SIR JOHN HALL AND THE LEATHERSELLERS' COMPANY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13385, 11 September 1905, Page 6

SIR JOHN HALL AND THE LEATHERSELLERS' COMPANY.

A BIT OF NEW ZEALAND HISTORY 7 . (Fbou Oub'Own Correspondent.) . LONDON, July 29. On Wednesday evening I had llm privilege of being among: the invited guests at a special official dinner given by tho Ancicnt and Worshipful Company of Leathersellers in its beautiful hall oIF St. Helen's placo, Bishopsgato street. Tho particular occasion was tho first presidency of tho now Master, Ml- Ferdorick Naldor, but 1 think I am justified in saying that the moving spirit of tho occasion was that of Sir John 1-lalir In a recent lottor I mentioned that Sir John had been olioson Master of the company, of which ho had boon a member for 53 goal's; that ho had intimated his inability to coino to England and perform the somewhat onerous duties of tho post;, that ho had' consequently designed, and had been placod on tho honourablo roll of tho company's Past Masters, his immediate predecessor being tho Right. Hon. Sir John Pound, present Lord Mayor'of London, and thai privately ho had presented to tho company a very beautiful casket of Now Zealand greonstone, which I duly dcseribcdl At tho "court" hold prior to tho dinner tho formal presentation ivas mado by an old friend of Sir John Hall, Mr J. D. Copeman, literally an' "old" friend, for lie has just celebrated his eighty-eighth birthday, although no ono would guess tho fact, his halo appearance and bodily faculties being still unimpaired. Tho caskot was placed .upon tho table during tho subsequent banquet, m front of tho chairman, and rccoivcd a great deal of admiring notico during tho evening. Special rcfercnco to it and to its donor was mado by tho Mastor in his introductory observations.

Tho placo of honour among tho toasts was & givon> on tho occasion to "The Guests," and ono of theso who was an old friend of Sir John Hall was called upon to respond. 111 doing so ho opened—as hu himself expressed it—for tho first timo in England: a vory intercsing chapter in New Zealand history, of which Sir John Hall was tho hero. " Twenty-six years ago," said tho speaker, " tho Primo Minister of Now Zealand was another old friend of mine, tho. lato Sir George Grey. Now, Sir George Grey was a man of most remarkable and brilliant parts; a statesman of tho broadest and most Imperial views; a man who onco had certainly dono much toward saving tho Empire at tho timo of tho Indian Mutiny, and whoso advico, had it been takcii when 110 ruled South Africa, would liavo saved tho Empiro not only from tho recent disastrous war in South Africa, but ako from tho previous ono of which tho Majnba disgraco was tho salient' foature. But Sir George Grev had a mind 100 soaring to be bound uy the sordid limitations of L.S.D., and so in two years of administration ho unconsciously brought New Zealand to a. deficit of a million sterling, with liabilities unprovided for to tho tnno of somo 3V millions more. 'By this timo Parliament had taken alarm, and ho was defeated. .That did not'seem-to him any reason- for resigning—any moro than it has dono moro recently to another Premier—(lauglitor),—kit hero t.lio parallel fails, for it' did «seom-to him a reason why ho' should appeal to tho country, which 110 did accordingly. But then, aroso the.question, Who should lead the Opposition party? Its leaders of that poriod. Sir William Fox. Sir F. Wbitalcer. and Major Atkinson, had for the timo lost tho popular favour—indeed, two of them even failed to securo scats in tho general election which ensued,—and a new and capable ieador of Opposition" was as much in demand in' New Zealand then as ono has been there, -and oven nearer home, in moro recent times. Put thoro was a consensus of opinion that tho only man who could successfully, lead the Opposition against Sir George Grey was Sir John — then Mr — Hall. 110 had already ;,passed, through, a distinguished public career, and had retited to his beautiful estate in tho Canterbury province and to a seat in the Legislative Council—the New Zealand Hpuso of Lords,, No possible inducement, save that of public duty, could be offered, him to enter anew into tho stormy arena of politics. But public duty was ever a sufficient call to liirn. He consented to como forward; resigned bis seat in the Legislative Council: was elected for the House of Representatives; was choscn Leader of tlio Opposition party; carried a voto oE no confidence in the Grey Government on Parliament and. being 'sent for* b7 the Governor, be formed a very ableiM'inistry of liis own. But then his troubles began; Tho, Opposition party had thrown Sir George: Grey overboard, and had elected his/first- lieutenant (tho lato Mr Maeandrcw) as its leader. Mr Macandrew put forward/the theory ' that Sir John Hall's Ministry was nevor intended as a permanence, but:,merely as a stop ; gap until lie (Mr Macandrew) should have formed a now-coalition/-; So ho-promptly tabled a motion of no eonfideneo in the Hail • Government, > and i appealed to Sir John to allow this to come on immediately, this appeal being ; based- on tho Premier's' invariable courtesy and .strict, adherejiee to' constitutional practice., But Sir- John Hall, though he never in all''liis eminent career forgot that he wai a-gentleman before hewas a politician, possessed in-exceptional degreo the faculty of combining with tho suiviter in niodo the fortiter in re, and he promptly-made it clear that he was not to bs caught thus. 'No,' ho said, 'wo will not be condemned unheard; when wo have brought'down our policy we will jrivo you any facilities you like, but wo will bring down, our polioy. first!' .This did not suit the book, of tho other; side, which desired to bring',-in these very .'measures that Sir John had announced', if|d: to Snatch','tho credit. of : them, and so] it resorted -, to obstruction.. But! iti ,'. tactics disgusted several of its own ;'party, 1 who camo\over and offered, the Premierjtheir support 'on conditton that he would pledge, himself—(l) to carry through the Liberal measures he had. announced,. (2) not to disturb the national of cdiication. and (3) to secure : a fair allocation of the Publio Works' Fund., As these w-ero'among tho cardinal features of Sir John's policy, he, of course, readily' gave the 'required pledge, and Mr Macandrew's no-confidence motion, went

s cadUy down .tho'- Order Paper, until it nnaJly disappeared, as did a similar motion nearer at hand Inst. jj - , P, 0 "!'. onward',-Sir John. Hall's Administration ,was an unqualified sucoces.' J.no finances ,of the' colony were - restored Jo , soundness, -. tho Nativo > 'difficulty *, ivas faced and finally: settled, 'The .promised imeral measures, which brought' in Trionnial Parliaments and manhood suffrage, were passed Mo Jaw, and all went prosperously. And Sir John was never beaten, ilo . only retired from the Premiership' at last: on account of failing health, •' duo i to. CXMSSIVO .devotion 'to his pubiio duties, 'ino value; of his. influence on New Zea- ™ politics cannot - :;bo ' over-estimated. He to one,.of tho brilliant band 'of' scholars and gentlomen' who had made tho Aew Zealand Parliament the prido not -only of tho.'colony, but, 'I might almbst say,.even of tlio Empire, and his influence for good is still felt. Tho New' Zealand Parliament may not now'be in all respect's what it once was, any more than is our owii Houso of Commons, but at least it compares favourably with any other Legislature in tho Empire, and I do hot hesitate to assert that this is in* a'largemeasuro duo to tho influence of tho distinguished colonial statesman whoso- 'name stands newest on tho list of this Worshipful Company's Past Masters, tho • Hon. Sir John Hall."—(Cheers.) Tho retiring Master, Mr F. ,T, Hamilton, in responding to the toast of "The late Master and Warden," expressed the regret of fho Lcathcrsellers' Company that Sir John Hall had been unable to serve his' term of mastership, in whioh case he (Sir John) would liavo been 'occupying.the place ho (Mr Hamilton) then held, and would liavo been responding to that same toast in his stead. Tho only thine which mitigated their regret that such was not the case was the reflection that had it been sol they could, not havo had tho opportunity of listening to the interesting account of a notable period ip Sir JolitA career, of which they might never havo known the full particulars, or of hearing' tho welldeserved panegyrio upon their Past Master's pubiio charaoter and services, which lmd been given by his friend on the left. Several other speakers referred to Sir John Hall in terms .of warm friendship and respect.