IN THE GALLERY.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3786, 3 September 1883, Page 4

IN THE GALLERY.

Twenty vcars ago, when fast passages across tho "Atlantic Avcre as necessary and profitable as to-day—of course, Aye know, in tho immediate future, Avhen a vessel leaves Liverpool for New York we avill not reckon by lioav many hours sho can beat her rival. 0 no, avo will place a stop watch against her, for it will be a case of seconds —avoll in those days there Avas only one way good results could be achieved. The engines then wore not of the patent-compound-condeiising-economising stylo that thoy are now-a-days, so, after working up to tho utmost pressure they could stand, thero Avas only ono thing could be done, draw the fires and alloAV tho boilers to cool, or if you preferred to keep them at it you had a bIoAV-up. AVell avo havo been at it all tho week; avc have been working at hisrh pressure, and avc avill keep on at such pressure till it will bo tune to shut off the steam entirely. A\ c could not now at this period return to the discursive style of say a fortnight ago. We know how the excitement, tho thought of having our tension strung up to the highest point sustains us. We all knoAv the story of the pony who covered the ton miles Avithin tho half-hour, Avhen it Avas a case of life or death, and lioav, when he reached his destination, and Avas about to bo hitched up, he fell dead on the spot. He could havo done more had ho been kept at it ; he could have beaten the record, but to AvithdraAV the bolt all of a sudden was fatal. Not only can you keep at it, but you aro even sustained by tho excitement. How it alters ono. I hav_ only knoAvn one man who could vieAV a horso race on Avhich he had invested heavily Avith perfect indifference. AVhy tho best and the worst Of US Under SUCh cirrmmstances seem, to Lo different to our real selves. You recollect the old lady going on board the American river steamer, and after being satisfied on every point she suddenly asked if tho boat was one of the racing ones, and Avhen she was assured that that particular boat Avas never known to race, she took her passage, went on board herself, and her household gods. AYe remember hoAV, where another boat began to overhaul them, even sho got carried away Avith tho excitement. SloAvly but surely the pursuer is gaining on tho pursued, and all handsnrcng'hast when tho engineer is told to clap on more Avood when ho replies the Stock is exhausted, and then the true woman was seen, as in vino Veritas, so under excitement the real character is displayed. The old lady avlio objected to a racin_ boat, brought up chair by chair and handed it to the engineer, so that the "darned skunk" behind may not overtake them. I doubt not but at that moment that Avoman for the first time felt ivhat it was to live. Not in tho ordinary commonplace sense, but in the very highest moaning of the Avord. AVhcn a man is Avonnd up to go the best thing you can do is let him run down. AVell all the week I have had this story on my mind for this place. At the end of last Aveek, Avhen Mr Green was engaged on a committee, a parcel avus brought in for him marked "urgent," but Mr Green smelt a rat, and pronouncing tho package dynamite, took it to the Speaker to open. That functionary gave his usual smile, but considered the proper officer to open such a package Avas tho Sorgcant-at-Anns, but on that individual being applied to he calmly put his finger to his nose and pointed in the direction of the policeman. 'When the man of IaAV understood matters, as lie ivas not desirous of being sacrificed to the call of duty, and did not see how the sacrifice could be demanded of him Avhen he had a Avife and five little ones to maintain, lie thought it belonged to the detective branch. Accordingly there it Avent, and after a few more "no*you don'ts' it was opened cautiously, nervously, a newspaper man, Avith the eternal fitness of things, Avaiting in the nearest "pub" all ready for an interesting pnvagvnph, and found to contain neatly done up two packets of Avhat Aye all know as rat poison. I calculate the sender scored one for a neat trick.

On Monday we had a petition from the unemployed. lam afraid the unemployed wo have with us always. A good story is told of ono who attended one of those meetings down South, and moved a resolution. He made a neat impression by his speech. He said ho had worked for three months for tucker, aud then he enlarged in the u.snal manner, and was getting on well till one fellow, getting 1 exhausted with the roundaboutness of the speaker, said why don't you add that you carried out that job to oblige the Court—he had worked off a sentence of three months' imprisonment. Times wore also lively among tho Otago members. AYe had tho first of the scries of the Otago free fights. Tho three members, Messrs Fish, Bracken, and Green have taken to painting one another's characters, and as thoy arc not sparing of the material lay on tho brush freely, and rjuantity rather than quality is what is desired. Those three amateur painters have been having a high time of it at each other's expense. Mr Bracken described Mr Green "as a simpleton, free from guile, but soft as a boiled turnip," &c. Now that wa.s rather neatly turned and practical for an amateur poet and painter. AVell when those gentlemen left one another alone, business proceeded briskly, and when the House adjourned a few minutes after three a good night's work had been done.

Tuesday afternoon was occupied with the education report, if that which represented nothing could bo dignified by such a name. One gentleman described the committee as tho greatest pandemonium he had ever witnessed, while the confusion of tongues at tho Tower of Babel would not havo been in the .street with the committee's doings. The upshot of the report was, as an outsider put it, that for the future the only ono qualified to, bo on a committee inquiring into the educational system was a Chinaman, as men belonging to any religious body whatever Were not competent. The committee undoubtedly made a groat mistake in only having clerical evidence, and from that one source all the troubles sprang. They took the only class of evidence that was worthless, as it was representative of nothing but the individuals giving it. One thing-, however, was abundantly evident, aud that was that no tinkering with tho Education Act Avill be tolerated for a moment.

On AVednesday tho House interested itself greatly in the case of Angelique Therassc, who, it appears, was wrongfully convicted of theft, and whoso case has excited a great deal of interest in AVelliugton, in fact we have had a mild excitement over the matter. lam afraid I know more of that caso than most folks. I think thoro would havo been very littlo hoard of it were i,t not for the " tiff " that took place between Mr Hardcastlo and Mr Fitzhcrbert in the Court, Leading-articles have been devoted to the virtues of tho young Frenchwoman. I read in ono " the victim remains brandod during tho term of her natural life," and drew a touching picture of tho wrongs sho had suffered, anel so did members in the House. I havo no wish to say anything hard of anyone, but surely those who talk so glibly forget that when the young woman was apprehended she had only been discharged from gaol the previous day for a theft of which there was no doubt. I do not say that justified the other sentence, but heavens it should have discounted a little of that virtuous indignation. The young woman was not the highly virtuous individual she was painted. On her first conviction it wa.s proved by the police that she had been living at a restaurant with a man who was not her husband. These bo your gods, 0 Israel. AVhat blind dupes public opinion and public impulse are. Thursday we had no time for sentiment, we had but one object in view, work, steady and prolonged. When I say that eleven bills were finally passed, the reader may judge of how we were doing our duty. AVhcn things are going smoothly and in their proper course how littlo thero is for the special correspondent to write about. We had little more Frenchwoman, but with that exception we had nothing but tlr dryest and dullest of details to listen to, find 1 ' elcbate on. < '''

On Friday we had tho debate par excellence of the session, a debate which will live long in the minds of those who listened to it. For the nonce personalities and corruption were forgotten, members spoke as rational men swayed with groat excitement, and over tho assemblage there was that feeling which one but now and again experiences, and. if it bo not cant to say it I should term it a holy awe. The Committee on Public Petitions had reported on Longhurst's case to the effect that it should be referred to Government owing to tho late period of the session. A motion was made that tho report aud petition be laid on tho table. Mr Shaw at once rose and moved, as an amondment, that thoy be referred to Government for favorable consideration. I have before now expressed my warm approval of the manner of Mr Shaw's address, and when ho speaks without restraint on a

subject which ho thoroughly understands there is no more effective speaker in that House. His manner is what avo call, for lack of some better mode of expression, the manner of a gentleman. He never bores you by reiteration, he puts his case Avith the ease and fluency of an accomplished lawyer, and some day not far distant Mr Shaw, if he continues a member of that House—and his exclusion Avould be the colony's loss—will be head of a Government. He has what avc may term the ear of the House, he is always listened to attentively, not that anything sensational or piquant is expected—we look for that in other directions—but because of the modest demeanour of tho man. On this occasion lie made the speech of an advocate to a jui-A". It was an impassioned speech, a speech that Avould not bear analysis, but it achieved its objects, it claimed and it received the sympathy of the members. He Avas folloAved by a man equally popular, who is distinguished among all tho members of tho Opposition for his fairness, avlio r.cver gives forth an uncertain sound, and perhaps tho hardest hitter of a very hard hittinsr crowd. Need I say I refer to Mr Sheehan. This gentleman has ahvays given me the idea that you have only to give him the slightest cue or the smallest of lines to folloAV, and ho is ready there and then to achieve the purpose in view. Ho. said the Government ought to do Avhat. every honest man would have done in the" case, and that Avas discharge Longhurst. Mr Conolly objected to tho statement as to honesty, and the Speaker thought it should be softened a little, but that did not disturb our free aud easy going friend. I should give somcthing'to sec that gentleman—avoll let mc put it— A-nlgarly " knocked off his porch." Ho . _i„ (instead of being 1 fliunmcrghasted, ([noting Major Atkinson's expressive word; he was only asking the Minister not to be afraid of doing a littlo wrong if a great right Avould bo tho result of that wrong doing. Of courso that fetched Mr Conolly. I have so recently expressed my vicAV.s of this dapper, pert, bright-eyed gentleman that I need not here repeat them. He had read the evidence and his verdict Avas that Longhurst had been guilty. Mr Fitzgerald, avlio I am afraid in spite of his great size has a heart out of all proportion to that body—Avhich reminds me that I only know two medical men well, one is bulky the other small, the latter would not move a muscle in performing the dangerous operation of cutting out a man's tongue, while tho other, who is fast rising into prominence in spite of his kindness, could not probe a boil Avithout having a kindly sympathy for his patient. But to return to Mr Fitzgerald — the Irish heart ever warm had been deeply touched by Mr Shaw, and of course Mr Shaw's action had his Avarm support. Ho was folloAved by others, all in the same strain, and it Avas manifest that the leaven of excitement was beginning to work, logic Avas thrown overboard, and men Avere yielding fast to their better impulses, Avhich, good as thoy may be in a debate of such a character, could not be desirable. Tho ferment Avas working among a class of mon not easy to arouse, men avlio arc used to stirring scenes and strong excitement, when up rose a man, who always aa _lks a step or tAvo toAvards a a chair—probably copied from his neighbor who occupies part of his bench, Sir G. Grey —before commencing a speech. In a A-oice, Avith a tone, Avith a'face, that neither betrayed excitement nor a knowledge of that which Avas seething around him, he implored (and Mr do Lautour never spoke better in his life) tho House to pause. AVhat did they think they were Avhat the result—tho legitimate result—of that which they proposed to do ? The proposal meant the taking the prerogative of mercy out of the hands"of a responsible Minister, and to exercise it at the bidding of an Assembly swayed by the passions of _ the moment. AVhile he condemned the Minister for the indiscretion of giving his own opinion on tho matter, due to his inexperience in polities', lie Avould say this, "A more righteously-intentioiicd Minister of Justice never sat on those benches than the Hon. Mr Conolly." To the credit of the leader of tho Opposition, be it said, _he strongly supported Mr do Lautour's advice, and after some more talk the dedate Avas indefinitely adjourned, and as the inner man demanded attention I left the Gallery.