Seddon himself, William can reach the hearts of ordinary people. Men in particular see that he has intimate knowledge of the lives they lead, despite the position and wealth he has gained, and they are swayed by the directness and forcefulness of his speech. His command to rowdy hecklers to ‘kennel up, you curs’ has become almost a legend, shouted by his supporters at any who opposed him during the Tuapeka meetings.
His opponent in the by-election was Mr Scobie Mackenzie, a great landowner and a man of self-regard and condescension. It was a close thing, but William triumphed by less than sixty votes. He and Mackenzie went at it hammer and tongs, to the great delightof the voters who gathered in church and town halls, and sheds, or congregated from their work in open spaces if the weather was fine. Both of them said things improper for women to hear, and both sexes enjoyed the comment all the more for that impropriety. It heartened me to see the number of women there, and I hope my presence with my husband on many of the campaign trips encouraged them to take full advantage of the greater political responsibility they have been granted. They have turned out to vote in excellent numbers, and now must become accustomed to using the power of the franchise to remedy long-standing discrimination against themselves in both law and practice.
Dougie tells me that his father is a man’s man, but he has a regard for women that goes beyond the natural admiration the male sex is born with. At a musical evening in Wellington before my marriage, Joseph Ward, another before whom Seddon dangles a knighthood, told me that William supported women’s franchise, and he later proved it, though I have not yet persuaded him that we are quite responsible enough to be members of the colony’s Parliament. I will come again at him with that question. William allows me liberties in argument that he opposes in others, and that is surely one of the privileges of a wife. He will not be cowed himself, and has no respect for those who allow themselves to be cowed. Dougie sometimes shows impatience at what he sees as his father’s old-fashioned views, but William has a strong concern for the common man despite his own elevation. He spoke up for the decent treatment of Chinese miners here when others were hostile, or indifferent, and his employees are treated better thanmost. Some of the household staff have taken advantage of his goodwill. I have had cause to correct several who had become lax, or presumptuous, when poor Mary was mistress of The Camp, and later when there was no mistress and Dougie was in charge.
Being out on the hustings has made me realise that life is not easy for many of these people in out-of-the-way places. We were given the best public accommodation, and that was often only bearable. The glimpses of everyday life make me aware how fortunate I have been in family and circumstance. Heavens, the smell of many of those in service, and many whose position offers less excuse. And the familiarity of address. Local chairmen of this or that insignificant board who spoke at length and grandly of their contributions and aspirations, while my attention wandered to their grimy collars and fingernails. I have been invited to see rabbits shot, to join a good lady in salting pork and to instruct spinster women in the putting up of their hair. It is hard for women here, and many are coarsened by work and weather. In the city I am active in improving the lot of my sex, but I find it difficult to see how much can be achieved in remote places at present.
William loves to travel, despite the fact it must tire him more than it would a younger person. The long sea voyages, the wearisome steamer trips to Wellington and back, the uncomfortable coaches on ill-formed roads, seem little to him in his consuming interest in new places, people and opportunities. When he was minister of mines he insisted on visiting camps no other politician would
His opponent in the by-election was Mr Scobie Mackenzie, a great landowner and a man of self-regard and condescension. It was a close thing, but William triumphed by less than sixty votes. He and Mackenzie went at it hammer and tongs, to the great delightof the voters who gathered in church and town halls, and sheds, or congregated from their work in open spaces if the weather was fine. Both of them said things improper for women to hear, and both sexes enjoyed the comment all the more for that impropriety. It heartened me to see the number of women there, and I hope my presence with my husband on many of the campaign trips encouraged them to take full advantage of the greater political responsibility they have been granted. They have turned out to vote in excellent numbers, and now must become accustomed to using the power of the franchise to remedy long-standing discrimination against themselves in both law and practice.
Dougie tells me that his father is a man’s man, but he has a regard for women that goes beyond the natural admiration the male sex is born with. At a musical evening in Wellington before my marriage, Joseph Ward, another before whom Seddon dangles a knighthood, told me that William supported women’s franchise, and he later proved it, though I have not yet persuaded him that we are quite responsible enough to be members of the colony’s Parliament. I will come again at him with that question. William allows me liberties in argument that he opposes in others, and that is surely one of the privileges of a wife. He will not be cowed himself, and has no respect for those who allow themselves to be cowed. Dougie sometimes shows impatience at what he sees as his father’s old-fashioned views, but William has a strong concern for the common man despite his own elevation. He spoke up for the decent treatment of Chinese miners here when others were hostile, or indifferent, and his employees are treated better thanmost. Some of the household staff have taken advantage of his goodwill. I have had cause to correct several who had become lax, or presumptuous, when poor Mary was mistress of The Camp, and later when there was no mistress and Dougie was in charge.
Being out on the hustings has made me realise that life is not easy for many of these people in out-of-the-way places. We were given the best public accommodation, and that was often only bearable. The glimpses of everyday life make me aware how fortunate I have been in family and circumstance. Heavens, the smell of many of those in service, and many whose position offers less excuse. And the familiarity of address. Local chairmen of this or that insignificant board who spoke at length and grandly of their contributions and aspirations, while my attention wandered to their grimy collars and fingernails. I have been invited to see rabbits shot, to join a good lady in salting pork and to instruct spinster women in the putting up of their hair. It is hard for women here, and many are coarsened by work and weather. In the city I am active in improving the lot of my sex, but I find it difficult to see how much can be achieved in remote places at present.
William loves to travel, despite the fact it must tire him more than it would a younger person. The long sea voyages, the wearisome steamer trips to Wellington and back, the uncomfortable coaches on ill-formed roads, seem little to him in his consuming interest in new places, people and opportunities. When he was minister of mines he insisted on visiting camps no other politician would
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