The first speaker of the House

Ken Jones, Contributor

A section of the media has been saying recently that the late Mr Tacius Golding, father of the present prime minister, was the first speaker of the House of Representatives. This is a half-truth. The elder Golding was first speaker since the declaration of Independence, but there were before him several other distinguished gentlemen who had presided over the 66-year-old House.

The first person to occupy the chair of the House of Representatives was the Rev Dr Felix Gordon Veitch, a Baptist minister who was elected to the post on January 9, 1945, some five years before Teacher Golding became a parliamentarian. Prior to the granting of adult suffrage, Veitch had been a member of the former Legislative Council, representing Hanover between 1929 and 1944. He served just two years in the House, died in 1947 and was replaced as speaker by Clement Aitcheson, the then representative of North Trelawny.

Besides being an outstanding legislator, Rev Veitch had a very interesting political career and was one of the first Jamaican politicians to introduce the wearing of colours as part of a campaign identification strategy. In the 1929 by-election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of G. Watson Taylor, Veitch's rival was the Rev Henry U. Messam, a Presbyterian minister. During that contest, the so-called Veitchites sported red roses, while the Messamites wore tags of red, white and green to indicate the candidate who had their support; and they carried placards describing him as "the best brains".

It was said that Rev Messam had the backing of the bigger men of the parish. However, Veitch was supported by Marcus Garvey's People's Political Party; and Garvey himself addressed some large meetings on his behalf. In the end, a record total of 953 votes were cast and Veitch won by a mere 46 to become the new member for Hanover.

When Dr Veitch was required to defend his seat in the general election of January 1935, he was challenged by Mr Thomas Altamont Junor, a planter. He won easily with 438 votes to his opponent's 244; but that was not the end of it. Mr Junor brought an election petition claiming that Veitch was "... not qualified to be elected to the Legislative Council of Jamaica, nor to sit or vote as member for ... the parish of Hanover, not being in possession of any of the qualifications required by Section 9 of the Order in Council made by Her Late Majesty Queen Victoria of date the 19th day of May 1884, or at all".

The specific complaint was that Veitch did not have a clear income of £300 or more; and that he was not paying annual direct taxes to the extent of £10. The case for Mr Junor was led by Mr F.C. Tomlinson and Dr Veitch was represented by Mr S.R. Braithwaite.

In the submission of evidence, Frederick Carlton Lofthouse, the collector of taxes, told the court that to his knowledge, Mr Veitch paid the sum of £6 two shillings and sixpence on a three-acre holding at Lucea, 11 shillings on a pony and 16 shillings on four dogs. He had never heard of anything in the name of his wife. He knew the respondent as a Baptist minister who had no other business but that of the Baptist Union.

Conflicting testimonies

Church members testified of one thing and another, sometimes contradicting each other. A deacon of the Baptist Union, Methuselah Blake, testified that he had been treasurer for some six years and that he knew that in 1927 three Baptist churches located at Green Island, Lucea and Claremont had agreed that, together, they would make an uplift of the parson's salary to £300. The money would come from collections, subscriptions and harvest festivals.

A member of the Lucea church, Timothy Johnson, said that in 1927 Veitch had told him that he was not qualified to run for election because the membership was paying only three pence weekly and that even this small sum was not regularly paid. His salary had been comprised eighty pounds from Lucea and £60 each from Green Island and Claremont. He also had three squares of bananas that were not in good condition, Johnson told the court. However, under cross-examination, he revealed that he was an agent and political supporter of Mr Junor.

After hearing the petitioner's submissions, the presiding judge, Mr Justice C.R.W. Seton, ruled that there was no case for the respondent to answer. He declared Dr Veitch duly elected to the Legislative Council and rapped his gavel to indicate closure of the case.

Good standard

Dr Veitch continued to serve in the Legislative Council, and with the implementation of the New Constitution in 1944, he opted to run as a Jamaica Labour Party candidate for Western Hanover. He was opposed by five independent candidates, among them the same Rev Henry Messam who had lost to him in 1929, and Octavious Lambert Reckord, the returning officer, on the occasion he had beaten Mr T.A. Junor in 1935. He won comfortably and at the first meeting of the House of Representative was elected speaker on a motion by Jehoida McPherson, the member for Western St Thomas. He went on to set a good standard, but died less than two years later.

Mourning his loss at the time, The Gleaner's editorial said of him:

"A dignified legislator whose polished manner and sober arguments compensated for all shortcomings, he never was a complacent yes-man; and those whose memories are long will recall that in some of his most outspoken moments Dr Veitch came as close to incurring official displeasure as could be considered safe ... .

"Unfortunately, the impairment of health which inevitably culminated in his death deprived him of the honour of continuing in that office and deprived the country of his urbane service in a post for which, by disposition, training and experience he was eminently suitable. For he could be firm without brandishing power and fair without giving the appearance of supineness."

Ken Jones is a communication specialist. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and kensjones2002@yahoo.com.