THE CHIEF JUSTICESHIP OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume I, Issue 33, 13 December 1873, Page 10

THE CHIEF JUSTICESHIP OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

iHK circumstances under which Sir James Martin was appointed to this office which had beeu promised to Mr Butler, AttoroefkenVral, to whom it should hare b«en given by right, are thus commentedoi by the Australian papers : — (•Sydney Critic.') • 4i i 0?i 0 ?? 1 ?. 011 .,^ 11 * 1 } vn P re Judiced obserrers we cannot help feeling that Mr Butler has been sacrificed by those who owe their present; power and position in no slight degree to him and his influence Had) he magnanimously waived his claim to what cuntom has almost mad* a right of the Attorney-General (and we have no reason to believe tha* he would not ha»e so acted had his colleagues represented to him that his gam would prove their loss), the affair would have borne a totally different complexion. The Premier, far from hinting disapproval actually congratulated him upon his approaching elevation ! Surely Mr Parkes should have well considered the claims and qualifications of hw able and high-minded colleague before he ventured to shake him by the hand as Chief Justice elect, or attempted to secure a powerful ally in the Legislative Council by asking that the sou of the Hon Deas Thomson should be retained as his associate. And even after the representations of other members of the Executive Council, backed up by threats from members of Parliament and dissuasions from' private individuals, had caused the Premier to come to the conclusion that self-preservation demanded the sacrifice of the Attorney-General —if, even then, the communication had been made with courtesy and sympathy, there can be little doubt that Mr Butler would have recognised the exigency of the case, and withdrawn. The great argument used by Mr Parkes against the appointment ? h "?J d ./ n « nd and . MthM ™ 8 t^t P«Wic opinion n. agS - it. Did it never strike the astute Premier that the Feeling in question might apply to Mr Butler onl, through, and in consequence of, M» connection with the Hon. Henry Parkes and his colleagues. Edward Sutler, bamster-at-law, had, perhaps, not one enemy m the colony . but Edward Butler, Attorwy-General of the Parkes Administration, wa» not likeiy to lack plenty of very powerful and bitter enemies, who at least have now the satisfaction of chuckling over the loss to thaHimstry of oue of its greatest elements of power. ('Melbourne Argus.') The ultra-Protestants at one time openly announced their infon* tjon of withdrawing their support in the event of Mr Buttler beineelevated to the Chief Justiceship. Mr Parkes was evidently son perplexed, and for a time made no sign. But at length he resolved to n.ove and, by appointing Sir James Martin, to pacify his Orangefriends and get rid of his moat formidable opponent at one strafed. We do not blame Mr Parkes for not having recognized any prescriprw right of which Mr Butler may have considered himself possessed! but we do think that be is open to the severest censure in that, having onWised the vacant Judgeship to his calleague, he bestowed it on, another gentleman simply to suit his political convenience. We do not wonder that Mr Butler at once resigned, and on Tuesday moved the adjournment of the House, in order that he might inform bxro members and the country of the unfair treatment he had received. We ere glad to hear that his speech on the occasion was received with, loud cheers. (' Australasian.') Mr Butler, apparently, would have got the office, but as be was » decided Catholic a good deal of opposition to hia appointment was raised by the Orangemen— a powerful partj in New South Wales and a coalition was threatened against the Premier should he make the appointment. This is an unpleasant state of affairs, and it is to be regretted that religious differences are thus introduced into political life. (' Melbourne Advocate.') For pntting Mr Butler aside, there is no excuse ; but there areseveral reasons why Sir James was preferred. The Orangemen threatened, and the Chief Secretary feared them j Sir James was troublesome in opposition, and it was desirable to cli.se his mouth. Besides, Mr Parlte* having duly weighed the matter, considered that he could widen tlie basis of bis support to a larger extent by appointing Sir James, and by conciliating the' Orangemen, than by promoting Mr Butler. ' (' Batliurst Times.') No reasonable man can read the correspondence submitted ta Parliament, and explanatory of Mr Bntler's resignation, without perceiving tliat Mr Butler has teen made a catspnw of by Mr Parkes. The reasons given by Mr Parkes for breaking his pledge are not sufficiently sound to satisfy public inquiry. Indeed, we believe Mr Parkes's conduct will be regarded by all earnest and honest men as execrable.. The vilest being is the traitor. History has no more repulsive character than Judas— the traitor whose lips were yet moist with, the kiss of peace, and whose tongue yet carried the curse of treachery. No more honourubl* and generous-minded man ever entered the arena of Colonial politics than ifidward Butler. The shadow of a dishonourable action would weigh upon his conscience more thau th« ruin of a nation upon the Premier's. (• Bathurst Independent.') The ' Cumberland Times' is the only paper we have seen which approves of Mr Parkers conduot in the appointment of Sir James Martin, (' Cumberland Mercury.') There cannot be the slightest doubt that the fate of the last election w»3 decided by rotes which were obtained on the implied understanding that Messrs Porkes and Butler would row in the same boat. Hitherto they have done so, but the Premier, finding the Attorney.General inconvenient ballast, has thrown him overboard. But there is some consistency in this, because ha is not the first one that ha» been thrown over by the Hon. Henry. Parkes. Whatever may be tk»

views of those who look at the appoint Bent through the medium of prejudice, the want of ability, or inexperience, cannot be imputed to Mr Butler. r 0 Carcoar Chronicle.') If Mr Parkes had kept his promise to his colleague, the appointment would have given satisfaction to probably more than that of Sir James Martin. No one questions Mr Butler's ability as a lawyer, or hi# integrity as a gentleman ; while in his steady application to work he is decidedly, we think, Sir James Martin's superior. Objections have been raised in some quarters to Mr Butler on the ground of his being a Roman Catholic ; but in a country where all forms of religion are equal before the law, such an objection ought never to have been hinted at. If Mr Butler had received the appointment, we are certain that his religion would never have interfered with the discharge of his duty to the country, or given a bias to his decisions on the judicial bench. (' Maitland Mercury.') Under the circumstances, we cannot wonder at Mr Butler coming to the conclusion that Mr Parkes, though repudiating the influence of sectarian pressure, had really yielded to it. We cannot wonder, under the circumstances, that Mr Butler regarded tho action of the Governmeat as the result of anti-Catholic influence, and that he resolved at oace to quit the ministry rather than, by retaining office, lecd his sanction to the imposition of a civil disability upon his fellow Roman Catholics. And, as we think, Mr Butler viewing the matter thus, has acted not only with commendable spirit, but with a moderation, a selfcontrol, and a dignity that will raise him greatly in the estimation of -the community. (•Hawksbury Times.') | \ We have witnessed and read of many soeniß in our Legislature which we would wish to expunge from its proceedings, or over which we would at least draw a veil, but none that equals this. The Colonial Secretary found no sympathizers on either side of the House ; the Secretary stood alone— not alone in virtue like Chatham, beating down the hounds of faction that howled around him, by the power of his majestic intellect, but alone in meanness and trickery — the inventor md perpetrator of one of the most crooked and slippery political dodge* that has evor been practised in this community. (♦Braidwood Despatch."; The conduct of Mr Parkes, whose treatment of Mr Bufeler in promising him the office and then drawing back from his word ia anything but what it should be. ('Southern Argus.') ' The real truth we conceive is, that Mr Parkes, with all his vaunted ability to hold the reins of government, h a political coward. ('Wagga Express.') With a natural facility for humbug that could hardly be exceeded by the very oldest of serpents, Mr Parkes has beguiled his late Attorney-G-eneral. Whether Sir James Martin will devolope into a better Chief Justice than would Mr Butler, need not enter into the calculation. The silk gown of a Queen'B Counsel which he abandons fpr tha scarlet vestment which clothes a Chief Justice, and is typical of the Lady of Babylon, may give a certain weight to the appointment, that Mr Butler may luck. But if we handicap by previous official performances, the question assumes a different appearance.