Mr. Maurice Cohen, who occupied a seat on the Palmerston North Borough Council from 1887 to 1894 inclusive, was born in 1862 at Cooma, New South Wales. He was educated at Christ's College, Christchurch, and in 1878 entered mercantile life in the establishment of Mr. F. Cross, ironmonger, Christchurch. Three years later Mr. Cohen joined Messrs. J. Nathan and Co in Wellington, and soon became manager of the Palmerston North branch of their business. On the incorporation of the Manawatu Farmers' Co-operative Association, he was appointed managing director of the company, and when the society became merged in the United Farmers' Co-operative Association, he became manager of the branch at Palmerston North—the largest and most important establishment of the company. In musical circles Mr. Cohen is well known as a very fair violinist, and while in New South Wales was for many years connected with the Sydney Musical Union. In Wellington he belonged to the Orchestral Society, and he is the energetic conductor and one of the founders of the local Orchestral Society. In masonry he holds office as D.G.S.W. of the District Grand Lodge, E.C., and has been twice master of the United Manawatu Lodge, having also taken the Arch Purple Degree. In public matters Mr. Cohen was one of three gentleman who urged separation from Wanganui and the establishment of a hospital in Palmerston North: he has been vice-president of local cricket and football clubs, and now holds a similar position in the Manawatu Polo Club. In 1887 Mr. Cohen was married to a daughter of Mr. J. E. Nathan, of Wellington, and has one son.

Mr. Charles Henry Hill, who retired from the representation of No. 2 Ward on the Palmerston North Borough Council in 1896, after having served three-and-a-half years, was born in 1847 at Guernsey, in the Channel Islands, where he was educated. Arriving in Wellington per ship “Collaroon” in 1867, he remained in the Empire City, where he found employment as a professional gardener. In 1875 Mr. Hill settled in Palmerston North, and has since engaged in road contracts and in gardening. For fifteen years he lived in Main Street, opposite the gasworks, when his land was taken for railway purposes. He now lives in Ferguson Street, where he has a capital four-acre section. As a member of the Foresters' for twenty-six years he has passed most of the chairs, being attached to Court Manawatu. In 1870 Mr. Hill was married to a daughter of the late Mr. Montgomery, of Wellington, and has seven surviving children—four sons and three daughters.

Mr. John George Rush, who for nine years (1883–92) held a seat on the Palmerston North Borough Council, representing the ratepayers of Nos. 2 and 3 Wards successively, is a colonist of fifty-four years standing. A native of Essex, England, where he was born in 1827, Mr. Rush went to sea when ten years old with an uncle, who was a sea captain. In 1843 the family came out to Wellington in the schooner “Esther,” via Sydney, and settled in the Hutt Valley. During the Maori disturbances of 1845–6, the subject of this notice served in the Hutt Militia, subsequently being the recipient of the Imperial medal. For nearly forty years Mr. Rush was engaged in farming at the Taita, and in 1882 he retired from the more active duties of his calling and settled in Palmerston North, building a home in Broad Street. He was appointed to a commission as Justice of the Peace in 1892. Recently he has acquired six acres in Avenue Road, where he has a comfortable residence, which he has named “Aveley,” after his native village. For eight years Mr. Rush was a member of the Palmerston North Licensing Committee, being chairman for the last three years of that period. He also served on the local school committee for three years. In 1847 Mr. Rush married his first wife, who died in 1886, leaving three sons and four daughters. In 1887 he married a daughter of Mr. E. Kusach, of Tipperary, Ireland.

Mr. J. G. Rush.

Mr. Albert Tingey, ex-councillor of the Borough of Palmerston North, whose career is more fully given under the Volunteer Fire Brigade, of which he is superintendent, was elected a member of the Council in 1893. Mr. Tingey, who sat as a member of the Reserves Committee, takes a lively interest in the affairs of the Corporation and in the advancement of the district in general, with which he has so long been connected.

The Palmerston North Licensing Committee for 1896 consists of Messrs. R. L. Stanford, S.M. (chairman), G. M. Snelson, R. S. Abraham, F. Pirani, M.H.R., S. Abrahams, F. Bryant, D. Buick, R. Edwards, and J. Stubbs; Mr. W. Matravers is the clerk. The district under the Committee's jurisdiction is co-terminus with the Palmerston North Electoral District.

The Aorangi Land Drainage Board, constituted in 1894, controls the middle and lower portions of the Aorangi district, its object being to drain a large swamp previously untouched. Loans amounting to £6245, under the Loans to Local Bodies Act, have been secured for the purposes of the Board. The members (1896) are:—the Hon. W. W. Johnston, Messrs. T. R. Hodder, J. M. Leigh, and W. Coombs, Mr. E. J. Armstrong, C.E., acting as secretary and engineer.

The Fitzherbert Road Board was constituted in 1889, when it was separated from the Manawatu Road District. The area under the Board's control is 53,450 acres, and the rateable property £308,104, on which a rate of 3/4d. in the £ is levied. Since 1889 about £9,500 has been borrowed for the construction of roads, of which there are about fifty-six miles. The members of the Board for 1896 are:—Dr. Charles Lemon (chairman), Capt. J. D. R. Hewitt, R.N., and Messrs. W. P. Kendall, S. Green, Wm. Coombs, and H. Andrewartha. The engineer and secretary is Mr. J. S. Bruce.

Dr. Charles Lemon, Chairman of the Fitzherbert Read Board, but better known as late Superintendent of the New Zealand Postal and Telegraph Service, received his education at the Technical College, Kensington—the only one of its kind then in England. He attributes his knowledge of electricity to the experience he gained whilst at this institution. Leaving England he came to New Zealand, and was appointed postmaster at Oamaru in 1863, was promoted to general manager of the telegraphs in 1867, and became superintendent of the Postal and Telegraph Department in 1881. He occupied this responsible position until 1894, when he retired after thirty years of splendid service. Dr. Lemon has a world-wide reputation as an authority on electrical telegraphs, and as far back as 1874 he introduced the system of duplex telegraphy, which resulted in a large saving to the Colony. He rendered valuable assistance to the scientific party which came to the Colony in connection with the transit of Venus, and had the degree of Doctor of Philosophy conferred upon him by the Hamilton University, U.S.A., in recognition of his services. Dr. Lemon is now settled upon his farm at Fitzherbert, enjoying well-earned repose after a life of valuable service to his adopted country.

The Manawatu Land Drainage Board, whose district is co-terminus with the Manawatu Road District—excluding the Aorangi No. 2 Native block on the west, which constitutes a separate district, and the Stoney Creek land on the east—was constituted in 1893. It was incorporated to construct and maintain the drains of the district. An approved scheme exists to construct the outlet drain to the Manawatu River and the connecting drains at a cost of £7600, which has been arranged under the Loans to Local Bodies Act. The members of the Board (1896) are:—Messrs. D. Buick (chairman), S. Sanson, W. Knight, P. Stevens, R. Matheson, L. R. Bryant, and H. T. Flyger; Mr. E. J. Armstrong, C.E., being the engineer, and Mr. W. Rutherfurd the secretary.

The Manawatu Road Board —established in 1872—is the local body which controls a district of about ninety-six square miles, situated in the angle formed by the junction of the Manawatu and Oroua Rivers, the northern boundary being the Foxton-New Plymouth Government Railway line. The borough of Palmerston North is bounded on three sides by the Manawatu Road District, in which there are 170 miles of formed and metalled roads. The Board has borrowed under the Loans to Local Bodies Act the sum of £10,206, which has been fully expended, the total rateable value of the district being £567,504. The members (1896) are:—Messrs. D. Buick (chairman), S. Sanson, W. Knight, W. Simpson, H. Bryant, S. W. Luxford, and D. L. Smith; Mr. G. L. R. Scott being the engineer, and Mr. W. Rutherfurd the secretary. The ward system prevails, the district being divided into seven wards, each of which is entitled to elect one member of the board to look after the interests of the ratepayers.

Mr. David Buick, J.P., Chairman of the Manawatu Road Board, was born at Karori, Wellington, in 1818 and is the son of the late Mr. William Buick, who arrived in the Colony, per ship “Arab,” in 1841. His parents removing to the Hutt in 1852, Mr. Buick received his education there. He worked on his father's farm at the Hutt till 1867, when he took possession, the place since being known as “Greenvale Farm.” Removing from the Hutt in 1885, Mr. Buick went to Palmerston North and purchased some 550 acres of first-class grazing land, situate about one-and-a-quarter miles from The Square. He has a fine stud flock of Romney Marsh sheep, and confines himself chiefly to breeding ewes. He has erected a substantial dwelling on the farm, and surrounded it with ornamental trees and shrubs. At all times Mr. Buick has been a prominent member in local bodies. Whilst residing at the Hutt he was selected as the first member for the Road Board, and also held the position of lieutenant in the Petone Navals during 1883 and 1884. He is chairman of the Manawatu Road Board and Drainage Board, which positions he has ably filled for some time past. Mr. Buick, having been requisitioned by a large number of constituents, contested the Palmerston seat in the House of Representatives at the general election, 1896, but was defeated after a gallant fight. Mr. Buick is an unattached mason, is president of the Caledonian Society, and of one of the local football clubs.

Mr. D. Buick.

The Sluggish River Drainage Board, which was established in 1894, governs the district embracing the lower portion of the watershed on the north and west of the Oroua River in the Manawatu County. Its object is to drain what was originally a large swamp, but which is now occupied for settlement purposes. The area was partly drained before the incorporation of the Board, whose duty is to complete and maintain the system of drainage, for which purpose a loan of £3080 has been obtained under the Loans to Local Bodies Act. The members of the Board (1896) are:—Messrs. C. Dunk (chairman), J. Beale, M. Morrison, F. G. G. Couper and R. H. Macmillan, Mr. E. J. Armstrong, C.E., being secretary and engineer.

Mr. Charles Dunk, J.P., Chairman of the Sluggish River Drainage Board, was born in 1849 at Horton Priory, Kent, and was educated at Woodchurch and at Mr. John Clark's Grove House Academy, Folkestone. Brought up to country life, he was on his father s farm till 1874, and, until leaving for Melbourne in 1882, farmed the same on has own account. Coming to Melbourne in 1882 by the “Liguria,” he crossed the Tasman Sea, and after a short tour in the Colony settled in the Manawatu district, purchaseing 1500 acres on the Foxton line (now known as Bainesse), after which the railway station is named. The farm carries about three sheep to the acre, besides cattle and horses. In public and social affairs Mr. Dunk takes great interest as captain of the Manawatu Mounted Rifles which he organized in 1891, and as a member of the committee of the local Agricultural and Pastoral Association. An unattached Mason, he was initiated in Prince Edwin Lodge, No. 25. E.C., one of the old Cinque Port Lodges at Hythe, Kent. In 1874 Mr. Dunk was married to a daughter of the late Mr. T. A. Davonport, of Boulogne-sur-mer, France, and has two daughters and a son.

Mr. Chas. Dunk.

Mr. Frederick George Gray Couper, one of the members of the Sluggish River Drainage Board, is a sheepfarmer who resides on his station “Knockinnow,” Rongotea, where he has 1621 acres, carrying 4200 sheep. Born in 1868 in Hawkes Bay, and educated at Christ's College, Christchurch, and at Wellington College, he was brought up to the business he now follows. Settling in the Manawatu district he purchased his estate— part of the Oroua Downs—in 1891, and it is now in fair cultivation. In public matters Mr. Couper acts as a trustee of the Rongotea Hall site, and as a member of the committee of the Rongotea Public Library. He was married in March, 1892, to a daughter of Mr. W. Lowes, auctioneer, of Masterton, and has a son and a daughter.

The Manawatu Mounted Rifles, which were formed in 1891, are supplied with Martini Hemi rifles. In addition to the annual Easter camp, they go under canvas for a week during the month of January. Colonel Newall's latest report, 1896, showed that there were fifty members in the company. The officers consist of Captain Dunk, Lieutenants D. Pringle and A. S. Aldrich.

Palmerston North Rifle Volunteers. This corps is under the command of Mr. J. E. Hall, and is in an efficient state.