Mr. William Holley was born in 1827 in Herefordshire, England, and followed a farming life in his native place. He left England for Australia, and arrived in Melbourne when it was only a small place, and only a few of the streets formed; he himself helping afterwards to form some of the ret. The roads were then very bad. Liardet's coach, running between Melbourne and Sandridge, had to be drawn by six horses, which was before Cobb and Co.'s coaching days. Water was very scarce in Melbourne at that time, and, except what was saved from the roofs of houses, had to be carted at ten shillings a load from the rive Yarra, in a very dirty state. The bushrangers were numerous in those days, and were generally convicts from Tasmania and Botany Bay, whence they were attracted by the Victoria gold diggings. These men ventured sometimes into Melbourne and stuck people up in the streets. While Mr. Holley was working one day at the top of Londsdale street, a party of diggers, coming in with their gold, were met, stuck up and robbed by the bushrangers. Draught horses were then few in number, and most of the carting from Melbourne to the diggings had to be done by bullock teams. To Castlemaine, eighty miles, the cost of cartage was £80 per ton; to Bendigo, 100 miles, £100 per ton; to the Ovens, 200 miles, £200 per ton; and so on in proportion. For considerable time Mr. Holley unsuccessfully followed the pursuit of gold digging, and left a claim in Eaglehawk, Bendigo, where his successor took out a fortune while he went to try his luck at the McIvor diggings, about seventy miles north of Melbourne. He was there when the great escort robbery took place by the bushrangers, who got away with over eight hundred weight of gold, and none of them were ever captured. Mr. Holley afterwards went to the Ovens diggings, where he and his mate obtained a contract from the Government to build stables and other buildings; and having saved a few hundred pounds he bought two teams of horses and returned to Melbourne which had greatly grown in importance. He then conducted a carrying business for a time, and afterwards engaged in the export of horses from Melbourne and Tasmania to Dunedin and Inveroargill, where the “rush” to the gold diggings had just set in. On arriving at Invercargill with a large shipment of horses, he found that traffic to the Lake diggins had had its headquarters diverted to Dunedin, and that spoiled the Invarcargill market. He accordingly took the horses overland to Otago, sold some at Dunedin, some at Oamaru, and took the rest to Christchurch, where he arrived in 1863. It was then that Mr. Holley decided to make Canterbury his future home. For several years he carried on a large trade in cattle and horses at Christchurch and lived at Hagley Park, which he rented from the Provincial Government. About 1882 Mr. Holley settled at Leeston, where he carried on extensive farming operations until he retired some time ago in favour of his sons, who are enterprising farmers, flour millers and storekeepers. Mr. Holley was for many years a member of the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association, and a successful breeder and prize-taker in draught horses and other stock. He was a Justice of the Peace for some years, but owing to failing health, he resigned a few years ago. Mr. Holley was married, in 1854, and of a family of ten, five sons and two daughters are alive. Four of the sons trade as the firm of Holley Brothers, Leeston, and one is the Rev. Father Holley, of Wellington.

Mr. Robert Marshall, sometime of Longhend, Leeton, was born in Perth, Scotland, in 1823, and previous to his arrival in New Zealand, he managed several large estates in England, where he obtained a most intimate knowledge of farming. He landed in a Auckland about 1860 by the ship “Morning Star,” and arrived in Canterbury a year later. He was first employed as manager by the late Mr. John Milne, of Lincoln Road, with whom he remained two years. In 1865 he removed to Lakeside, when he purchased the farm on which he resided till his death. Mr Marshall, in addition to his farm, carried on an extensive business in cattle dealing and was well known as a judge of stock. He always took a leading part in the affairs of his district, and was a member of the Lakeside school committee for years, also an active member of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Marshall died in 1884, after about one year's illness, leaving a widow and a family of eight daughters and one son. He married in 1862, Miss Elizabeth Tod, of Wellington.

The late Mr. R. Marshall.

Mr. David McClure, sometime of Leeston, was born at Killinchy, County Down, Ireland, in 1811, and came to New Zealand in 1862 by the ship “Mystery,” accompanined by his wife and two children. At first he was employed by the late Mr. Hill, of Avonhead, with whom he remained eighteen months. He settled at Leeston about 1864, having previously purchased the farm on which Mr. Barker now resides. Mr. McClure died in 1891, and left a family of four. His wife had died in 1881.