Burke Manuscript

Burke Manuscript: Page 040

Transcript

Capt Westenra, a retired army officer, was a kindly inoffensive old gentleman, meddling very little in public affairs. Mr T.S. Duncan, a long time Provl. Solicitor, was a very handsome man, with a magnificent brown beard and one of Mr Moorhouse’s strongest supporters, as was also Mr Robert Wilkins who had then not long arrived and was looked upon as a sound, strong man. Mr E.T.B. Harston the founder of the “Garrick & Cowlishaw” business, was also a member – a man of unbounded cool assurance, but not equalled by his ability. He however, got his name up, for he was the defendant in the first seduction case tried here. Houlihan v. Harston in the old wooden Town Hall. A lot of the members as politicians were ordinary men, Messrs Peacock, Hargreaves, Bradwell, John Murray, Fredk. Thompson, Fyfe G. Armstrong, and there is nothing much to say about them. The day of the next crowd had not arrived. Messrs Montgomery, Dr Turnbull, W. Williams &c.

Gold was struck on the West Coast in the middle sixties and an inroad followed of played out Otago gold people, our own crowd, and a rush from Victoria, &c. The Coast then formed part of Canterbury, and every now and then an adventurous one would find his way over by land or sea. Long before the rush 200 ounces were brought from the Grey to Nelson. Of course the Hokitikians were in the seventh heaven and looked down on the plodding crowd in the East, they would have Home Rule. In the meantime they were granted four members in the Canterbury Parliament, and they sent Casscius, a Polish Jew, Cominskey, Waugh and a sort of Keir Hardie named Barff , who posed with broad belt on & quite a so-called digging turn out.