Sir Joseph Ward

DESCRIPTION: "When I was a lad I served my term WIth 'Seddon & Co.,' then a rising firm." He shows such interest in his superiors "That now I am Sir Joseph Ward, you see." He becomes expert in politics and surpasses his mentor "Dick" and becomes a power in the land
AUTHOR: unknown (Sir Arthur Sullivan wrote the probable tune)
EARLIEST DATE: 1905 (Election Fortune-Teller and Sketcher, according to Bailey/Roth-ShantiesByTheWay-NZ)
KEYWORDS: derivative political New Zealand
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
1893-1906 - Richard John Seddon (1845-1906) Prime Minister of New Zealand
1906-1912, 1928-1930 - Sir Joseph George Ward (1856-1930) Prime Minister of New Zealand
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Bailey/Roth-ShantiesByTheWay-NZ, p. 104, "Sir Joseph Ward" (1 text)
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "When I Was a Lad" (tune)
cf. "Vote for Joey Ward" (subject)
cf. "We'll Set the Children Free" (subject of Joseph Ward)
NOTES [877 words]: Bailey/Roth-ShantiesByTheWay-NZ do not list a tune for this, but there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that it was intended to be sung to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's "When I Was a Lad" from "H. M. S. Pinafore." Just like the "ruler of the Queen's Navee," Ward starts as an assistant, and the song ends with this verse:
Now, statesmen all, whoever you may be,
If you want to rise from obscurity --
If you don't want to be forever a tool --
Be careful to be guided by this golden rule:
Stick close to your guns whilst Dick's at sea,
And you'll all be "Sir Joe's," the same as me.
"Seddon & Co." is not an actual company; rather, it refers to Richard John Seddon (the "Dick" of the song), the leader of the Liberal Party, whom Sir Joseph Ward replaced as Premier upon Seddon's death. According to Ell, p. 132, he was known as "King Dick"; "Richard John Seddon was regarded as the uncrowned monarch of New Zealand during his years as Premier (1893-1906). A populist, his common-man approach appealed widely as did his government's championing of their causes. Seddon, who was born in Lancashire in 1845, went as a youth to the Australian goldfields, and made his mark in Westland.... It was Seddon who lead New Zealand's creation of its own Empire in the South Pacific, annexing the Cook Islands and Niue in 1901.... He died while in office, age 61, in 1906."
NewZealandEncyclopedia, pp. 492-493 tells us that he "was the longest-serving Prime Minister in NZ's history -- from 1 May 1893 to 10 June 1906." Born in Lancashire, he was such a bad student that he was encouraged to quit school at age 12. He held odd jobs, losing one for pay agitation, and went to Australia at age 18. [This was in 1863, according to Jackson/McRobie, p. 206.] Failure as a gold miner caused him to try New Zealand instead [in 1866, according to Jackson/McRobie], where he again failed as a miner. Nothing ever worked for him until he went into politics, serving in provincial offices before becoming the first mayor of the town of Kumara. He went broke in 1878 but avoided formal bankruptcy, and was elected to parliament in 1879. He became a cabinet member in the early 1890s then became Prime Minister when John Ballance died.
Ironically, the youthful agitator, who led a progressive party, had little to offer in the way of new legislation: "The progressive nature of the Liberal Party slowed down during the early years of the 20th century, as the autocratic Seddon gained complete dominion over his cabinet and caucus. As well as being Prime Minister, Seddon was Minister of Finance, of Education, or Immigration, of Labour, and of Defence." He did make it easier for children to go to school, but "otherwise his growing conservatism smothered the crusading zeal the party once had, and lead (sic.) indirectly to the establishment of the Labour Party."
He was "a tall, powerfully built man" who became obese as he grew older; he died on a ship called the Owestry Grange while returning from a government trip to Australia.
The authoritarianism mentioned above became proverbial; NewZealandDictionary, p. 144, has an entry "King Dick," referring to him; Seddon was called by that name at least as early as 1904. But he was a populist authoritarian: "[as] Premier, Seddon set the prevalent 'style' of New Zealand politics with its emphasis upon accessibility, egalitarianism, and 'righting wrongs'" (Jackson/McRobie, p. 206). He did promote such things as labor reform, women's suffrage, and land redistribution, but "In the process Seddon dominated most of his ministerial colleagues just as he dominated the country; it has been said of him that '(f)ew politicians have been so successful as he in applying the principles of democracy where others were concerned and simultaneously rejecting their application to his own actions" (Jackson/McRobie, p. 207; based on Reid, p. 74, the quote is from R. M. Burdon's King Dick).
Burdon, as quoted on Reid, pp. 74-75, also credits him with eliminating from New Zealand politics "what resemblance they had ever had to being the preserve of a privileged class" -- but "the same might be said of outstanding intellectual attainments." In other words, his populism was so strong that he discouraged creativity and intellectual skill, not just in politics but also in ordinary life. (How fortunate, then, that New Zealand's greatest scientist Ernest Rutherford had already established his abilities before Seddon could mess him up.) Reed, p. 275, says that he "was sometimes known as the 'fighting Premier.'"
Seddon seems to have had a curious sort of afterlife. NewZealandDictionary, p. 252, discusses "various [proverbial] phrases indicating a time in the distant past, alluding to the infrequency of the happening under discussion or review." Along with examples such as "since Adam was a cowboy" we find "since Dick Seddon died" and "since Dick Seddon was a boy."
Those involved in pop folk music may be interested to learn that Seddon's granddaughter Mary Seddon (died 2000) ran the coffee bar "Monde Marie," which was "the first home of folk music in Wellington" (Cape/Steele, p. 21).
For a song specifically about Ward, see "Vote for Joey Ward." Ward's government is also the subject of "We'll Set the Children Free." - RBW
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File: BaRo104

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