was called to the bar at Lincoln's Inn in 1836. In 1838 he resigned his fellowship, and in 1841 he was appointed Chief Justice of New Zealand, and went to that colony in company with the newly appointed Attorney-General, Mr. Swainson. During his long career in the colony Sir William Martin had great experience of the Maoris, and on several occasions pleaded in public on their behalf. In 1847 he joined with Bishop Selwyn in protesting against the instructions of the Colonial Office regarding the treatment of the Maori lands, and published a pamphlet, "England and the New Zealanders." Subsequently, in 1861, he issued another pamphlet upon the Waitara question, entering into controversy with Mr. Richmond, the native minister, upon the subject. Once more, in 1863, he protested against the New Zealand Settlements Act, which embodied a policy of confiscation, and throughout his public career may be said generally to have contended for the validity of the Treaty of Waitangi. Sir William Martin, who was knighted in 1860, and received the honorary degree of D.C.L. from the University of Oxford in July 1858, retired on a pension, and died at Torquay, on Nov. 18th, 1880. He was the intimate friend of Bishops Selwyn and Patteson, and assisted the former in drawing up the New Zealand Church Constitution. Sir William married in 1841 Mary, daughter of the Rev. W. Parker, rector of St. Ethelburga, Bishopsgate, London, and Prebendary of St. Paul's. Sir William Martin was one of the most skilled linguists of his day, and after his return to England issued a work entitled "Inquiries concerning the Structure of the Semitic Languages," which was published in two parts in 1876 and 1878.
Mason, Clayton Turner, M.I.C.E., J.P., son of the late Charles Adnam Mason, of Great Malvern, Worcester, and Farrington, Hereford, was born at Farrington on May 25th, 1847, and was educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham. After considerable experience of engineering work in Wales and America, Mr. Mason went to Fiji, and from 1874 to 1877 was engaged in the railway branch of the Department of Public Works, New South Wales. In 1877 he was appointed resident engineer of the Geraldton and Northampton Railway, Western Australia, and superintended the construction of the Point Moore Lighthouse, and other public works in the Victoria district. He was afterwards resident engineer for four years of the Eastern Railway in the same colony; Acting Commissioner of Railways on two occasions during 1882 and 1883, and was provisionally appointed in 1884 Director of Public Works and Commissioner of Railways, with a seat in the Executive and Legislative Councils. In June 1885, on the arrival of the Hon. J. Wright, he retired from the Executive and Legislative Councils, and was appointed General Manager and Maintenance Engineer of the Western Australian Railways. In Jan. 1890, in consequence of the resignation of Mr. Wright, he was appointed Commissioner of Railways and a member of the Executive Council, which position he held till the introduction of responsible government early in 1891, and from that time till June 1st in the same year he continued to discharge the duties of General Manager of Railways and Engineer of Existing Lines, when, in consequence of departmental changes, he was appointed Collector of Customs for the colony. Mr. Mason married in 1879 Julia, daughter of the late Captain Daniel Scott, of Fremantle.
Matheson, John, sometime general manager of the Bank of Victoria, Melbourne, was born in Sutherlandshire, Scotland, in 1821; was educated at the local schools, and made his first start in life at the early age of fourteen, when he was invited to join his uncles in Tasmania, then Van Diemen's Land. The youthful emigrant sailed from Cromarty to London in a fishing smack, and only reached Hobart Town after a tedious voyage of several months. He was employed in a merchant's office until 1838, and when the Union Bank of Australia opened a branch at Hobart Town Mr. Matheson joined the staff. He served the Bank both in Hobart Town and Launceston until he was promoted to be accountant, and in 1845 was appointed manager at Geelong, in the colony of Victoria. In 1851 he was appointed chief manager of the Union Bank in Australia. In Jan. 1853 he resigned his connection with his old bank, having accepted the general managership of the
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