Burke Manuscript

Burke Manuscript: Page 037

Transcript

William James Warburton Hamilton first saw the Colony I have heard as Draughtsman on H.M.S. Fly(?), on board of which ship was also Mr Cheetham Strode, once Commissioner on Gabriel’s Gold Rush, 1861. Mr Hamilton, afterwards became Commissioner of Customs at Lyttelton and Receiver of Revenue. On the present Sir John Hall visiting the Old Country in 1860-61, Mr Hamilton acted as Resident Magistrate in his absence. He held other Colonial Government offices, and afterwards drifted into newspaper proprietorship under the guidance of the late William Reeves. Mr H. was notoriously the most perfect embodiment of Red Tape, who ever held office in Canterbury. His memos and questions upon documents were masterpieces, and calculated to try the patience of the most saintly. As a Magistrate he was drawler and doubter and questioner who ever sat on the Bench of Christchurch. He had a supercilious style when he chose to be offensive, and was very inquisitive. “Who is that d-d fellow, Morgan?” asked he of an old soldier acting as policeman orderly. “I don’t know, Sir”. “Don’t know! You ought to know!” In a few minutes Morgan saluted. “Yes?” “That gentleman’s name is Wiggins, Sir”. “How do you know?” “I asked him, Your Worship. I told him you wanted to know”! Mr H. did not bother the old soldier again on such subjects. One of his holy hatreds was on the arrival of the Irish police Sherman, Pender, Walsh &c with their grand uniforms and gloves. It quite upset him. “Look at that d-d fellow!” would he remark on seeing one of the aristocrats going by with snow white gloves.