All Sorts of People

Free Lance, Volume XVI, Issue 871, 16 March 1917, Page 4

All Sorts of People

"OABIiIAMENT has lost two more .', • ■ , members—-the ;Upper House one , by the death of the Hon. Tame Parata (Tommy Pratt), and the Lower House one by the resignation of the Hon. -W. Stewart. • Tame Parata was about our ' oldest. Parliamentarian. He represented the South Island .natives in the, Lower House for about 30 , years continuously/ and then- when. : he retired at the last general election the Goyefnment promptly called him to the. Upper House. Tommy Pratt was the halfcaste descendant of the navigator of one of the historic canoes /that brought the pioneer Maoris to New Zealand from far. distant Hawaiki about the 11th or v 12th century. . The Maoris, like the lady beloved by the Laird o'[ Cockpen, have always been proud of their "lang pedigree." He was never an orator, but he had a quality that ensures longer popularity than "the gift of the gab": Tact, strongly flavoured with good nature. He had. many times to fight for his seat, but no Maori or halfcaste ever had Buckley?s chance of .beating him. In the House he was popular with all parties, and no one ever found: Tame Parata mixed up in a "scene" or indulging in "language." Up in the House of Lords he was a silent and now he has passed away afr the great. age of 84 leaving his mantle to his popular son, Charlie Parata, who has filled "Father's seat" ever since Father went ur> to "another place." - W. Stewart, who has resigned the Bay of Islands seat,- came into the House at the last general election, and has only entombed one brief speech m; Hansard. He was a prosperous storekeeper up Kawakawa way and entered Parliament on the Reform ticket. His one speech was marked by moderation of tone, and sound, shrewd commonsense. .' He was a worker —not a talker —and therefore will be missed. He will probably be succeeded by Vernon Reed, who has been there before and -will add one more to the lawyers of the House. ■••■-#..-•. '■'.*•■■ ■ .*. ■ \-. *• - .'Captain J. W. Niesigh (pronounce it "Neesee"), who was inj Wellington tlie other day attending the Newspaper Proprietors' Conference as a kind of delegate on behalf of the "World's Press Congress (to be held in Sydney next; year) managed to strike the Mararoa on A the trip which put her ashore off Cape Pallisef. He hails from the Premier's office in Sydney, and is a dapper little gent, with a well-groomed moustache. Seems the doctors won't have him into the. firing line, and so the New' South Wales Government have been utilising him to interest New Zealand's pressmen in the World's Press Congress, for which Sydney invited them : to meet next year 'within her gates, and for which she is now-preparing. Capt. Niesigh has been travelling round the world in pursuit of this soft and agreeable'mis"sion, and he has no hesitation in expressing the opinion that- the day /he spent on the Mararoa while .she lay stranded at Palliser Bay is the dullest episode in l his whole world, tour. , A well-known journalist passed away on Friday last in the person of, Mr. J. R. Russell, brother of the Hon. G. W. Russell (Minister of Internal Affairs), Mr. T. G. Russell (of the Cliristchurch Bar), and Mr. W. H. Russell (of Hansard Staff). As a boy J. R. Russell was one of the earliest apprentices of the late Henry Blundell, founder of the . Wellington "Evening Post," ■ in which ■ office" he rose to the position of publisher in the early Seventies. In 187S he joined his.brother George (now Cabinet . Minister) in launching the "Manawatu Herald" at Foxton. Some years later the Russell brothers sold out of this enterprise, and. J.R. for a season tried his hand at the flax industry. . But he soon tired of hemp and get back to printers' ink by joining J-h.9 staff of the Palmerston North "Times." of which he subsequently became proprietor. In 1903 he joined Mr- T Lindsay Buick in purchasing the T)annevirke "Advocate," which he with great ability for' the/nest nine years. In 1912 the partners sold out to advantage, and for the last two years J. R. • Russell had been acting in the Parliamentary Press Gallery as correspondent for a number of.papers. The deceased leaves a widow and family of four, the youngest of whom is Lieut/ Russell, now in camp at Trentham. The funeral took place at Dannevirke on Saturday last. • if. e ij * Mr. John Coutts, one of the" oldest amateur yachtsmen £n Wellington, _ is packing tip to honour Tauranga with his future residence. He is now well.'

up to the 70 mark, but, 30 years ago, * when he wasn't making suits for the Johnnies of Wellington, you would assuredly find him down at the 'waterfront or aboard' his smart yacht Carina, of which he was justly proud, or perhaps pulling Jack Gibbons' leg up at Whitehall boardinghouse by telling him how many minutes the Carina ■ could give the Pet and beat her. When Mr. Qoutts retired from the tailor's goose he donned livery and became a, Government messenger. The age limit at last, squeezed him out of that job, but,-.being a frugal man and having ' been' a bachelor all his days, he had a comfortable little nest egg _ stowed away and so didn't squeal; His last act before leaving little old Poneke is to bethink him of his.. favourite sport, yachting, and to. hand over to the/Port Nicholson Yacht Club as a prize for future sailing contests the fine silver cup he won in those joyous days.of the day when the Carina was one of the prettiest and fleetest boats in 'Wellington's white-winged mosquito fleet; '■; - ~ .-. *."■■'■* * " .'*.■■ . ;.The greatest service libyd George has done for England is to give it, for perhaps .-the first time, a Business Men's Cabinet.. It has taken the place of the old style Cabinet formed chiefly of professional politicians. Chief among the new men who never before held political office of any kind is Sir Albert Stanley, who is now President of the Board of Trade. He is the "baby" of the Cabinet, being only 41 years old. Although born in England, Sir Albert . Stanley was "raised'' in America infancy, graduated-from Cornell University,- became general manager of the railways in New Jersey, and speaks with a decided "Muri-ikaii" accent. London captured: him to manage its underground railways, which carry nearly 900,000,000 passengers every year. Sir Albert is expected to put plenty:of "punch" into the Cabinet. ''..■..■.:*.' * ;''-.*;■'."■* Another "business" appointment-y----perhaps the most important, of all—is that of Sir Joseph Maclay, who is placed at the helm of Shipping as Controller of Shipping, an entirely new office. He is the heading shipowner of "Glesea" and a very prominent citizen thereof. Moreover, he is admittedly one of the greatest experts on cargo shipping. \ Lord Rhondda,. who has taken over the post Of President of the Local Gov-

Two Well-known Military Medicoes in Close Consultation.

eminent Board, is better known as D. A., Thomas, which was / his plain untitled name when he was chosen by his fellow Welshman ("that damned little pettifogging Welsh Attorney" as crusted old Tories were wont to call Lloyd George) to go to America in July, 1915, and place munitions contracts totalling £50,000,000. The cuteness with which he carried out that big deal won him his title. By the way, along with his capable daughter, Lady Mackworth, D. A. Thomas (now _ Lord. Rhondda) was on board the Lusitania when she was torpedoed, and both had a narrow escape from death. ■"'..'....*■■*' * * At 60 Lord Rhondda is reckoned one of Britain's richest men. He is said to know more about coals and colleries than any other man alive, and he is the brains of the great Cambrian Trust, which owns 22 of the most valuable coal pits in South Wales. He is a born leader of men. Since the war he has bought several of the biggest German enterprises in the "United Kingdom, amongst them the business of Wulfing and Co., the manufacturers of "Sanatcgen" and "Formamint." More recently still he has bought out the great business of John Brinsmead and Sons, Ltd.,

the famous British-, piano makers. He is popularly known in "Wales as "D.A.". and one of the Welsh papers recorded his escape from drowning in the following "poster" head-lines: — "Great Disaster. Lusitania Sunk. D.A. Saved." ■* ■ • ..■*•' '.*•'.■■■■ The career of Lord Deyonport, wno rose to fame as England's; "biggest grocer," was sketched only the other week by the. Fbee Lance; so it is. superfluous to re-tell the story of Britain's "food controller." As Mr. Hudson ELearley he covered England with a.network .of-'retail stores, which■'. trade as the ''International Tea Company,"; and when he was made a- peer in 1910 he chose, for his title the, name of the shipping town which, he represented for: 18 years in the House of Commons. As Chairman of the Port • of ; London Authority he stood-firm,against the demands and abuse of the leaders in the gigantic strike of the transport workers. Ben* Tillett on Tower Hill declared: "If the workers of the country realised their

duty Lord Devonport would not be allowed to live." Victor Grayson suggested that He should be either "emigrated or kidnapped." .*:■'*'■■■ * ■■ «• Arthur Henderson, who. is a member of the War Council without portfolio, 'is the first member of the official Labour Party to. attain Cabinet rank. Like Maclay he is a Glasgow man, became an iron moulder, then turned into a butcher, and the practice gained, in Sunday school missions as a local preacher trained him as a ready public speaker and so he got into • Parliament. He is a strong pro-war man. Of 'the other Labour Ministers,- Geo. N. Barnes (Minister of Pensions) is entirely self-taught and self-made, and for 12 years was general secretary of the Amalgamated Society of Engineers. Both Henderson and Barnes have lost sons in action against the Germans. John Hodge (the new Minister of Labour) used to be Chairman of the Labour Party in the House of Commons, and was president of the Trade TJnion Congress in 1892. . •E- *■ O- » It is understood that Sir "William Irvine will accompany Prime Minister

Billy Hughes to England as one of Australia's two delegates to the Imperial War Council. A better representative or a truer patriot Australia could not have. He was Prime Minister of Victoria at the' time of the big railway strike in Melbourne, which threatened to hold up, all; the railway services of the State, and in that serious crisis he never quailed or flinched. Hiss coolness and firmness earned him then the name of "Iceberg Irvine." And" "Iceberg Irvine" triumphed. He 'has been exeluded from the present National net because he is more of a patriot than a partisan. When the . Referendum vote was proposed he stood firm for compulsory national service, and he was the first Federal politician to strike the Imperial note just before war was declared. A ripe scholar, a sound lawyer, and clean-sighted statesman, Australia could not send a better man to the Imperial War Council. * * * » / Perhaps you met young McAlister, who came up from Invereai-gill to -Wellington several years ago and finished his course of studies—with a' view to medicine we think—at Victoria College? At any rate, his father was a wellknown chemist in the. city of Magnificent Distances, some 20 years ago, and 'tis natural to conclude this, young McAlister's bent would be towards medicine also. * ■.. ■ .■ • ■ - » © That, however, is neither here nor there so far as' our present purpose is concerned. This is t<s retail to you a rather good yarn contained in young Mac's last letter from the front, which has just come to hand. - Being a McAlister it seems almost superfluous to mention that he enlisted just as soon as the war broke out, for you never heard of a McAlister—did you—suffering from <>old feet when "The pipes o' war beban to blaw?" ■ * : "'.'■.'■ ■* '# As soon as this particular McAlister got his first spell off from the fighting .. front he hied across to "bonnie Scotland" to see if he could pick up any traces of his ancesbry. When he got to Edinburgh he hunted up a directory and-in it came apross the part devoted to the town of Airdrie. It had a familiar sort of look,,and as there" werea good many McAlisters catalogued under, it he thought he would take his first sigh-fc-seeing trip out thither. '■' He found a tall Cornstalk chum of the Australian Infantry willing to accompany him, and together they set out for Airdrie accordingly. '■' «• . . * ■ ' ;* : > . ■ © Sauntering down the high-street of the "coaley toon"—for there are» 40 collieries in the neighbourhood to say nothing of iron mines—the athletic New Zealander and the six-foot-odd Australian in their- khaki uniform and badge- adornments attracted no end of attention. Suddenly,from a side street a little old woman with a shawl over her head advanced upon them, and, pointing out the New -Zealander with her finger she called out in a shrill, penetrating voice: "I ken ye're" a McAlister; I ken fine ye're a McAlister." Of course, , they, stopped and a small crowd collected. The old lady proved not to he mistaken. 'Her keen old eyes couldn't mistake the McAlister features. She proved to be young Mac's grandfather's only surviving sister, and she had never clapped eyes before upon McAlister the Third of Jnvereargill. The crowd formed up in " processional order, and, headed by the old lady -with her grand-nephew on one arm and the Australian soldier on the other the party marched off, oh, so gaily so, up to the Airdrie home of the McAlisters there to celehrate the meeting of the clans. Not a bad soldier yarn, is it now?