THE COLLECTIVE WISDOM.

Colonist, Volume IV, Issue 332, 25 December 1860, Page 3

THE COLLECTIVE WISDOM.

In Mr. Lyon's window, among other intellectual treats, our readers may see a novelty of a very interesting character; a series of photographic portraits, of the members of the late House of xissembly, which if not as large as life, nor twice as natural, convey, we are informed, an admiral idea of the personal beauties and graces of the people. And we are bound to say, as the result of a careful inspection, that if we except one or two monstrous ugly fellows, (whose feelings, however, we shall not hurt by specifying them) they compose an extremely intelligent and good looking groupe of men. For the manner in which they have been put on paper, the artist Mr. J. N. Ci^jnbie is entitled to the highest praise. We are informed that the admirers of either the whole or of any individual among them, may have duplicates on applying to him through Mr. Lyon. The central figure of the group is a full length portrait of Sir Charles Clifford, the late Speaker—a capital likeness, which may well recal to the: recollection of members the courteous demeanour, and dignified aspect, of the first and probably the best tenant of the Speaker's chair that we are likely to see. His Honor quitted the chair amidst expressions of regret from all sides of the House, that one who had so well filled it ior so many years, was about by his return to England to deprive the colony of his services. At the top of the group Mr. Crombie has placed the three ministers Stafford, Richmond, and Weld—ministers, we hope, "positively for the last time." Stafford tries to look dignified, but not with much success—Richmond is intelligent, but with more compression and manliness of countenance than we remember in his face— Weld's features come off weak and misty, a good deal as his speeches read—and is not one of the most successful portraits any more than be proved one of the most successful orators. There is a sort ot "dissolving view " effect about his visage, which possibly foreshadows his fate at the approaching election. Close to the ministry come the leaders of "her Majesty's Opposition." The portrait of Dr. Featherston is admirable. He looks much as we imagine he must have looked when waiting to bring on those finance motions, which he introduced by his masterly dissection of Richmond's budget, and which ended in three several defeats of the ministry, Few will deny that whether pronologically or physiognomically, it is about the most intellectual head of the lot. The contrast between the genuineness of Featherston's expression, and the got up air of Stafford's i? very remarkable, and very indicative of the men. Fox, on the other side of the group, ■eetns mentally dissecting some fallacy of Richmond's, and jotting it down in his memory for the moment when he will indulge in a reply, blending, as the New Zealander says, " sarcasm, a leetle touch of stump declamation, and good logical hard hitting." He looks, [however, in a rather more bitter mood than we have been accustomed to see him while in repose, though , we dare say, when he is having a fling at '**an opponent worthy of his zeal, he may look " knify " enough. Fitzherbert's is a capital likeness—the very image of him when he awakes up from an apparent doze, but a real cat's sleep with both eyes open, to pitch into some weight on the other side; just as he may have done when rising to anatomise the wordy fluences of Richmond, junior, or Monro of the graceful hand—to expose the attempted jobberies of the Taranaki sufferers* report, on the monstrous proposal to build a central Lunatic Asylum with borrowed money. Our friend Rhodes will be recognised not far off—his good natured, shrewd, sensible, honest face, always found on the right side in a division, though seldom attracting the attention of the reporter's gallery. We hear though that on the few occasions in which he did speak, particularly when advocating the rights of militia men, his talk was solid, pointed, well delivered, and listened to with mark respect; as that of a man, who, though he might say little, was a real actor in life. Renall comes next, "a frank and humorous ipeaker," says the New Zeatander, "who apparently always speaks what is uppermost in his mind, and who more than once enlivened a very dull and prosy debate." He had, we are told, the useful habit of ventilating large principles, leaving on one tide the mere question at issue, and indicating things that some day may be leading questions. His fearless style of address, and the judgment with which he refrained from prolonging his speeches too much, or speaking two often, secured him a very good standing ground; and we hear that on more than one occasion his rising to speak ■topped the "tide of immigration" from the House, which usually set in, when JVC. Richmond, little Heale, or other windbags were in possession of the floor. The likeness is very good. Mr. Carter's likeness is also good, bat on a scale rather too; large for the others—his plain, earnest, matter of fact speeches told well with the House on all occasions when he took part in the debates. His speech on the New Provinces Repeal Bill, was, we hear, the best that was delivered on that occasion. The leader of the onslaught on the New Provinces Act, Mr. Gillies of Otagd, must not be omitted. A new member in the House, he was not long in taking a foremost place in it. His legal knowledge and general aptitude for business, readiness of speech and good sound sense, which he brought to bear on every question, proved him well qualified for a seat in the house; and during the latter part of the session there was no member whom Stafford lew liked to see on his legs thau the honorajjk member for. Qtago. He coaducted

the case against the New Provinces Act with great discretion, and we trust to see him before the table of the House with a similar motion the very first week of the next. Among the • Auckland members will be found Mr. Williamson the Superintendent of that Province, (the outside head on the left,) a practical business like speaker, who makes no attempt at oratory, but never speaks without effect On the opposite side, a dark banditti looking gentleman, with beetling brows, and bearded like the pard, is Carleton, grim visaged and sour, just as he looks when as chair man of committees he is about to call some member to order for crossing the floor of the House without a bow, or opening a newspaper. If he was a school master and we a small boy, we should certainly give him a wide berth. He is an embarrassed speaker, with an unharmonious voice, but generally speaks to the point, and with logical precision of thought, though the conclusion to which all his premises led is invariably, that Hugh Carleton is the only man. His egotism has cost him the support of such of the Auckland members as once swore by him, and he now standsalone—a position from which rumor affirms he aims at the vacant Speakership. Near him sits Forsaith —a solemn speaker, well up in native affairs, and generally sound in his theories on that subject—and whose loss should he not return to the House, it will in that particular be difficult to supply. Henderson one of " nature's gentlemen," liked and esteemed by everybody, but who seems to have registered a vow to hold his peace, while his visits exhibit his shrewdness and good sense. Logan Campball, who from his position in the community ought to fill a prominent place in the House, but who is such a political shadow of the ministry that the sooner he retires into private life the better. Farmer, is that shadows' shadow—and only suggests how hard up the district he represents must have been when they chose him. His portrait is a remarkable resemblance to some of the most authentic likenesses of Shakspear, and makes one wonder that the caprice of nature should have condescended to frame two men, so exactly the antipodes of each other in talent, and yet externally so much alike. Archibald Clark, a canny Scotchman, whose difficulty seemed to be to reconcile his votes with his conscience a task which gave to a precise and well-worded oratory, a somewhat puzzel-headed effect—and made one sometimes suspect that while his principles would have enlisted him on one side of the House, his interests were drag* ging him over to the other. Robert Graham, also a shrewd Scotchman, but when he speaks, which is not often, exhibiting a more impulsive mind than Clark's, and less suggestive of an enquiry, as to which side his bread is buttered on. Mr. Daldy, the Joey Hume of the House, always up on finance, not an orator, but a clear and emphatic speaker, usually " harking back " to principle, and sticking to his point, not easily put down or put out, and a source of much discomfiture to a tricky treasurer who had his red hand in the provincial balances. Symonds, whose woe-begone aspect near the bottom of the group, justifies his sobriquet of " simple Symonds," though whether it was pure simplicity which made him vote on the New Provinces Act as he did, may be questioned. Next to Symonds is Heale, whose head is too big for his body, and who dances in his speeches exactly like one of those children's toys whose motions are controlled by a string between their legs; he is Whitaker's partner in the copper mines, and was his rotten borough in the House. He ought to have been taken during the debate on the Auckland direct steam, when, we understand, he looked the martyr he must have felt. " ° ■ . Haul tain, a fine, handsome, soldierly I man, whom some suggest as the new speaker. He is a militia officer, and a stauch supporter of the miniatry, but seldom speaks. Dillon Bell, whom our readers will recognise looking his very best and trying to do it, as if going in for a governmenthouse dinner, which he is so well calculated to adorn. Moorhouse, Superintendent of Canterbury, who, evidently knowing the value of appearance, has put on his best coat for the occasion, and who does not give one the idea that he could walk in to his opponents in such a sledge hammer style as he is said to have done on the New Provinces Act. Crosbie Ward, a good-looking fellow, with a handsome beard and a pleasant voice, who is giving his mind to finance. He made his mark pretty high up, so much so that he was talked of as Treasurer in the case of a change of ministry. Cookson, a hearty, good-humored, sensible man, who never speaks. Jollie, who was .done Brown on the new Representative Act, and Brown, who with his other colleagues, did Jollie on that occasion ; he was chairman of the celebated Waikato Committee. Curtis, of Nelson, the greatest "chip in porridge" in the house, who contributes nothing either to its use or its ornament. Old Domett, whose speeches are growls, and Monro, whose orations are musical exercises. Kelling, a German, who, if he could escape Monro's patronage, might do well. J. C. Richmond, who has apparently read Cornewall Lewis's despatch, and it has not agreed with him. King, of Taranaki, whose dynasty has been superseded at the late election by the other King ("under which King Benzonian?") King the second being the hero of the petticoat war. Sawejl, who after opposing the ministry

all the session, has taken office under them now that it is over. These, Unless we have aceidently omitted any, make up the.group. At the boltom, at each corner, are added Mr. Cavnpbell, the courteus and methodical clerk of the House, and Mr. Mayne, the Serjeant-at-Arms, the right man in the right place, for once in the world's history. > Why Mr. Croinbie has not stereotyped the sweet countenances of the other House, we are at a loss to understand. Possibly he thought that as, they were all "lifers," another time might do as well—while in the House of Representatives, unless he " caught the Cynthia of the minute," there might be a good many of whom he might not have another chance. Report says that several of the Nelson, and some of the Auckland members are likely to retire into private life; Weld, and possibly Stafford among the number. We hope, however, that on a future Occasion, Mr. Crombie will enable us to judge by actual inspection of the quality of the Upper House. At present we have only a sample of that sack, and, whether an average sample or not, we are unable to say.— rffldlingtpn Independent.