Smith, Hay, Farmer and Threshing Machine Proprietor, Middle Island Road, Clarkville, Kaiapoi Island. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. Mr. Smith was born in 1842 at Cruden, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and was educated at the Errol schools in the same place. After leaving school, he was apprenticed to the butchering trade and worked for Mr. Robert Sutherland, of Peterhead, Scotland, remaining with him for about three years. He then emigrated to New Zealand in the ship “Metropolis,” which arrived at Lyttelton in January, 1862. On his arrival he proceeded with his brother to Kaiapoi and engaged with Mr. Stevenson, farmer, of Flaxton. He then worked for Messrs. Belcher and Fairweather, of Kaiapoi, for about four years, when he rented some church property, near Kaiapoi, and engaged in contracts of various kinds for several years, in conjunction with his brother Charles. In the year 1877, he rented his present property and subsequently purchased it; then, successively, bought the farms of Messrs. Laurie, Whitmere, Taylor, Coutts, and Walls. His property contains 300 acres freehold, of good arable land, and page 443 is subdivided into twelve paddocks. Mixed farming is carried on, and there are sheep, cattle and horses. The improvements are very substantial and complete, there being a dwelling of nine rooms, blacksmith's shop with a smith constantly employed, and out-buildings, one of which has about 3400 square feet of flooring and contains a large stock of farming implements. There is a first-class portable engine used for crushing horse and pig feed, also one of Avelling and Porter's compound traction engines for threshing and chaff-cutting, and one of Andrew and Beaven's clover shellers, chaff-cutters, and straw balers. Mr. Smith also owns Mr. Coutts' farm, Coutts' Island, containing 150 acres and Mr. Joseph Todd's farm of seventy-five acres. He has been on the road board several years, has been a member of the school committee, and is an active member of the Church of England.