Sir Francis Bell

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 543, 21 December 1928, Page 7 (Supplement)

Sir Francis Bell

(By

PERCIVAL R. WADDY

8.A. , LL.M.)

“Odi profanum vulgus, et arceo." — Horatius. among the flamboyant members of our community, nor in the serried ranks of popularity-hunting politicians, do I seek for the man whom I regard as New Zealand’s Most Distinguished Living Son. On the contrary, I look for a man of outstanding personality, whose humanity is all-embracing, whose knowledge is encyclopaedic, whose mind is vigorous, and whose sympathies are warm. Will; my quest for the ideal be in vain? I see in my mind’s eye a man whose dignity and courtesy are alike impressive, who has a broad and sane outlook on life, and I unhesitatingly name the Right Honourable Sir Francis Bell as the man I seek. A quiet, grave-looking man, of simple habits and undemonstrative manners, I see in Sir Francis, a sober-minded, practical politician, of high principles, untiring energy, and great administrative ability, from whose every pore seems to exude the personification of power. A New Zealander by birth, first seeing the light of day amid the apple blossoms of Nelson, a branch of a good old family tree, born of a father who earned ail honoured name threequarters of a century ago as a grand old pioneer of our prosperous little country, the subject of my essay, bearing the hallmark of a Cambridge

University education and the legal stamp of the Middle Temple, has perpetuated his family tradition, and, developing into a constitntional lawyer of the highest repute, has established a claim to the Horatian boast: "Exegi monimentum aerc perenniusP Few people beyond those in the inner circle have aiy idea of the quiet sway which, for the past quarter of a century, has been exercised by Sir Francis Bell. Ever since the demise ot Richard John Seddon, the real power behind the throne has been the undemonstrative, yet allpowerful, head of the great firm which has long ranked high in the New Zealand legal arena. In common with the famous Marquis ot Hartington, the sanctity of the law has always come first in the esteem of Sir Francis Bell, and never was it more conspicuously demonstrated than iu the maritime strike of 1913. Strange though it may seem, the dominant figure of those dark days, by virtue of his unobtrusive disposition, could have walked unnoticed from one end of the Port Nicholson wharves to the other, though his was the potent personality which commanded the acute position, all unknown to the “Man in the Street.” Sir Francis Bell has spoon-fed, tutored, and

drilled at least two Prime Ministers, and played a big part in the appointment of one Chief Justice. The strongest tribute to his probity and discretion lies in the fact that, through an 'unceasing official career of a quarter of a century, in a time of transition and trouble, despite the bitterness and intrigue prevailing, he has never once been the subject of Parliamentary attack, and 1 may safely say that he has won the respect and affection of all those who are privileged to know him.