SIR HERCULES ROBINSON.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue XIV, 1 April 1879, Page 4

SIR HERCULES ROBINSON.

I" Wellington Chronicle.'J

Sir Hercules Robinson is at present the observed of all observers, not oDly in Wellington but throughout New Zealand. To every colonist in theße islands it is a matter of grave importance to know what manner of man the representative of oor beloved Queen is. It is tbe ardent wish of one and all that Sir Hercules Bboold prove such a viceroy, as will, if that be possible, knit in still closer bonds this rising colony from the great motherland from which i< sprang. It would be almost aoiille work to point out that very much depends upon the Governor of a colouy endowed, as New Zealand is, with free institutions. He might prove a etumbHog block to tbe march of progress, or he might act sa a powerful motor to stimulate and advance tbat march. He might bold tbe balance evenly between rival parties, or be might side with one political faction, and irritate the i ot_er to incurable hostility, * * The chief qualification, more important than all the others combined— that we should j expect in our Governor should bo ' firmness. He; should, above all things, be a «till, strcng man, who, even in tho gravest crisis never loses his presence I of mind for an instant, but with his eye resolutely fixtd upon duty os his polf-atar, steers tha ship of State wiih unflinching hand and steady brain •midst the wildest tempests of party strife. We speak with considerable knowledge of Sir Hercules Robinson's p*st career when we declare tbat it is j our fixed conviction that he possesses I in an eminent degree, the virtuo of firmness. We are also sure that be is endowed with a clear bead no less than with a bold heart. He has the perspicacity to discern the right from tbe wrong, and tbat too when less cool heads might, in the excitement by which ihey were encompassed, be carried away in the whirl and lose their balance. Another important desideratum in the representative of royalty ia tact —the faculty of doing pleasant things in an agreeable manner, and of robbing unpleasant actions of half their bitterness by the suave and gentlemanly manner in which tbey are performed. This faculty Sir Hercules has in a marked degree. The Governor of a constitutional colony should be intimately acquainted with constitutional history, and thoroughly versed in constitutional law and practice. It will not unfrequently occur that he will be called upon to decide in brief space of time upon some grave constitutional question, as to the right of a Ministry to have a dissolution of Parliament 'when they have sustained a defeat in the House, or have become too weak to place their policy on the statue book. A mistake made on such an occasion as this might involve disastrous results to the political institutions of the colony, and engender a bitterness of feeling bordering on revolutionary principles. •*•*#♦ The Governor of New Zealand should be a man of some ability as an orator ; for there are many occasions on which he is required to speak in public. It is a sorry thing to bear a Governor addressing an audience in nerveless and slipshod English. The representative . of Royalty makes a poor figure, if, when he is speaking to a large assemblage, his utterances are so mumbled and indistinct tbat only tbe persons within a few yards of bim are able, even with the utmost bi raining, to catch what be says. Well, can from experience affirm that Sir Hercules is no man of this kind. As an orator he is facile princeps amongst Australians Governors past or present. Both his matter and bis manner are excellent. His speeches are no less pleasant to listen to in the crowded hall than they are instructive to study in tbe solitude of the cloeet. They are couched in fine vigorous language from the " well of English pure and undefiled," and tbey are pregnant with tbe high thoughts and capacious views of tbe genuine statesman. Tbe Governor of New Zealand should be ho ascetic, who seldom appears before or amongst \he people. He should be no decrepit old man incapable of taking part in tho manly out-door pastimes and amusements of the people, whoße vice-ruler he is. On the contrary he should be a man of active vigorous habits, mingling freely in all the rational pleasures of his people, teaching them by example, the most powerful of all teachers, bow to preserve tbe mens tana in carport sano. In this respect Sir Hercules Robinson is peculiarly giltod. All our national sports will find in him not only a generous patron, but an ardent participator. Finally, the position of Governor demands that its occupant should be tbe leader of society. In our new Governor we shsil find a leader of society who will encourage that sterling manliness, that detestation of snobbery, that horror of assumption, whioh are so essential in the colony where, owing to the rapidity with which fortunes are acquired, men are so apt to become purae«proud; and, having obtained possession of wealth, to lord it over people who are infinitely their superiors in everything save tbe accident of riches. Sir Herenles will not tolerate those jackdaws who, having borrowed tbe plumage of peacocks, try to impose on the public. With him " Tbe rank is but the guinea stamp, The man's the gold for a' that." [bydney Morning Herald.'] Sir Hercules Robinson is conspicuous for force of character, and all his nature therefore impelled him to be an active Goyernor. The post of roi/ain-

eant would not be at all to his tasle, and he is not at ail likely, wherever he may be, to delegate the proper functions of a constitutional Governor to other people. He cahie to New tfouth "Wales after a term of services iu Crown colonies, and had to learn here to practise the difference between governing and deigning. Our neighbours in New Zealand will have all the benefit of his practical studies of that distinction, and will receive a ruler whose experience has been ripened by several controversies on tho respective functions of Par liament, Cabinet, and Crown. They will find him a loyal supporter of the Constitution, active iu tbe exercise, and Rrtn in the maintenance, of the duties and rights attached to his office, and an ardent advocate of the Imperial connection. They are sure to receive hira cordially, and we doubt not that they will, as we do now, part with hira with regret. Wo do not think that the public speeches of a Governor can materially control the force of popular movements, or much accelerate or retard the rate of those movements. But the public utterances of Sir Hercules Robinsoa have been in the right direction, and have been contributions towards the formation of sound opinion. His forte Is not imagination, or brilliancy of style, but his speeches have all been marked by clear-cut thinking, and no wavering about either his thoughts or his words. He speaks clearly, because he thinks clearly, and he treads firmly as one confident of his ground. He may sometimes have gone perilously near to the line where it is politic for a Governor to halt ; but, if so, the fault has leaned to virtue's side, as it is at all times better for a man to be a little too courageous than cowardly.