It has been very generally known for some time past that Mr. Henry Reed, of 'Mount Pleasant,' one of our oldest colonists and leading Christian workers, has been in a very critical state of health, and that the news of his death might be expected at almost any moment. He has been suffering from a general failing of the vital powers, coupled with acute dyspepsia, which made every form of nourishment disagree with him, and caused at times intense agony. His medical attendant, Dr. Hardy, has been unremitting in his endeavours to soothe of relieve the pain, but did not conceal from the patient that human skill was of little avail, as from the inability of the stomach to receive nutriment the vital powers were simply becoming exhausted, and on several occasions within the last six weeks Mr. Reed has apparently been at death's door, but has rallied. He was perfectly resigned, indeed, looked forward to death as "being at rest," and shortly after nine o'clock yesterday morning the end came, and he passed away, being within a fortnight of his 74th birthday.

It is no easy task to give within the brief compass of a newspaper article a sketch of Mr. Reed's long and varied career since his arrival in this colony sixty years ago, for his has been the life of an earnest worker, of a man who did with all his might whatever his hand found to do; of a man who did not receive the grace of God till he had reached manhood, but who with unwearying zeal and energy, with the exercise of every talent, as well as of the wealth which God had blessed him, has since devoted his life to the service of his Master.

Mr. Reed was born at Doncaster in Yorkshire, England, in 1806, and after serving an apprenticeship in a merchant's counting-house in Hull, left to seek his fortune in the little colony of Tasmania in a vessel called the "Tiger," landing at Hobart Town in 1826. He had a letter of introduction to Mr. J. W. Gleadow, of Launceston, and, accompanied by a fellow-passenger, walked the 120 miles from the capital to present it. One afternoon Mr. Gleadow was rather startled by a tall young man, armed with a long duck gun, walking into his office, and introducing himself as Henry Reed, but this was the foundation of a lasting friendship. Mr. Gleadow found the young man employment in charge of a store, and Mr. Reed then steadily worked himself onwards till he was able to open business on his own account, and prospered beyond his most sanguine expectations.

He visited England in 1831, and repeated the visit several times during the next ten years, eventually retiring from business in 1846. He was at one period in partnership with the late Mr. Jennings, who however, only remained in the business a short time. His busines was that of a general merchant, and was carried on in the premises at the corner of Brisbane and Charles Streets, embracing the establishments at present occupied by Messrs. Park, Ferguson, and Vickery, and a yard in Cameron Street, where now stand the premises held by Mr. W. T. Bell, being used for the heavier lines of goods. In 1846 Mr. Reed retired from an active part in the business, which was taken up by his then chief clerk, the late Mr. John Crookes, and left for England with his wife and family in the "Lochnagar."

His wife died some twelve years after his arrival in England, and in 1864 his third daughter died. The second daughter married and is still resident in England, and Mr. Reed, some years after the loss of his first wife, married again. In 1873 he determined to return to Tasmania, and arrived with his family in Melbourne by the "Sobraon," came on to Launceston by the "Derwent" on the 20th December 1873, and received a very warm welcome from old friends and fellow-workers. He took up his residence at 'Mount Pleasant,' which he greatly beautified and added to by purchase, and during the seven years which have elapsed since then, Mr. Reed has been foremost in charitable, philanthropic, and missionary work, and his death has left a void behind that will, we fear, be long ere it is filled.

During the early years of his career here Mr. Reed had many narrow escapes, being on one occasion upset in Swan Bay, while coming up from Tamar Heads to the town in a boat alone and at night, and after floating about for five hours, reached the shore in an exhausted state. He was also nearly being the victim of the last murderer gibbetted in Tasmania, on the spot still called Gibbet Hill, near Perth.

When matters first prospered with him he joined in the amusements of those around him, played billiards and cards, and went in for owning and running racehorses, but to quote his own words, "there was an aching heart in the midst of prosperity, and with all that the world could do for me my soul was not satisfied." He states that it was when nearly shipwrecked on a voyage to England in the "Bombay" in 1831 that he "first realised there was a God," and though the good resolutions then formed were broken before the voyage ended, the torturing doubts came back with such force after his return to Tasmania that he determined at any sacrifice to serve God. He first sought salvation by good works only, and had a wretched time of it, even returning once to England, and then discovering he should have sought God where He had placed him.

He came back once more to Tasmania, and laboured and fasted, and prayed until his health became impaired, but at last found true salvation by faith, and after this his career became a remarkable one, and he was the means of converting many. He laboured amongst convicts and murderers, amongst the poor and afflicted, throwing into his new field of labour those remarkable energies which had characterised him in worldly affairs, travelling many miles to hold meetings, and giving up nights as well as days to the work.

Shortly after Batman discovered Port Phillip, Mr. Reed went over there, and laboured with Batman's men; was "corroboried" by the Yarra Yarra tribe of natives on the site of the city of Melbourne, and lived with them for a short time. He then returned to Launceston, and carried on his missionary work with unwearied zeal, broken only by occasional visits to England.

But even his absence from the colony merely opened up new fields of labour, and as an instance of his earnest zeal we may quote the testimony of the Rev. William Taylor, of California, whose visit to this colony will be remembered by many. In his book entitled "Christian Adventures in South Africa," Mr. Taylor mentions that in prosecuting one of his numerous voyages to Australia, Mr. Reed and his family stayed at Cape Town in the year 1840.

When the ship came to an anchor a Malay boatman offered to take them on shore for thirteen dollars. Mr. Reed thought the amount too much, but the man assuring him it was the customary charge, his services were accepted, and on landing he was paid. Next morning the boatman called on Mr. Reed at his lodgings and told him that on the previous day he had made a mistake. Mr. Reed supposing that the man was not satisfied and desired to extort more money, replied that there was no mistake about it: he had asked thirteen dollars and received that sum, and he would get no more. The boatman admitted all that, adding - "but I mean Dutch rix dollars, and you paid me three times as much as I asked, and I have brought your money back."

The same narration goes on to say: - "Owing to the illness of Mr. Reed's little daughter, Mary, whom finally he buried in Cape Town, he was detained there many weeks. It was a time of great distress to the Cape Town people, and Mr. Reed was providentially detained to minister the Word of Life to perishing hundreds who were dying with the small-pox. The disease, which was of the most virulent type, had been communicated to the town from a slaver which had been captured and brought into Table Bay with its living freight of wretched captives. It spread rapidly over the town, causing a panic which nearly suspended all kinds of business, except that of doctors, nurses, undertakers and grave-diggers. Money in payment of debts was refused until it had been dipped into vinegar and laid out to dry. The hospitals were crowded, and then the Municipal Government had a large building, two miles out of town, fitted up and filled with decaying, dying sufferers."

"Mr. Reed and his family were boarding with Mrs. Gunn, who kept a first-class boarding-house, which was well filled with Government officers and distinguished travellers. All who are acquainted with Mr. Reed's labours among all sorts of adventurers in Tasmania and Australia, know that he would not stop a day in any place without preaching Christ to the people, publicly or privately; so in Cape Town he at once went to work for his Master, but for a time, for prudential reasons, he avoided contact with the small-pox patients."

"Soon, however, he was waited on by two pious soldiers, who informed him that there were hundreds of men and women dying in the newly extemporised hospital beyond the town, and not a soul to speak a word of comfort to them, or tell them how to receive Jesus Christ as their Saviour. The soldiers begged Mr. Reed to become the volunteer chaplain to that hospital, who, upon a little reflection, responded "I will." When Mrs. Gunn's boarders heard of it, they had a meeting, and after discussing the subject, decided that Mr. Reed should not go, lest he might bring the contagion into the house, and hazard the lives of the whole of them, and that if he should persist in carrying out his purpose, he must remove from Mrs. Gunn's house."

"To all this Mr. Reed replied - "It will be a very great inconvenience for my family, with a sick child, to leave and go we know not wither, but I believe it is my duty to go and do what I can for the sick and dying. I will commit the whole matter to God, doing my duty, and leave all consequences with Him. So he went daily till the plague abated. He took them by tiers or sections as they lay, and spoke to them personally and collectively, and told them how by the power of the Holy Spirit, they should surrender their poor diseased bodies and souls to God."

" . . . God took care of His servant, and he heard nothing more about his having to change his quarters, but remained quietly at Mrs. Gunn's house, which was one of but very few houses in the city that entirely escaped the dreadful visitation."

During his residence in Great Britain and on the continent, from 1846 to 1873, Mr. Reed threw himself into missionary work of various kinds, which want of space prevents us from giving even a sketch of; and upon his return to the colony soon found ample scope for his energies, and in all his efforts he has found a true helpmate in his wife.

Mr. Reed preached frequently in the Wesleyan and Independent churches, and organised open air services and other meetings, but owing to a strong opinion entertained by him against the usual collections on Sundays, he withdrew from active connection with the Wesleyan Church, and commenced mission meetings amongst the poorer classes in the town. The work prospered and a large public house in Wellington Street was purchased and turned into Mission premises. In 1877 the Christian Mission Church was formed there, and recently Mr. Reed built alongside it the neat Mission Church, which now ornaments that part of the town, and here the work is still carried on, there being a large Sunday School and Band of Hope in connection with the Church.

He also purchased an extensive allotment at the corner of Balfour and Wellington Streets, where the old Hospital used to stand, and it is but a short time since he signed the plans, - prepared by his superintendent Mr. F. Tyson - for fourteen workmen's cottages in Wellington Street, three houses at the corner of Wellington and Balfour Streets, partaking of the character of almshouses with a mission house attached, and three villa residences in Balfour Street, his instructions then being that the workmen's cottages were to be commenced without delay.

His charity was unbounded, for we are justified in saying that a deserving case never came of was brought under his notice in vain, and his public charities were large. As instances of his liberality we may mention donations at various times to the Benevolent Society of cheques for £100, £50, and two of £25, a gift of £1,000 to the Launceston Hospital upon certain conditions, the gift of the land in High Street for the almshouses, and a donation of £100 towards them, &c.

And in his dealings with the tenants on his extensive estates at 'Dunorlan' and 'Wesleydale' the same spirit was displayed by Mr. Reed. The year after his return was a bad harvest, and he personally visited all his tenants, and made remissions of rent according to their circumstances, a new church was built for their convenience, and many other kindly acts performed.

Some three years ago, at great expense, he sent home Mr. Peter Richardson of the Oaks, to purchase pure bred draught stock, the result being the importations of the valuable Lincoln stallion 'Peter the Great,' the Suffolk stallion 'Young Duke,' and one Suffolk and two Lincoln mares.

Mr. Reed was a very large land owner, and besides the magnificent estates of 'Dunorlan' and 'Wesleydale' in the Deloraine district, he owned the estates of 'Lenna,' in the White Hills, and 'Ridgeside,' in the Evandale district, as well as his own residence of 'Mount Pleasant,' and the property connected with it.

In public life Mr. Reed was an honourable, upright, and concientious Christian, and in private life a loving and kind husband and father. Few men in this colony have laboured more earnestly, or have displayed more liberality for the welfare of others, and his loss will be long and sincerely felt. He leaves a widow and five children - two boys and three girls - of the second family, and of the first family there are still alive his eldest son, resident in England; Mr. F. H. Reed, married and residing at Ridgeside; Mr. Arthur Reed, also married and now in England; and we believe either two or three daughters residing in England, one of whom is married.