Border Watch (Mount Gambier, SA : 1861 - 1954) Wednesday 25 October 189934697

THE LATE MR. JOHANN LANGE.

One of the earliest and most successful of the
farmers of the Mount Gambier district passed
away on Saturday evening, when Mr. Johann
Lange, of Yahl, died at his residence there.
For several years Mr. Lange had suffered from
an affection of the heart, and had been laid
aside from active work. About the middle of
last week he was seized with the prevailing
epidemic, influenza, which so affected his heart
that he died on Saturday evening, as stated,
after only three days' illness. The deceased
was born in Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany,
in 1837, and was thus in the 62nd year of his
age. He came to South Australia in 1850, and
worked as a farm lad near Adelaide till 1859.
In March, 1859, he accompanied Mr. J. C.
Ruwoldt to the then new agricultural district
of Mount Gambier, arriving here on March 4
of that year. Although only a young man of
22 years he rented a farm near Yahl from the
late Mr. Bartels, an agent, and subsequently,
in connection with the late Mr. Koop, pur-
chased a section from the late Mr. W. J.
Browne, at Yahl. Afterwards he became sole
proptietor, and from time to time extended the
holding. He carried on farming there until his
death. Mr. Lange was famed aa being the
possessor of perhaps the richest spot for wheat
growing in the South-East, and that practically
means South Australia. Again and again be
had the record harvest return of wheat
in County Grey. In 1887 he had 54 bushels
per acre from a part of his land, which, we
believe, ia the record for the Southeast, and
last year he had the beat crop of the season
for the colony, 49 bushels per acre. About
1864 the deceased married a daughter of the
late Mr. F. Sturm, of Mount Gambier. She
died three years ago, but Mr. Lange leaves a
grown up family of seven by her—three sons
and four daughters, two of whom are married.
The deceased had no relatives other than his
family in this district, but has a brother, Mr.
Joachim Lange, at Nhill. The funeral took
place yesterday, and the respect in which
the deceased was held by a wide circle of
friends waa abundantly shown by the large
attendance. The Rev. Pastor Matschoss con-
ducted the funeral obsequies.