I

When, after a dissolution and a General Election, Sir George Grey's Ministry was defeated in October 1879, the Governor sent for Sir John Hall. But the parties were so evenly divided that a political stalemate existed. At one stage it appeared as if another appeal to the country would afford the only solution of the deadlock.

At this stage, however, there occurred one of the most sensational incidents in our political history. Four Auckland members (Wood, Swanson, Hurst and Colbeck) who were supporters of Sir George Grey offered Hall their support on condition that he passed certain measures to which they were pledged. They also stipulated that an Auckland member should be in the Ministry, but to make clear that they were not actuated by personal motives they expressly stipulated that the Auckland Minister should not be one of themselves.

This plan enabled Hall to form a stable Ministry. The four bold members who had cut the Gordian knot were violently maligned for some time as traitors and they were called the "four Auckland rats". But later on they came to be regarded as patriots who had changed their party as the only means of furthering their principles.