finally in Rome, where he joined the Franciscan Order of Friars. Ordained in 1824, he was appointed to the mission in Cork under Dr Delaney and was afterwards in the mission at Kilkenny under Dr Kinsella. In 1841 O'Reilly came to Wellington as chaplain to the Hon H. W. Petre, and he established the first Catholic Church in Boulcott street. In 1865 he made a tour through the South Island, visiting many goldfield centres, and in 1868 he visited Europe and was for a while chaplain to the Papal Zouaves. Returning to New Zealand with Bishop Viard (1870), he was actively engaged in parish work till 1879, when he retired in ill-health.

O'Reilly was the founder of the first Catholic school in Wellington. He was an ardent temperance advocate and spoke eloquently at meetings with Sir William Fox. As an author he published Exhorto Ecclesiae. He died on 21 Jun 1880.

Ward; N.Z. Times, 13 Aug 1880; Wellington Independent, 16 May 1867.

Reference: Volume 2, page 71

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O'RORKE, SIR GEORGE MAURICE (1830-1916) was the son of the Rev John O'Rorke, of Moylough, county Galway, Ireland. He was educated at Dr Smyth's school at Stellorgan, near Dublin, and proceeded to Trinity College with a Dublin exhibition. There he took classical honours, graduating B.A. (1852). He then went to Victoria and had some years' experience on the goldfields as a digger and on sheep stations, including overlanding between Melbourne, the Murray, the Lachlan and Sydney.

In 1854 O'Rorke came to Auckland and with a college friend, Henry Taylor (afterwards secretary and inspector of schools for Auckland) he started farming at Papakura and Onehunga. In 1857 he accepted the post of clerk to the Auckland Provincial Council, which he filled until 1860. In Jan 1861 he stood for the parliamentary representation of Onehunga and defeated Weeks by one vote. He retained the seat until 1890 (the name of the constituency having been changed to Manukau in 1881), and was then defeated by W. F. Buckland. After three years out of Parliament, he defeated his old opponent and was then continuously member for Manukau until 1902, when he was again defeated (by M. M. Kirkbride). Meanwhile, in 1865 O'Rorke was elected to the Provincial Council (for Onehunga) and he retained the seat for the rest of the provincial period. He had the unique experience of being elected speaker of the Council on the day on which he first took his seat, and he held that office with dignity and competence until the provinces were abolished. In 1874 he was a member of the executive. As speaker he became automatically superintendent on the death of John Williamson, but he held the office only pending a new election, at which Sir George Grey was returned unopposed. O'Rorke was a staunch provincialist and separationist and in Parliament took a leading part in resisting the abolition of the provincial system. In 1868 he was admitted to the bar, being the first to take advantage of the law practitioners' act, which enabled graduates of approved universities to qualify. In Parliament he rapidly attained a prominent position and in 1869 was offered a place in the Fox-Vogel ministry, which he declined. In 1870 he was elected chairman of committees and two years later he accepted the portfolio of Lands and Immigration in the Waterhouse ministry. He continued in these offices in the Fox ministry (1873) and in the succeeding Vogel ministry. A sworn provincialist, O'Rorke severed his association with the Government when Vogel brought down his resolutions (on 13 Aug 1874) foreshadowing the abolition of the provinces. In a speech of rare eloquence and emotion he declared that 'he would never have accepted a seat in the ministry if he had known that his honourable colleague had in his copious armoury this treacherous dagger to stab the provinces, which they were both sworn to maintain. If he remained in the government he would do violence to his conscience and would deserve to be branded as a base political traitor.' Taking his notes and papers from his bench, he walked across the House and sat on the opposition benches. It was a few months after this that he assumed temporarily the superintendency of the province, to make way gracefully for Grey. O'Rorke again became chairman of committees and in 1879, on the retirement of Fitzherbert, he was elected speaker. In 1880 he was knighted. During his long occupancy of the Speaker's chair he earned the reputation of being one of the finest speakers in the empire. His knowledge of precedents was perfect, his judgment and temper were never at fault and his control of the proceedings of the House was absolute. On returning to Parliament after an absence of three years (1890-93) he was again elected to the chair, which he occupied until his final retirement from the popular chamber (1902). In 1904 he was called to the Legislative Council, of which he was a member until his death (on 25 Aug 1916). He several times moved resolutions favouring the restoration of the provinces.

O'Rorke was an ardent promoter of education. He was one of the founders of the Auckland Grammar School and was a governor from its inception in 1869 until his death, and chairman from 1880. In 1878 he was chairman of the royal commission on university and secondary education, and he was chairman of the Auckland University College council from its first meeting in 1883, and of the Auckland Technical School and a member of the senate of the University of New Zealand from 1879. His appreciation of education was very liberal. He wished to see the establishment of chairs of architecture, music, commerce, law and divinity and did much in the province to foster country libraries.

O'Rorke married (1858) Cecilia (who died on 19 Sep 1910), daughter of Alexander Shepherd.

N.Z.P.D., pass. (notably 13 Aug 1874 and 29 Jun 1917); Auckland P.C. Proc.; Gisborne; Saunders; Beaglehole; Cycl. N.Z., ii; Public Opinion (Dunedin), 5 Feb 1881; N.Z. Herald, 26 Aug 1916. Portrait: Parliament House.

Reference: Volume 2, page 72

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O'SULLIVAN, JOHN, was engaged as manager to a railway company in 1840. In 1841 he came to New Zealand and settled in Marlborough, where he was for many years inspector of public works for the province. He represented Pelorus in the Marlborough Provincial Council (1865-69).

Marlborough P.C. Proc.; Cycl. NZ, v, p. 413.

Reference: Volume 2, page 72

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O'SULLIVAN, RICHARD JAMES (1828-89) was born in Ireland, received a university education there, and was a good English and classical scholar. In 1861 he arrived in Auckland and engaged in teaching (John Sheehan being one of his pupils). For some time he was publisher of the Southern Cross, and he was also clerk and librarian of the Auckland Provincial Council. When the Council in 1869 passed an ordinance providing for the establishment of common schools with aid from public funds he was appointed secretary to the board, and did valuable work visiting the out-districts and organising schools. In 1872 he became inspector of schools, a position in which he continued to exhibit the greatest zeal and ability in building up the education system. On the passage of the act establishing free, secular and compulsory education (1877) O'Sullivan was appointed inspector of schools in the Government service, and he continued in that post until his retirement (1888). He was the author of an excellent manual Instructions for the Guidance of Teachers. His death occurred on 5 Nov 1889.

Auckland P.C. Proc.; Butchers, Young N.Z. and Educ.; Auckland Star, 5 Nov 1889; N.Z. Herald, 6, 9 Nov.

Reference: Volume 2, page 73

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OGSTON, FRANK (1846-1917) was born at Aberdeen and educated there. He was for some time in the North of Scotland Bank and in a mercantile office before proceeding to the study of medicine at Aberdeen (M.D. 1872), Paris, Prague and Vienna. He practised for a few years, and was then appointed assistant professor of medical jurisprudence and deputy health officer for Aberdeen. In 1886 he was appointed professor of medical jurisprudence at Otago University. He also engaged in private practice. Ogston died on 7 Sep 1917.

Who's Who N.Z., 1908; Otago Univ. Calendar; Fulton; Otago Daily Times, 8 Sep 1917.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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OKEY, HENRY JAMES HOBBS (1857-1918) was born at Frankley Road, Taranaki, and educated in New Plymouth, thereafter spending many years as a cattle and sheep farmer. He was for 25 years a member of the Frankley Road board (and much of the time chairman and secretary) and 12 years on the Taranaki county council (nine years chairman) and a member of the school committee. He promoted the Frankley Road Dairy Co. of which he was chairman; was once president of the Taranaki A. and P. association, and a member of the licensing bench. Okey twice contested the Taranaki seat in Parliament (on the first occasion as an independent Liberal). In May 1907 he won the seat against E. Dockerill (Liberal) and W. G. Malone (Independent Liberal). He represented Taranaki until his death on 13 Sep 1918. He married (1883) Louise Morey (New Plymouth), who died on 28 Aug 1937.

N.Z.P.D., 25 Oct 1918; Taranaki Herald, 14 Sep 1918. Portrait: Parliament House.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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OLIVER, ARTHUR ROBERT (?-?) came to New Zealand in the early sixties and settled in the Nelson district. He represented Waimea in the Nelson Provincial Council for two years (1865-67) and in the House of Representatives for over a year (1866-67). After six years in New Zealand he returned to England (1867).

Cycl. N.Z., v

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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OLIVER, RICHARD (1830-1910) was born in Penzance, Cornwall. Coming to Otago in the early sixties, he built the Port Chalmers railway (in partnership with George Proudfoot). He was senior partner in Oliver and Ulph and the founder and largest shareholder in the New Zealand Hardware Co. He also had extensive station properties in the province.

Oliver was member of the Provincial Council for Mount Ida (1873-75). In 1878 he was elected to Parliament for Dunedin City, which he represented until 1881. He was Minister of Public Works in the Hall ministry (1879-81); minister without portfolio for the balance of its term and afterwards in the Whitaker ministry; and Postmaster-general in the Atkinson administration (1883-84). He was called to the Legislative Council (1887). He was a director of the Dunedin and South Seas Exhibition (1889-90). About 1901 Oliver resigned from the Council and returned to live in England. He married (1858) Ellen, a daughter of William Purchase (Penzance), and (1885) Louise d'Este, daughter of J. S. Courtenay, and sister of the Rt Hon L. H. Courtenay. He died on 29 Nov 1910.

Oliver made generous gifts of pictures to the Dunedin art gallery.

Who's Who N.Z., 1908; Cycl. N.Z., i (p), iv; Otago Daily Times, 30 Nov 1910. Portrait: Parliament House.

Reference: Volume 2, page 69

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OLLIVIER, JOHN (1812-93) was born in Isle of Wight, the son of Claude Nicholas Ollivier. He received his education for the most part at the college at Abbeville, France, and then went into the publishing business in London, where he spent 20 years. He recalled that his firm published the first edition of Kinglake's Eothen in 1844. Ollivier was married (1837) to Elizabeth Morton (d. 1892) of Lincolnshire, and before they left for New Zealand the couple had eight sons and one daughter. Ollivier took an active interest in social and philanthropic movements. He was a strong supporter of the Corn Law League. He appears to have been a member of the board of guardians in the parish of St James; at any rate he was vestry clerk and clerk to the guardians. He stood throughout for Conservative principles; but his friendships were non-party. When he decided to leave for New Zealand he was presented with a cheque for 400 sovereigns at a public dinner at which two-thirds of the diners were political opponents.

Ollivier sailed with his family for New Zealand in the John Taylor on 10 Jul 1853, arriving on 17 Oct. He lost no time in obtaining a leasehold farming property at upper Riccarton, where he lived for six or seven years. He could not refrain from activities which had engaged him in the Old Country. In 1860 he gave up the farm and removed to Christchurch, building a house in Ferry road and starting in business with his son as auctioneers. He was elected to the Provincial Council in 1855 for Christchurch Country district, which in 1856 returned him to Parliament. He continued to represent it until the middle of 1860, when he resigned. Ollivier held office in several provincial executives. Returned to the Council for Heathcote in 1857, he took office as provincial secretary under Tancred, continued under Cass, and eventually was himself the leader of an administration for a few weeks (1859). An admirer of Moorhouse, he warmly supported the railway and tunnel project. Moorhouse referred to him as 'the Canterbury wet nurse' and Hall remarked that 'he seemed always to have found something to do in the public interests of the province.' A witty and attractive speaker, he drew better houses in Christchurch than professional lecturers. When his official position prevented him standing for the Council, he was nominated for Seadown, simply to enable the electors to hear him make a speech.

Having resigned from Parliament (1860), Ollivier in 1861 inaugurated the agitation to secure local government for Christchurch. A petition was presented to the provincial government in Dec and received a favourable reply. In Feb 1862 the electors chose their Council and next month the Council elected its mayor. When Hall retired from the chairmanship of the City Council (1863) Ollivier was elected for the next term (1863-64). Noting the waning popularity of Moorhouse, he tried in 1863 to secure a new Superintendent who would represent a compromise between the FitzGerald and Moorhouse parties. He nominated Bealey, who was elected unopposed. At this general election Ollivier was returned for Christchurch City, which he represented until 1866. He frequently acted as chairman of committees, and occasionally as speaker. In 1865 (when Bowen retired) he was elected speaker (1865-66). During 1865 he was for a short period deputy-superintendent. At the dissolution Ollivier retired from politics to become provincial auditor of road board accounts. In Dec 1881 he was appointed resident magistrate, and for eight years he held that office at Lyttelton, Kaiapoi, Christchurch, and Ashburton. He was a member of the Canterbury land board (1884-88).

On resigning from the bench (1889), though now approaching 80 years of age, he made two efforts to re-enter Parliament. In 1889 he contested Lincoln against Alfred Saunders. He was a strong advocate of protection. Holding the views he did on politics, he declined to organise the election or take any steps beyond stating his views to the electors. Saunders won by 676 to 320. A few months later he contested Christchurch North, but was defeated by E. W. Humphreys.

Ollivier was a man of fine public spirit, quite disinterested. At a public presentation in 1887 Sir John Hall read a letter written to Ollivier by a high official in England on the eve of his sailing for New Zealand in which he said: 'Of all the men whom I have ever encountered, you appear to me always taking the side of justice, mercy, and good order, opposing every measure of a contrary tendency; whilst the moderation and soundness of your views, and the honesty of purpose with which they have been invariably advocated, never failed to carry with them the sympathy and respect of their political opponents.' Ollivier died on 31 Jul 1893.

Canterbury P.C. Proc.; Cycl. N.Z., iii; Cox; Lyttelton Times, 1 Aug 1893; The Press, 17 May 1860 (p). Portrait: Parliament House.

Reference: Volume 2, page 70

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ONSLOW, SIR WILLIAM HILLIER, EARL OF (1853-1911) was the only son of George Augustus Cranley Onslow. He succeeded his great uncle as fourth earl in 1870. Born at Bletsoe, he was educated at Eton and was a lord-in-waiting to Queen Victoria (1880-85 and 1886-87). Soon after vacating this position he was appointed parliamentary Under-secretary for the Colonies, representing the Colonial Office in the House of Lords; and in 1888 Secretary to the Board of Trade. He was a vice-president of the first Colonial Conference in 1887. He was created K.C.M.G. in 1888.

In May 1889 Onslow assumed office as Governor of New Zealand, and soon afterwards was promoted G.C.M.G. He was a successful governor, business-like and straightforward in his administration, frank in character and fond of outdoor activities. He took a great interest in acclimatisation, and used his influence to get reserves set aside as bird sanctuaries. In political matters Onslow was not so happy. When the Atkinson Government was defeated at the polls (Dec 1890) it recommended the Governor to approve several appointments to the Legislative Council. Onslow refused to make more than six and that only on the assurance that they were needed to strengthen the chamber and not to reward party services. The opposition, led by Ballance, protested to the Governor against the appointments as being unconstitutional. Onslow replied that they had already been made, adding rather brusquely that he was responsible only to the Colonial Office. Lord Knutsford, in acknowledging the despatch, admitted that Onslow had acted in accordance with his instructions, but he 'did not desire to be understood to offer any opinion upon the action of your ministers in tendering such advice.' Onslow did a service to colonial governments in requesting the Colonial Office to put upon a proper footing the responsibility of governor and ministers in regard to the exercise of the prerogative of mercy. In a despatch dated 7 Feb 1891 he stated that the cabinet (in the case of Mahi Kai) had asserted its right to advise the governor upon this as upon all other matters. Onslow did not object to this claim. He accepted the Government's advice, but asked that the matter should be made clear in the Royal Instructions. All the other colonies agreed with the New Zealand view, and it was regularised accordingly. Onslow took a considerable interest in the Maori people, who were much flattered by his action in giving his second son the name 'Huia' and presenting him for adoption to the Ngati-Huia tribe.

Onslow resigned at the end of 1891. That he was not popular was due mainly to his personal exclusiveness and his prejudice against Wellington from the fact that his son had suffered a critical attack of typhoid fever there. Before leaving on 24 Feb 1892 he was asked by his advisers to appoint a batch of new members to the Legislative Council, where an overwhelming majority was obstructing the Liberal party's legislation. Onslow refused to sanction the appointments, and was said to have left a letter for his successor advising him to the same course. In view of the reasoned decision of Knutsford on the previous incident, Onslow would appear not to have been justified either in withholding his assent or in passing the decision on to a successor who knew nothing of the circumstances. In 1895 he became Parliamentary Under-secretary for India, and he remained at the India Office till 1900. In 1903 he was president of the Board of Agriculture and was made a Privy Councillor. He was chairman of committees of the House of Lords from 1905-11, retiring on account of ill-health. He died on 23 Oct 1911.

Onslow married (1875) the Hon Florence Coulston, daughter of Lord Gardner.

D.N.B.; App. H.R., 1891-92; Burke; Keith; Gisborne (p); Reeves; Hight and Bamford; The Times, 24 Oct 1911.

Reference: Volume 2, page 71

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ORBELL, MACLEOD CLEMENT (1838-1914) was a son of John Orbell (1800-79) and came to Otago with his parents in the Mariner (1849). (John Orbell settled at Waikouaiti. A good farmer, he was conservative and retiring in disposition, a great reader and did duty as a justice of the peace. He died on 13 Jan 1879.) Macleod was brought up on his father's farm, and afterwards had land himself in the district, including J. R. Jones's Matanaka property, which he took on lease in 1871. He had also a lease in south Canterbury. He was the first mayor of West Hawksbury (1866-68); represented Waikouaiti in the Otago Provincial Council (1866-67) and was a member of the executive. In 1891 he went to live at Geraldine, Canterbury. He published his reminiscences in 1909 and died on 10 Mar 1914. Orbell married a daughter of Colonel Bamford, of the 73rd Regiment.

Parltry Record; Otago P.C. Proc.; Orbell, op. cit.; Christie; Acland; Hocken, Otago; Bidwill; Otago Daily Times, 15 Jun 1891, 23 Mar 1914.

Reference: Volume 2, page 71

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ORMISTON, WILLIAM (1824-74) was born in Glasgow, and claimed descent from Gospatric, first sheriff of Roxburghshire (1100 A.D.), and from Sir James Ormiston, who was attainted for the murder of Darnley. Ormiston received a good education in Glasgow, and went into business in that town. In 1859, leaving his family in Cornwall, he sailed for New Zealand in the Swordfish, which stranded on Hobson Point the day of her arrival in Auckland (11 Jul). A week later Ormiston sailed in the cutter Clyde for Whangarei with the intention of taking up land. He eventually took a section on the Mangapai river. There he was joined by his wife and family, who arrived by the Ida Zeigler (1861), but during the Hauhau rising moved to Auckland. Ormiston was greatly interested in the Maori people, became well acquainted with their language and customs, and championed their rights in later years with some success. He was instrumental in having three schools started in his district. He was chairman of the Mangapai road board, a member of the school and church committees, and acted in an honorary capacity as medical adviser of both Maori and pakeha. He dressed a large quantity of flax and ground local wheat into flour in small mills of his own.

Taking a great interest in politics, Ormiston at an early date condemned the weakness of the provincial system and advocated constitutional changes. He was keenly interested in the preservation of the bush and wrote to the press from 1868 onwards drawing attention to the destruction of forest for purposes of export since 1853. In 1869 he assisted in the election of Gillies as Superintendent and in 1873-74 he represented Mangapai in the Provincial Council. Ormiston was for some years a close friend of Busby (q.v.) and assisted him in presenting his case for parliamentary consideration. He died on 14 Dec 1874 of erysipelas contracted while attending a native chief.

Auckland P.C. Proc.; information from E. N. Ormiston; papers in Auckland Public Library.

Reference: Volume 2, page 72

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ORMOND, JOHN DAVIES (1832-1917) was born at Wallingford, Berkshire, the son of Captain F. F. Ormond, R.N. Educated at Plymouth, he came to New Zealand at the age of 16 in the Ralph Bernal with E. J. Eyre (lieutenant-governor of New Munster), who became his brother-in-law.

Appointed private secretary to the lieutenant-governor and clerk to the executive (5 Dec 1849), he resigned in 1852 to take up land at Waipukurau, Hawkes Bay, when there were only about a score of settlers in that part of Wellington province. He was one of a group who some time later leased and purchased the Heretaunga plains. Ormond was a strong advocate of separation from Wellington, and when this was effected he was elected to the Provincial Council of Hawkes Bay, in which he sat continuously until the abolition (for Waipukurau 1859-61; Porangahau 1862-75; Hastings 1875-76). He was speaker (1859-62); provincial treasurer and a member of the executive (1861-67); and acted in 1863, 1865, 1868 and 1869 as deputy for the Superintendent (McLean), whose alter ego he became in both the provincial and the Colonial sphere.

When McLean resigned the superintendency (1869) to accept a portfolio, Ormond was elected as his successor and he retained that office until the abolition. Following McLean, too, he acted as Agent for the General Government on the East Coast in the later days of the Maori war, directing the operations against Te Kooti with considerable freedom and authority. He was present at the engagement at Omarunui (1866). In Parliament he represented Clive (1861-81) and Napier (1884-90). In 1871 he joined the Fox ministry as Minister of Public Works. He took the same portfolio under Waterhouse, but relinquished it in a few weeks (Oct 1872). In the Atkinson ministry of 1876 he was Secretary for Lands and Immigration, and after the reconstruction had charge of the Post Office and Public Works, retiring from the ministry in Oct 1877. In 1879 W. A. Murray tried to induce him to form a Conservative party.

Called to the Legislative Council in 1891, he remained a member of that body until his death (on 6 Oct 1917). Gisborne appraises Ormond as a man of great mental power, cool, observant, cautious and resolute; a deep thinker but lacking in sympathy. He was indifferent to office and dropped out at the first opportunity to devote himself to the affairs of his own district. On behalf of the General Government he arranged the immigration of Scandinavians, and personally settled them in the Seventy Mile Bush. He obtained Sir John Coode's report on Napier harbour, was on the harbour board from the first (1875) and chairman in 1888; was chairman of the education board, the hospital board and the Hawkes Bay county council and the Hawkes Bay rivers board; one of the founders of the Napier High Schools (and chairman of the board), a promoter of the A. and P. society (and president in 1866).

Ormond had properties at Wallingford, Karamu, Woodville and Mahia, and bred the best strains of draught horses, Lincoln and Border Leicester sheep and poultry. He had also a fine thoroughbred racing stud, and won most of the classic races in New Zealand with horses bred by himself. Ormond married (1859) Miss Richardson.

Hawkes Bay P.C. Proc. and Gaz.; Cycl. N.Z., i (p); vi (p); N.Z.P.D., 8 Oct 1917; Gisborne (p); Saunders; Reeves; N.Z. Spectator, 21 Feb 1852; Saturday Advertiser, 21 Aug 1882; Daily Telegraph (Napier), 16 Oct 1925; N.Z. Graphic, 16 Sep 1893 (p); Hawkes Bay Herald, 8 Oct 1917. Portrait: Parliament House.

Reference: Volume 2, page 71

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TE WHITI ORONGOMAI (1831-1907), son of Honi Kakahi, a Ngati-Awa chief, and Rangi Kawau, a daughter of Te Whetu, of Taranaki, was born at Ngamotu after the battle of Pukerangiora (1831). He was descended from Takarangi and Raumahora, through whose marriage peace was made at the siege of Whakarewa. His grandfather, Te Whiti, was the brother of Rerewha-i-te-Rangi, the father of Te Puni (q.v.). Te Whiti married Whakairi, and their son, Tohu Kakahi, and his wife Rangi-Kawau, were the parents of Te Whiti Orongomai. Rerewha was killed at Rewarewa pa (about 1805-10).

Te Whiti's hapu was Patukai, of Taranaki. Not a chief of high rank, he was brought up at Warea and there at the mission school learned his Scriptures very thoroughly under Riemenschneider (q.v.). On being baptised he took the name of 'Erueti.' In early manhood Te Whiti operated a flourmill at Warea, and it is said that he lost a finger at his work. At the wreck of the Lord Worsley at Te Namu in 1862 he assisted Arama Karaka and Wi Kingi Matakatea to protect the passengers from hostile natives in the neighbourhood. It is questionable whether Te Whiti ever fought against the British. Cowan states that he was at Sentry Hill and at Nukumaru (Jan 1865). He denied in later life that he had done so, but Tohu and others (including Bryce) declared that he took part in the fighting in the early sixties, bearing a tokotoko instead of a gun. Rusden declared (Bryce v. Rusden) that Te Whiti lived on the coast a few miles from Parihaka before 1865 and that the troops several times burned his home; that he then went inland and lived from 1866 at Parihaka, and that neither he nor Tohu (nor any of their people) took any part in the rising. In 1865 he refused to take arms against the Government and in 1868, though he appeared to sympathise with the King movement, he used his influence to prevent his people from fighting. Even some of Ngati-Ruanui remained peacefully with him at Parihaka during Titokowaru's campaign. Parris (19 Jul 1869) said that if Te Whiti had only given the word his people would have taken the field at once, but for a long time he had given substantial proofs of a very different line of action. He was strongly Kingite and his influence was quite equal to that of Tawhiao, who frequently sought his advice. At Parihaka, as in Waikato, there was the same deep-rooted desire for self-government, which was impracticable in the ordinary course of law. For several years Tawhiao was guided by the advice of Te Whiti, but eventually he felt resentment at the pretensions of the prophet, who was apt to identify himself with Jehovah. Wi Kingi te Rangitake frequented Parihaka a good deal, and also Titokowaru after emerging from hiding. Te Whiti was already formulating a doctrine of his own, a vague mystical religion based upon the Scriptures and counselling passive resistance to the pakeha. He gave hospitality to fugitives from Titokowaru's force and invited the disaffected tribes to attend his meetings at Parihaka and to give up fighting, since there would come a Day of Reckoning when the whites would all depart from New Zealand and leave it to the natives. For this occasion a fund was subscribed for many years. Te Whiti at this time was full of superstition and believed in the supernatural. On the 18th of every month the natives visited Parihaka (18 Jun being the red-letter day of the year). Te Whiti at this time adopted the title 'Te Whiti Orongomai.' His brother-in-law Tohu (q.v.) was his junior coadjutor and under their influence the natives were encouraged in sobriety, industry and orderly habits. Parihaka became almost a republic within the state.

The sincerity and patriotism of Te Whiti are generally admitted, though the passive methods adopted for retarding settlement caused much ill-feeling amongst a pakeha population which was clamouring to settle the agricultural lands of south Taranaki. Te Whiti encouraged the belief amongst his followers that the confiscations of the sixties had been reversed, or at any rate abandoned, and that the intrusion of the pakeha on the Waimate Plains ought to be resisted. Like other Maori leaders of his time, he was convinced that the salvation of the race could only come from isolation and that all intercourse with the pakeha should be discouraged. When the surveys were proceeded with in the period 1879-81 Te Whiti countenanced more active objection. Parties of young men ploughed up land in the occupation of Europeans, and later interfered with the surveyors and the roadmakers by erecting fences across the roads and removing survey pegs. His object in directing these activities was to draw the attention of the Government to the question of confiscations, which had left certain tribes quite landless. He claimed all the land between Waingongoro and Stoney Creek. As the tension increased between settlers and Maori the Armed Constabulary were strengthened and redoubts were erected near every settlement in Taranaki-precautions which in themselves were liable to become offensive. Party after party of passive resisters was arrested and imprisoned. Titokowaru (q.v.) and Te Whetu were two of the most aggressive. In May 1881 156 of Te Whiti's followers were in gaol, 161 having been released in the previous month. The Native Minister (John Bryce) who was a frontier-settler with experience in the earlier wars, left the Hall Ministry as a protest against its supine treatment of the native question. He rejoined the ministry in Oct 1881 when it agreed to have a settlement, and in the following month, after giving Te Whiti due warning, a force of 1,600 Armed Constabulary and volunteers (under Lieut-colonel Roberts) accompanied by two ministers (Bryce and Atkinson) advanced upon Parihaka. On the morning of 5 Nov the pa was entered and Te Whiti, Tohu and a number of their followers were arrested without the slightest resistance. Hiroki (a murderer who had sought sanctuary at Parihaka and to try whom Te Whiti had invited the Supreme Court to go to Parihaka) also gave himself up. The two leaders were committed for trial at New Plymouth, but instead of being tried were held as ordinary prisoners at the Governor's pleasure and conducted all over the South Island as honoured guests. They were eventually released in 1883 and returned to their home.

Te Whiti, a man of keen intellectual powers, was deeply interested in everything that he saw during this journey. While he was absent his wife, Hukurangi (who was of distinguished Taranaki blood and a sister of Tohu's wife) died. It seemed at first that Te Whiti's mana had suffered by his imprisonment, but within a year or two it was as great and as far-reaching as ever. Followers all over New Zealand (and even in the Chatham Islands) contributed regularly to his funds and held aloof from all traffic in land or rents. The Te Kau-ma-Rua of Titokowaru's campaign was adopted for the more peaceful purposes of Te Whiti-ism, and the obstructive doctrine of passive resistance occasionally (as in the arrest of Hursthouse, q.v.) and other incidents took a definitely active turn. Titokowaru himself, on emerging from his sanctuary on the Waitara river, assisted Te Whetu in the field work of Te Whiti-ism. In 1886 Te Whiti was again under detention in Wellington, with Titokowaru. He was imprisoned for three months and fined £100 for forcible entry on lands that he claimed as his own by ancestral right. In the early nineties a disagreement between him and Tohu regarding the disposal of the Day of Reckoning Fund caused an estrangement which lasted for the remainder of their lives. Henceforward they were leaders of rival factions in the village (each endeavouring to outdo the other in the construction of roads and the erection of modern houses) and of rival followings throughout the western part of the North Island. Both had adherents in every village on the Whanganui river, all over Taranaki and down the coast to Wellington. There was no further resistance to pakeha settlement.

Te Whiti died at Parihaka on 18 Nov 1907, a few months after the death of Tohu. He was unquestionably a man of high principle, plain living, humble and gentle in dealing with his own people, by whom he was held in deep respect. J. P. Ward in Wanderings with the Maori Prophets says that he was about 5ft 10in in height, broad and strongly built, with an active, nervous temperament. His general appearance was prepossessing. He had a high narrow forehead, small piercing eyes, a square, firm handsome face. He spoke logically, and showed a keen and intelligent interest in everything he saw. Eloquent, subtle, unquestionably patriotic, he exercised a sway which was for the most part beneficial. Peace, industry and sobriety he enjoined upon his people. It was to the economic claims of the advancing pakeha settler that his teaching was obnoxious.

App. H.R.; Gisborne; Polyn. Jour., vol. 17, 188; S. P. Smith, Taranaki; J. P. Ward, op. cit. (p); Stout in Melbourne Review, viii, 164-85; NZ Herald, 18 Jun 1879; NZ Times, 19, 20, 23 Nov 1907; Taranaki Herald, 19, 28 Nov 1907, 17, 20 Mar 1926.

Reference: Volume 2, page 253

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OSBORNE-GIBBES, SIR EDWARD (1850-1931), the third baronet, son of Sir Samuel (q.v.), was born at Colchester, England, christened in Sydney and educated in Auckland, being a pupil of St John's College under the Rev S Blackburne. In 1871 he joined the government service as a clerk in the Public Works department; was transferred to immigration and in 1877 joined the staff of the new department of Education, in which he rose to chief clerk and eventually to secretary (1905-16). He married in 1879 Sara (d. 9 Jul 1931), daughter of Captain John Mitchell, of the New Zealand Militia. Sir Edward died on 29 Sep 1931, being succeeded by his son Philip Arthur (b. 1884).

Who's Who N.Z., 1908, 1924; Butchers (p).

OSBORNE-GIBBES, SIR SAMUEL (1803-74) the second baronet, succeeded his grandfather, the first baronet, in 1815. He served as a page to George IV, entered the Royal Military College at Sandhurst, and received his commission in the 96th Regiment. He was aide-de-camp to the governor of Nova Scotia, but shortly retired to manage his estate in the West Indies.

Sir Samuel came to New Zealand in the early fifties and settled at Whangarei, where his fine personal qualities gave him a leading place amongst the settlers. In 1855 he was called to the Legislative Council, in which he sat until 1863 when he resigned. He died on 13 Nov 1874. Sir Samuel married, first (1825) Margaret, daughter of Henry Moore, of Cremorgan, Queens county, Ireland; and second (1848) Anne, daughter of Richard Penny, of Dorsetshire.

N.Z.P.D., 1855-63; N.Z. Herald, 25 Nov 1874.

Reference: Volume 2, page 72

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OTTERSON, FRANCIS (1797-1854) was born at Magherafelt, County Londonderry. In the thirties he went to London, and in 1840 he married Jane, daughter of Thomas Heveningham (Wolverhampton). Otterson came to Nelson in the Lord Auckland (1842). He was member of the Provincial Council for Waimea East (1853-54), and died 19 Oct 1854.

His son, HENRY OTTERSON (1846-1929), was born in Nelson and educated at the Catholic school there and at Nelson College (1856-63). In 1870 he was appointed committee clerk to the House of Representatives; in 1872 reader; in 1875 second clerk assistant; in 1889 clerk assistant; and in 1898 clerk. He published in 1911 notes on proceedings in committee. (C.M.G. 1913; retired 1915.) Otterson married (1875) Octavia, daughter of H. H. Turton. He died on 6 Aug 1929.

Parlty Record; Nelson Coll. Reg.; Cycl. NZ. i (p); Who's Who N.Z., 1924.

Reference: Volume 2, page 73

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OUTHWAITE, THOMAS (1805-79) was born in Westmoreland. He was practising as a solicitor in Paris in 1841 when he received his appointment in New Zealand, to which he proceeded in the Tyne with Martin and Swainson (q.v.). He was registrar of the Supreme Court at Auckland and sheriff during the early years of British rule, and had exciting experiences with natives when Maori cases were being heard. In 1843, with Martin and St Hill, he walked overland from Wellington to Auckland. When he retired (1869) Arney paid a tribute to his extraordinary firmness, patience, discretion and self-command. Outhwaite was very fond of music, and was a founder of the Auckland Philharmonic Society and of the Choral Society, acting as conductor to these and church choirs. He died on 14 Jul 1879.

Cycl. N.Z., ii (p); N.Z. Herald, 21 Jul 1879.

Reference: Volume 2, page 73

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OWEN, SIR RICHARD (1804-92) was born at Lancaster. He was apprenticed to a surgeon and apothecary and studied medicine at Edinburgh University and St Bartholomew's Hospital. The eminent surgeon John Abernethy advised him to accept the position of assistant conservator in the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. There he made catalogues of the Hunterian collection; in 1836 he was appointed Hunterian professor and in 1849 conservator. He was appointed in 1856 superintendent of the natural history department of the British Museum, and his scheme of a national museum of natural history resulted in the removal of the collections to South Kensington. He retired in 1884 (K.C.B.).

In 1839 a fragment of fossil bone which had been brought from New Zealand by Dr James Rule (q.v.) was offered to Owen, who could not afford to pay for it out of his own pocket. He studied the fragment, however, and declared definitely that it was part of the skeleton of a wingless bird as large as the full-sized male ostrich. Further research established the existence of the moa (dinornis), upon which the reputation of Owen largely rests. In the proceedings of the Zoological Society for 1840 he described the bone, and the discovery was dealt with later in Dinornis, pts. 1-8 (1854-56) and Memoirs on the Extinct Wingless Birds of New Zealand (1879). Owen made important contributions to many other branches of comparative anatomy and zoology. His life was written by his grandson, the Rev R. O. Owen, in 1894.

D.N.B.; N.Z. Jour. of Science, Sep 1885; Buick, Dinornis; Owen, op. cit.

Reference: Volume 2, page 74

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