A PEEP BEHIND THE SCENES.

Manawatu Times, Volume IV, Issue 44, 2 June 1880, Page 2

A PEEP BEHIND THE SCENES.

c The Mowing inteifesiing ; sitet»h of the. ceremony- of" opening i'arUament, which weextract from our contempoHn^Jie Evening* Post, will be read ; with by those. „■ who haTe^Bexer j^-'ti». ceremony :— j, , , r There ,ia just tim«to,glane# into theHOUB«- - R^i>resentativtebefore the ceJremonyin th»> Legislativ^Oduncil'ljegint. |t presentt a: dreary --and.-^owaken^ap^peaT|poey~and th«few members^irho areassembl^jlook rather [ja if.they^didn't exabtty know :f:njr they^ were there or Srhat was-going to become of them. [Thdeed if it.were not a grot*breaoH of privilege I skbuioi'fVe inclined to thin^ that mps^ of them, are very, ; douhltfji»l ab«ufe ' their -oZ^flwfede'stinftiabn^ Weeanaot see. ■Mr. O'Borke from the Reporters' Gallery, ■fciifc we have nodoubt heat'cag^dia^iin hw absurd little bp* down below. There is the. Hon. the Premieii, iboking yery bright and cheerful, and radiant m a, brand new^ wnrtft. hat/ apparently brought i)ut J fdr the occasion. He -has a.large^-pile of portentiQn*-. looking papers on. his desk, and is talking to the clerk at thetable about one of them. ■We notice that tb^y m all ««tlj dona :^

~J!?-- blue ribbon — which to those gifted speoial correspondents," who deduce the - Most startliD^political deductions from the •lenderast Judications, may be onunous, «therassi|princant' of "True Blue Torviim of attaohmenttp blue blood," or <v augury . .;. °- f .™ ffltenhonof the present Government to do away: entirely with red-tape. There « prosy but well-meaning Mr. Murray, sit-, fan^acpqs^an arm*of one .of the benchet, gracef ullyjwinging hia, leftleg m the air* and improvmg;the minds olthrHbh; the Mini^ •tcp for Public Works and^Mr. Svransoh ; there is the Hon. the Colonial Treasurer, beaming as usual with active benevolence m •very feature ; there ia Mr. Mason the member fortheiHutt, reading a- newspaper, oblivious of everybody ; there is the good-look-ing young member for WAi^apa (Mr. Beetham) r there^is thaf sorafetimes liumorbus, but often tedious old Auckland**, Dr. , I^o^mor¥'mlgliib! be named, most of them wandering, about like unea^jspirifcs waiting &£ tne' cock to crow, no that theymayyanish^way. Two of the Maori metobers puti n an appearance, aitd t Bit down with an air of satisfied -content to wait for the *' Zbrero.'?^' ' ! - SJ . :: ,, It is now.twb o'clbck, and high time to repair. to,? the Lords." ; Every Available . portion of the floor ia tightly packed with ladies.^ It is the invariable fashibh'tb %peak' of the bnght : hues of the ladies' = dresses^ on these occasious-rbut I muafc ssacrific ev o n gallantry to save a -reputation a» a faithful chronicler, then, ; cbmpel B Jme ;i to •tatethat the ladies are mostly attired m -wintepwalking ctfstunies; and although their , bright faces ,— Heaven -bless -them ! — do hgliten up that somewhat dingy and disrei putable old chamberrthere is no " bla^e of L colpi- '^costly und; ih%:huea^tou ■■ leWes. ; r ..;.:,,-" .>-"; - ; .'(;i>; ; .. '...}.. There are very;few.pegi3laiive:Gburioillors preseat tojdb; hbn9r;tothe,.occasibn— Ifchink only eleven r ali told. ..." In addition to. the Speaker (Sir William Fifcztierbierii), I notice , the Hon; John r Martin^ the Hbri *C Hart, . the Hon. ,0. J, rPharazyn, the Hbn. Dr. , Grace, the Son. IV*. Buckly, tKe'Hoh. W. Wood, the.Hon, Sir Dillon Bell, the Hon. P. A. Whitaker, the Hon. W. D.' H. Badlie and the Hon. J. If. yS^Uson. They are all- at tired 'm evening^ dress eic»pt ,t>ne honorable member from the' East Coast;, who.; for gome inscrutable reiisonj has on a . very high, olerical-cu^ waisifeSaifc; and a pair v of feroua&s; siirikes me pirfbpnb: bur colonial * 5 is tbeir particularly .sad »nd downcast expres-sion^^'Whjßfehinr^u.-'owiiig-'kl the fact of " i b »f^' }"?&$$ f nftt^Mr.iffeorge Augustus Sala alway^fealls "claw-hammer" ooats op • gmltyt knowledge that the ejpsrof their . • better halves" ate.pn. them, I cannot say, but, outside of a fashibnable funeral cortege, h i? h ,t>e Had been doubly Fee d, I never iaw sueVunutterable melan--choly. ~""" ' ;_ \ Presentlj tlie silewoe iscirbken D y a slight stir, and? the Hon. Lady Robinson, accompanied, bj M«^ St. and Miss Jtobuwon^nter,'and the party are escorted by Sir William. Jfitzhwbert to seats prepared for them on-tHe left of the Speaker's *£*£<•!■ T hel*dief areattired irfj ordinary visiting dreas.'LaayTßobinson is weariLg a black silk cormg, with, plastron pi black . «atm and a- 'bonnet; trimmed'- -witK' Wornflowers.. Mrs St. John has. also a black eilk-drws, with iecWrpe'ot cashmere, and a blac-fe bonnet trimmed with roses. Miss Bobmsbn, on thejother ;hand,' wears a dress of. sage-green,^ farimmed V( with " embroiderf , and bonnet to° match, trunmed with paacocVs feathers. All three, also, it is. noticed carry very handsome b^uquetg. _. Barely have we had time fcb notice' these facts, than the flist guns of the salutt are heard, _ A seconds later the doors 'are flung wide open, ahdtlie strains of the National An(;hem are, JieardO lAll is now expectancy; ' Thbge.whbse ideas of the open^ ing of Parliament are, derived .from the traditions! of - f / Westminisier Ji Palace, and who look for a^orgpQus procession of Pursuivants, Heralds, Rouge Dragon, Rouge Cfoix, Blueniantle,,iPprtculUV,i and^dther 'pillars of a mbriarchicai Government, are duappbinted. ICbol little cortege which enters. is composed ofvonljrr six persons— his Jixeellency the Governor, m his Windsor uniforin.jand ithe. Order of a Knight ; Camimander of, : Sti Michael . and //Sb/Seoi-ge, presenting; as he ajwajs, a fine eoldiery appearance j -his aide-decamp, Captain Sti John, m staff unifpnn j .-■> h.fsrErcellency's .privateaeeretary/the Rev: C. Mi Thompsbn,-----w ordinary evening dress ; and the German and American Consuls^ iMr^'JT. A, Krull apd Captain M'lntyre, wearing their respective .. uniforms— the fornieii especially attracting considerable admiration from its neatnass. Slightly doffing his . cocked hat, andvbowrfgjfome'wKatstiffly ioi-Ks "Lords " on either side as he'lralks up t^e Chamber, his Exeellenpy;* Jakes iithe' 'Speaker's chair, vacated for the nonce bjr Sir William Fitzherbert. Suddenly some ■ amusenieilt is caused by. the^ door : being:, opened^ and r a sacrilegious stranger^ calmly, stalking into the august, iasembJage^ --He-is promptly •eked by a messenger anishowri 'out.again •with considerable alacrity, m a somewhat' astonished jcondition. — — ■ : As soon as the Governor ;s comfortably jieaUd, Captain-Sibl John ,'is >deSpaichdd ?for the faithful^ommoM ''-iiorVat least, thW colonial representatives. If that gallant qfiicer had betfn-prbljeedin hi, could have gone aboa>_ it m a more matter*.' of-factway.- There are none of those pro-: fuse g#nufleeydns..ifeußilylaftwt^d on these occasions, THe gallant captain, bustks, off m the^rridet dnfcflMm^ni6lto';Way : V the Lower House^-and- very soon returns inthe snme.^noslentatiQUs manner. The Spe«ker J in^his'*oifecM u robeSi ; arid Major Paul, bearing the" mace, as he alone kpowsj how to wieldii^, appear 1 af th^ head bf about 1 28 members of thejtojase of Rtpresentatives. There i§ no "bar" for them to stand at,! and his Excellen'cxintrod.ucti'an innovation; ,- by requestinf^'^^Speakpr landisthathan/ Legislative OoiinciUors ; to; |^ise>'t*a> jy hile tile speech v rt»d^ 'jhe members of thft Lower House remain standing, m fact thertj i» no..oppp/tunitj:;fp? ; tb"«niito"*it 'down, un«i )ess they Qh,OQse tpsqua^ onthe flopr. :Hii' ExceUenbyVstmted m the Speakers' CJhaip,; and with covered head, rtads the speech m! a very clear, distirict Vb^cii. yj He appears toj lay especial stress on that portion m which! her- Majesty's Ministers inculcate t'ne. virtuet o|«^noq»y,jrhile thehon, Goupcilr lors add to their, former gloomy look 'an expriMiion of deep, penitence, as if they! know they are tlx* cause of all the mischief,! and promise not "'todo so any more " The; the bauding, again bowing to the Council-; ipn, irhp-ris^pn either, side/of hitt»,(anoth»r ialmt* is fired, the National Anthen\ is agajn iaayadr/ana^tHe^Secona SSs3Wßi* of the Par|i«n>e|pt hai fairly eommeQCid.