1851 - 1936
Bell served as prime minister between the
funeral of William Massey and the decision by the Reform party caucus to appoint
Gordon Coates as party leader and prime minister. Like William Hall-Jones before
him Bell had no ambition to be prime minister beyond the brief period required
of him.
Bell was the first prime minister born in New
Zealand.
As an MP he could be bluff and arrogant but
was also a generous mentor to young parliamentary colleagues, a genial host and
an open-hearted philanthropist.
His primary profession was law, in which he
became highly respected in New Zealand and overseas. He amassed considerable
wealth. He established a number of law journals and his background suited him
admirably to the task of drafting legislation in a later role as
attorney-general.
He was involved in politics from as early as
1874 when, as a student at Cambridge university, he assisted with the
Conservative campaign in England. He didn’t turn to NZ politics until the 1890s
and was elected as an independent member in 1893. He shared a bench with William
Massey and they remained friends. After one term he lost interest in politics
and returned to law.
His next foray into public life was three
terms as an extremely progressive mayor of Wellington, between 1891 and 1898.
When Massey became prime minister in 1912 he
appointed Bell leader of the legislative council. In the rules of the day Bell
then became eligible for a cabinet role even though he hadn’t actually been
elected to parliament. He served as minister of internal affairs, minister of
immigration and external affairs and attorney-general, He was recognised as
having a deeply analytical mind and could instinctively delve to the root of an
issue.
He was acting prime minister during Massey’s
absence for spells in 1921, 1923 and 1925 before filling the interregnum in 1925
after Massey’s death. After that he continued to serve in the Coates ministry
and later was appointed to the privy council.
Bell was something of a contradiction in terms
of his political stripes. Generally conservative, he had a radical streak in him
and was not afraid to discard old traditions. He was seen as more lawyer than
politician.
He died on 13 March, 1936 after nearly sixty
years in public life.