Ruben Edmonds the Rover

edmondsallan ---In reading the " Family Circle Journals " I see a couple of enquires on " Ruben The Rover " well I went through quite a few documents to see what we might have . We have some that are proven & some that are not . He apparently did keep in touch on & off with two of his brothers & one sister . They were " Samuel "- Joseph -- & Jane - his younger sister In bringing together info' of all three . their is a lot of gaps in time Their is nothing continuous. This time readers you will have to forgive me if nothing seems to make sense / nothing in some years / a broken story of a persons life if their ever was one'
" Ruben " was nick named the " Rover " and he certainly was. He tried many things . worked in many many places both here in NZ and Australia. He was also a fluent maori speaker . Jane once said he was better than Alfred ? After he left Kaikohe , he worked at odd jobs in Auckland . Samuel says he was working for him , & then came to him one day ,out of the blue , and said he was catching a boat to Dunedin and going to have a go at gold mining at " Gabriels Gully , Otago . He was 26 at that time in 1863.. He wrote to " Jane at christmas time - two years later . saying he was now in Roxburgh & Alexander still mining ., was in good health & had made a little money .Nothing more . wrote to Joseph , a note saying he was in Australia at Ballaratt , victoria Digging for gold ( no date ) & if not successful was heading to The gold fields of Bendigo - Australia . He also said he wasn't attached to any body , that enjoyed going out with the other lads , for a drink & female companionship . In 1897 ( he would have been 58 years of age ) He asked " Jane" if she could send him some monies to pay for his passage back to New Zealand as he was unable to work and was of ill health. " Jane " did not have the means to assist him so she wrote to " Samuel" who paid for his passage back to Auckland ) Samuel went to meet him . and somehow they missed each other ,Samuel wrote to Jane saying he thought it was deliberate . The family was shocked . to hear he was dead & buried in the " paupers burial plots " In Symonds st cemetery AK . The whole family was greatly distressed & were blaming each other for what had hapened and held a private service at his grave , long after he was interned The year 1899. Now my part comes in . Just over twenty years ago when I started on the family book - No1 . I went seaching for " Rubens " grave It wasn't there . After many enqires I found that thousands of graves had been shifted into a mass grave to make way for the new motor ways under Grafton Bridge . I know that before removal . a J D Richardson took many photographs of those graves . many were missed , thousands were taken . When I seached the archive Photo's of the tombstones & graves that were going to be removed . I did not Find _ " Ruben's Grave" I can find no proof that that is where he is buried . only the letters and " Samuel paying for his ticket ." Their is no proof , believe me I have searched that he did get back from Australia > In several ship Passenger lists is the name Edmonds , but no age or Christian Name & no dates line up . Dear reader as I said in the beginning of this journal . It could be absolutely true ( which I believe it is ) But their will always be a doubt on its correctness. To those who are still trying to find " Ruben- the Rover "I hope this imformation can assist you . this the only reason I have released it for public scrutiny . -- Regards edmondsallan