Sun Fire Office . The agency of this, the oldest established fire office in the British Empire, was opened in Invercargill in 1891, and Messrs H. L. Tapley and Co. were appointed agents for Southland in January, 1902.

The New Zealand Fire And Marine Insurance Company: Southland Agency, Spey Street, Invercargill; Mr. E. B. Pilcher, manager. The agency was established at Invercargill in 1862, Mr. William Russell, solicitor, being the first representative of the company. Since then numerous changes have taken place in the agency staff. Full information respecting the New Zealand Insurance Company appears in the Auckland volume of this work.

Mr. E. B. Pilcher , Manager of the Invercargill branch of the New Zealand Insurance Company, was born in Wellington, New Zealand, in 1862. His father, Mr. H. J. Pilcher, and other relatives rank amongst the earliest pioneers of the Wellington settlement. The subject of this notice was educated at Wellington College, and at the age of fifteen years joined the company in which he is still serving, working his way up through the different grades to the position of accountant. In 1887, he was transferred to Oamaru as branch manager, and five years later was removed in a similar capacity to the more extensive field of Southland. During his twenty-seven years' service in the institution, Mr. Pilcher has been associated at various times with the New Zealand Land Mortgage Company, the Wellington Building Society, and the New Zealand Accident Company, and was a promoter of the first building society in Invercargill, which was worked under the Starr-Bowkett system. He is an old member of the American Order of Oddfellows, and takes a keen interest in musical societies. Mr. Pilcher is an enthusiast in amateur photography, and some reproductions of his work appear in this volume.

Mr. E. B. Pilcher.

The South British Fire And Marine Insurance Company Of New Zealand: Southland Branch, Esk Street, Invercargill; Head office, Auckland. The Company's well-known premises in Invercargill were erected in 1883, and consist of a two-storey brick building. A portion of the ground floor is occupied by the local manager and his staff, and the rest is occupied by Messrs J. E. Watson and Co., Ltd., merchants, who act as agents for the company in Southland. The first floor of the building is let for offices and a music room.

Mr. Ernest Edward Hammond , Manager of the Southland Branch of the South British Insurance Company, was born at Auckland, in 1866. He was educated at the Auckland College and Grammar School, and joined the Staff of the South British Insurance Company, in whose service he has had experience in different parts of the colony.

South British Insurance Company's Office, Esk Street.

Mr. E. E. Hammond.

The Australian Mutual Provident Society , Invercargill. The Southland district agency of this popular and successful institution was established in 1884, and Mr. G. G. Burnes was appointed District Secretary in 1887.