The Press. THURSDAY, JANUARY 17,1878.

Press, Volume XXIX, Issue 3896, 17 January 1878, Page 2

The Press. THURSDAY, JANUARY 17,1878.

The accession of Mr. Ballance to the ranks of the Ministry is not an event which calls for much remark. Mr. Ballance is in no sense a representative man, nor one who occupies any influential position either in or out of Parliament. His appointment is therefore of no political consequence. Nor has it taken anyone by surprise. The arrangement was made shortly after the close of the session, and the completion of it was , deferred only till the Premier's return from his starring tour in the north. What portfolio the now comer should take was, and appears still to be, undecided. We are glad to hear that he is gazetted Minister of Education, since, with the new Act in force, it is extremely desirable that there should be some Minister specially responsible for the discharge oi the important duty imposed on the Central Department. But we scarcely suppose that Mr. Ballance will remain long in his present post. A probable conjecturo is that he will settle down at the Treasury, and that Mr. Larnach, who is evidently and most improperly overweighted with his double functions, will lie content with the Ministry of Public Works. Of Mr. Ballance himself there is not much to be said. The manner in which, in the course of three sessions, he has worked up to a seat on the Government bench, is in some respects creditable' to him; aud the credit would be greater were it not that, the attainment of that position is due, less to his personal qualities, than to a timely ratting. He entered the House as an abolitionist, and, ) till about the middle of last session, was a supporter of the Atkinson Ministry. . Gradually he became known as an aspirant to office. But as time went on. and in one or two reconstructions of the Government Mr. Ballance's name was not mentioned, it began to dawn npon biro that on that side xttr tl—TTXtmao-iiio- merits were inauKjuareiy appreciated. This view seems to have impressed itself on his mind with peculiar force during last session, as the Opposition increased in strength and it became evident that ftie days of the Atkinson 1 Ministry were numbered. At this moment Mr. Ballance made 1 a discovery. Just as Major Atkinson was nearing* his downfall, by a singular coincidence Mr. JBallance found out that his policy was detrimental to the public interests, and that every true lover of bis country ought forthwith to join {the Opposition. Acting on this sudden conviction, Mr. Ballance abruptly quitted Major Atkinson and enrolled himself under the banner of Sir 6. Grey. The deserter . _was received by his new friends with open arms/- For he-".not only came to tliem himself, but he brought over a comrade ; and in the evenly balanced state of parties, the transfer of two members --making a difference of four votes—was enongh to turn the scale. Accordingly Mr. Ballance was loudly welcomed. Ho was an undeniable prize, and was received with corresponding honours. Everybody made much of him. He was put prominently forwards. His speeches—greatly overrated, but certainly above mediocrity— were extolled to the skies. In short, he found himself at once placed among the leading men of his new party, and among those from whom any Ministry formed by Sir G. Grey must be selected. He might doubtless have taken office during the session, had he been disposed. But, with a prudence shared by many of Sir George's friends, he declined to commit liiinself prematurely, and deferred actually joining the Government until their tenure of their places, at all events till after the next general election, had been definitely assured by the prorogation. How Mr. Ballance will acquit himself as a Minister remains to be seen. As yet he is wholly untried. He has gained some reputation as a speaker; but we need hardly say that the successful delivery of two or three carefully prepared speeches is no proof of Ministerial capacity, and does not even necessarily imply aptitude for the rough and ready work of everyday debate. A good occasional speaker may be a very poor debater. If, however, Mr. Ballance succeeds in debate, and in the conduct of business in the House, he will be of material assistance to the Government, which is almost entirely dependent for such services upon Mr. Sheehan. In other respects, bo cannot be regarded as a valuable acquisition. He brings no additional support to Ministers, for his own vote they had already; nor will his accession to office increase the popularity of the Government or add to its strength in the Honse. As to his powers of administration, in the absence of anything to form an opinion upon we can only hope for the best. In the Cabinet, so far as he carries weight, we fear his presence is likely to be rather a disadvantage. If the country is to be governed by Sir G. Grey, he ought to ba associated with men of sound judgment and discretion, who would be capable of holding his extravagancies in some degree of restraint. Mr. Ballance, who has theories of his own, is more likely to encourage the most flighty and impracticable fancies of his chief. However, we will not discuss these matters further. We shall, we dare say, find occasion hereafter to comment upon Mr. Ballance's merits or defects. At present he is entering his career, and we feel » natural disposition to wish him well. He has a fine opportunity before him. and we hope he will be able to make such a use of it as will be creditable to himself and conducive of benefit to the colony.