Robert Stout
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KCMG | |
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 Stout in 1914 | |
| 13th Premier of New Zealand | |
| Monarch | Victoria |
| Governor | William Jervois |
| In office 16 August 1884 – 28 August 1884 | |
| Preceded by | Harry Atkinson |
| Succeeded by | Harry Atkinson |
| In office 3 September 1884 – 8 October 1887 | |
| Preceded by | Harry Atkinson |
| Succeeded by | Harry Atkinson |
| 4th Chief Justice of New Zealand | |
| In office 25 May 1899 – 31 January 1926 | |
| Nominated by | Richard Seddon |
| Appointed by | Earl Ranfurly |
| Preceded by | James Prendergast |
| Succeeded by | Charles Skerrett |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 28 September 1844 Lerwick, Shetland, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| Died | 19 July 1930 (aged 85) Wellington, New Zealand |
| Political party | Liberal (1889–1896) |
| Spouse | Anna Paterson Logan (m. 1876) |
| Children | 6, including Duncan |
Sir Robert Stout
Early life
Born in the town of
In 1863, Stout emigrated to Dunedin, New Zealand.[1] Once there, he quickly became involved in political debate, which he greatly enjoyed. He also became active in the Freethought circles of the city. After failing to find employment as a surveyor on the Otago gold-fields, Stout returned to education, holding a number of senior teaching positions at the high-school level.
Eventually, however, Stout moved away from education and entered the legal profession. In 1867 he was working in the law firm of William Downie Stewart Sr (father of the William Downie Stewart Jr who later became Minister of Finance). He was called to the bar on 4 July 1871,[1] and proved to be a highly successful trial-lawyer. He also became one of Otago University's first students (possibly the first, although this claim is disputed), studying political economy and the theory of morality. He later became the university's first law-lecturer.
Early political career
| Years | Term | Electorate | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1875 | 5th | Caversham | Independent | ||
| 1875–1879 | 6th | City of Dunedin | Independent | ||
| 1884–1887 | 9th | Dunedin East | Independent | ||
| 1893 | 11th | Inangahua | Liberal | ||
| 1893–1896 | 12th | City of Wellington | Liberal | ||
| 1896–1898 | 13th | City of Wellington | Independent | ||
Stout's political career started with his election to the Otago Provincial Council. During his time on the Council he impressed many people - both with his energy and with his rhetorical skill - although others found him abrasive, and complained about his lack of respect for those who held different views.
Stout successfully contested an August 1875 by-election in the Caversham electorate and thus became a Member of the New Zealand Parliament. He unsuccessfully opposed moves by the central government (Vogel) to abolish the provinces. At the 1875 election a few months later, he was returned in the City of Dunedin electorate.[3]
On 13 March 1878, Stout became
On 25 June 1879, however, Stout resigned both from cabinet and from parliament, citing the need to focus on his law practice. His partner in the practice was growing increasingly ill, and the success of his firm was important to the welfare of both Stout and his family. Throughout his career, Stout found the cost of participating in politics a serious worry. His legal career, however, was probably not the only contributing factor to his resignation, with a falling out between Stout and George Grey having occurred shortly beforehand.
At around this time Stout also developed a friendship with John Ballance, who had also resigned from Grey's cabinet after a dispute. Stout and Ballance shared many of the same political views. During his absence from parliament, Stout began to form ideas about political parties in New Zealand, believing in the need for a united liberal front. He eventually concluded, however, that parliament was too fragmented for any real political parties to be established.
In the election of 1884 Stout re-entered parliament, and attempted to rally the various liberal-leaning MPs behind him. Stout promptly formed an alliance with Julius Vogel, a former premier (1873–1875 and 1876) – this surprised many observers, because although Vogel shared Stout's progressive social views, the two had frequently clashed over economic policy and the future of the provincial governments. Many[quantify] saw Vogel as the dominant partner in the alliance.
Premier
In August 1884, only a month after returning to parliament, Stout passed a
Stout's second government lasted considerably longer than his first. Its primary achievements were the reform of the civil service and a programme to increase the number of secondary schools in the country. It also organised the construction of the
At this point, Stout decided to leave parliamentary politics altogether, and instead focus on other avenues for promoting liberal views. In particular, he was interested in resolving the growing labour disputes of the time. He was highly active in building consensus between the growing labour movement and the world of middle-class liberalism.
Liberal Party
During Stout's absence from politics, his old ally, John Ballance, had been continuing to fight in parliament. After the 1890 election, Ballance had gained enough support to topple Atkinson and take the premiership. Shortly afterwards, Ballance founded the Liberal Party, New Zealand's first real political party. Only a few years later, however, Ballance became seriously ill, and asked Stout to return to parliament and be his successor. Stout agreed, and Ballance died shortly thereafter.
Stout re-entered parliament after a winning a by-election in Inangahua on 8 June 1893. Ballance's deputy, Richard Seddon, had by this time assumed leadership of the party on the understanding that a full caucus vote would later be held. In the end, however, no vote was held. Stout, backed by those who considered Seddon too conservative, attempted to challenge this, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Many of Seddon's supporters believed that the progressive views of Ballance and Stout were too extreme for the New Zealand public.
Stout remained in the Liberal Party, but constantly voiced objections to Seddon's leadership. In addition to claiming that Seddon was betraying Ballance's original progressive ideals, Stout also claimed that Seddon was too autocratic in his style of rule. Ballance's idea of a united progressive front, Stout believed, had been subverted into nothing more than a vehicle for the conservative Seddon. Seddon defended himself against these charges by claiming that Stout was merely bitter about not gaining the leadership.
Women's suffrage
One of the last major campaigns that Stout participated in was the drive to grant voting rights to women. Stout had long been a supporter of this cause, having campaigned tirelessly for his own failed bill in 1878 and Julius Vogel's failed bill in 1887. He had also been highly active in the campaign to increase property rights for women, having been particularly concerned with the right of married women to keep property independently from their husbands.
John Ballance had been a supporter of women's suffrage, although his attempts to pass a bill had been blocked by the conservative
Stout was also involved with the failing Walter Guthrie group of companies in Southland and Otago which had been supported by the Bank of New Zealand, and (according to Bourke) Seddon was prepared to conceal Stout's involvement – provided Stout left politics.[6]
In 1898 Stout retired from politics. He had represented the seats of Caversham in the 5th parliament (1875), Dunedin East in the 6th parliament (1875–79) and in the 9th parliament (1884–87), Inangahua in the 11th parliament (1893), and the City of Wellington in the 12th and 13th parliaments (1893–98).
Life after politics
On 22 June 1899, he was appointed Chief Justice of New Zealand, and remained in this position until 31 January 1926. As of 2011, Stout was the last Chief Justice of New Zealand to have served in the New Zealand Parliament.
While Chief Justice, Stout showed a particular interest in the
Stout also had a role of considerable importance in the development of the New Zealand university system. He had become a member of the Senate of the University of New Zealand in 1885, and remained so until 1930. From 1903 to 1923, he was the university's Chancellor. He was also prominent in Otago University from 1891 to 1898, serving on its council. He played a very significant role in the founding of what is now Victoria University of Wellington – the strong connection between Victoria University and the Stout family is remembered by the university's Stout Research Centre and its Robert Stout Building.
In 1929, Stout became increasingly ill, and never recovered. On 19 July 1930 he died in Wellington.[7]
Works
- The Rise and Progress of New Zealand historical sketch in Musings in Maoriland by Arthur T. Keirle 1890. Digitised by the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
- Our Railway Gauge in The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 2 (1 June 1928). Digitised by the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
See also
Notes
- ^ a b c Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 32 (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company. p. 579.
- ^ Brosnahan, J. B. B. (2022). "Robert Stout Revisited - The Ideas and Ideal of a Secular Puritan in New Zealand (Thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in History)" (PDF). Otago University, New Zealand. p. 2. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
- ^ Morrell, William Parker (22 April 2009). "STOUT, Sir Robert, P.C., K.C.M.G." An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ Stout, Robert (14 April 1885). "ADDRESS BY THE HON. R. STOUT." (Volume XXII, Issue 7302). PAPERPAST. New Zealand Herald. https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH18850414.2.41
- ^ Stout, Robert. "Leasing Public Lands". A Speech in the House of Representatives, N.Z. 15 September 1875. DUNEDIN: Millis, Dick & Co., Printers, Stafford Street http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-StoutPers-t30.html
- ISBN 978-0-473-13450-1
- ^ "Prime Ministers of New Zealand". Wellington: New Zealand Prime Minister's Office. Archived from the original on 15 April 2008. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
References
- Scholefield, Guy (1950) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand Parliamentary Record, 1840–1949 (3rd ed.). Wellington: Govt. Printer.
- Richardson, Ivor L. M.; Dunn, W.H. (1961). "Sir Robert Stout: A Biography". SSRN Electronic Journal. ISSN1556-5068.
External links
- "The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout (91 Vols.)". Victoria University of Wellington.
- Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, Robert Stout
- The Seddon-Stout struggle
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