PARLIAMENTARY PERSONALITIES.—II.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5419, 9 August 1878, Page 2

PARLIAMENTARY PERSONALITIES.—II.

Br a Stbangek in the Gallery. During the past week the ice of conventionality in debate has hardly been broken. The carefully worded and elaborate Financial Statement of Mr. Ballance stamps that Minister as a man anxious to please the public. With a bland manner, combined with a certain persuasiveness, he is a little tiring in his style of delivery, and decidedly tame as an orator-.

The somewhat jerky, blustering utterance of the Native Minister, while it impresses one with a'sense of respect for the strength of character displayed by Mr. Sheehan, wants finish and smoothness. His jokes have a tendency to bo rough and ready, and his arguments will not always boar close inspection. His frank manner of abandoning a weak position displays a courageous spirit; but I fancy that the hot Celtic blood in his veins may at times show him to bo a rash and dangerous partisan. ■ Mr. Barton shows a sense of respect for the House conspicuous by its absenso in his behavior in a Court of Law. His racy brogue when he declared that “ho gloried in the name of an Englishman, and called upon tho House to defend tho ‘honor’ of the Cons itution,” elicited shouts of merriment. The whole tenor of his speech smacked strongly-of the “will anybody tread on tho tail of my coat" spirit; and in listening to his aggressive attacks, one is constantly reminded of tho old Donuybrook Fair maxim, “ Wherever you see a head hit it.”

It was ,a fair hit dealt to Mr. Fox by Mr. Thomson iu tho debate tho other night, when the former was again asking for inconvenient information about native matters, Mr. Thomson remarked there were a groat many natives iu Wellington at present ; ho bad passed a number of native ladies that day smoking their pipes iu tbs street. Ho regretted he could not ask them for information on native matters, as he was ignoraut of their language ; and as he believed Mr. Fox was a good Maori scholar, he recommended him (Mr. Fox) to apply tor information at the fountain-head. Mr. Fox, nettled by tho sarcasm, replied that the hon. member had better not think of studying the Maori language until he had first learnt his native tongue and studied English, because tho hyperborean language indulged iu by Mr. Thomson was wellnigh unintelligible. I regretted at tho time that I bad no dictionary haudy.to inform rao of the exact meaning of the word “ hyperborean,” and possibly some others wore present who also mourned over their ignorance. • y.