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William Rolleston : a New Zealand statesman

II

II

"It is a good thing", said Rolleston, "to have an interval between a man's life work and the reaching of those 'dark gates across the wild that no man knows'."

He was speaking at a banquet tendered to him and his wife by the citizens of Christchurch in February 1900 on the eve of their departure on a trip to England. At this banquet eloquent tributes were paid to Rolleston's long and eminent services by his old friends, the Hon. C. C. Bowen, Sir John Hall, and others. In his reply Rolleston referred to past scenes and the many men he had served with, and he spoke optimistically as to the future.

During his visit to England he spent some weeks in his native village of Maltby, where he was received with a cordiality which he described as extraordinary.

He also visited old friends and relatives at Oxford and Cambridge, Eton and Shrewsbury, and more particularly his old school at Rossall, where he was received as a guest of honour.

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In London he spoke at various banquets and renewed friendships with many old New Zealanders resident in England. After his return to New Zealand, he was still in the public eye and deference was paid to his opinion on questions of the day. He was invited to stand for Patea, but he replied:

I feel that I would not be able within any reasonable time to look for a realisation of my hopes in respect to the main questions of public interest. The people's eyes are blinded with glamour, and the period of unparalleled prosperity leads them to be careless upon subjects which less easy times would force upon their consideration.

But even as late as 1900 Mr Saunders wrote to Rolleston:

I must protest against your describing yourself as a man who has lived his life. There are many years of good service before you yet, and I am quite sure that a large part of them will be devoted to the public interest…. It is easy to understand why in the past you drifted into the Conservative camp, but there is really no reason now why you should not be associated with some of the advanced Liberals. Your old party, with whom you cannot have been in full sympathy, is now practically dead, and there is a band of younger politicians who would gladly welcome you as their leader. Your land policy and administration are quite as popular as those of Jock McKenzie, and there are many other questions too upon which the public are in full sympathy with your views.

August 4th, 1899.

None of us find fault with your liberalism. It is good enough for anything. But, under the wretched party system which you persist in defending, we cannot get your liberalism without accepting other people's conservatism. If you were separated from your present political association, there is not a constituency in Canterbury which you could not command. It is this fact that makes you such a difficult man for decent Liberal journals to oppose.

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The Rolleston Statue

The Rolleston Statue