George Charles Cecil Black (21 November 1903 – 17 October 1932) was a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

for electorate, in the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

of New Zealand, initially as a representative of the United Party and from early 1931 as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

. He committed suicide and was succeeded as MP by

Keith Holyoake Sir Keith Jacka Holyoake, (; 11 February 1904 – 8 December 1983) was the 26th prime minister of New Zealand, serving for a brief period in 1957 and then from 1960 to 1972, and also the 13th governor-general of New Zealand, serving from 1977 ...

Early life

Born in

Reefton Reefton is a small town in the West Coast region of New Zealand, some 80 km northeast of Greymouth, in the Inangahua River valley. Ahaura is 44 km south-west of Reefton, Inangahua Junction is 34 km to the north, Maruia is 63 ...

on 21 November 1903, Black was the son of George James and Marianne Catherine Black. In 1923, Black became a Parliamentary Clerk of Committees.

Member of Parliament

Black represented the

Motueka Motueka is a town in the South Island of New Zealand, close to the mouth of the Motueka River on the western shore of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere. It is the second largest in the Tasman Region, with a population of as of The surrounding dis ...

electorate in the

from

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

to 1932. In the 1928 election, aged only 24, he stood as a United Party candidate and follower of Sir

Joseph Ward Sir Joseph George Ward, 1st Baronet, (26 April 1856 – 8 July 1930) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 17th prime minister of New Zealand from 1906 to 1912 and from 1928 to 1930. He was a dominant figure in the Liberal and Unit ...

and was successful. He unexpectedly beat the Reform Party incumbent of 14 years, Richard Hudson, and became the youngest MP at the time. He was appointed junior

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

by the United Party. In

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, Black refused to support the Finance Bill that proposed cuts to public service salaries and voted with the Labour Party, and in January 1931 he also opposed the decision to suspend construction of the Kawatiri–

Inangahua Inangahua is a small settlement in the northwest of New Zealand's South Island. It consists of three settled areas: Inangahua Junction at the confluence of the Inangahua and Buller Rivers, north of Reefton and southeast of Westport; Inagahua Lan ...

railway line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...

that ran through his electorate. Black was expelled from the United Party the day after voting against the Finance Bill in March 1931, saying that "no genuine supporter of the late Prime Minister", Sir Joseph Ward, could uphold such measures. Later in the year, at the 1931 election, the bright and well-regarded local MP was elected as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

. He was associated with

Harry Atmore Harry Atmore (14 December 1870 – 20 August 1946) was a New Zealand Independent Member of Parliament for Nelson in the South Island. Harry Atmore held the Nelson seat as an Independent for a total of thirty years from 1911 to 1914 and th ...

, the independent MP for the neighbouring Nelson electorate. On 17 October 1932 aged 28, Black committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

with

cyanide Cyanide is a naturally occurring, rapidly acting, toxic chemical that can exist in many different forms. In chemistry, a cyanide () is a chemical compound that contains a functional group. This group, known as the cyano group, consists of ...

poison at

Mākara Beach Mākara Beach, previously spelled Makara Beach, is a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand consisting of a small seaside village and its surrounding countryside. The Wellington City Council regards it as a separate suburb to Mākara. Features The ...

. He was survived by his wife and their child. The coroner found that Black had been mentally unstable for some months, and was also in financial difficulties. Black's death triggered the

1932 Motueka by-election The 1932 Motueka by-election was a by-election in the New Zealand electorate of Motueka, a rural seat at the top of the South Island. The by-election occurred on 1 December 1932, and was precipitated by the suicide of sitting Independent member ...

, which was won by

References

External links

Report of George Black's Death. The Melbourne Argus Wednesday 19 October 1932, p.7
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, George Charles Cecil 1903 births 1932 suicides 1932 deaths Independent MPs of New Zealand People from Motueka New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates New Zealand Liberal Party MPs New Zealand public servants People from Reefton New Zealand politicians who committed suicide Suicides by cyanide poisoning Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives 20th-century New Zealand politicians Suicides in New Zealand

Early life

Member of Parliament

Further reading

See also

References

External links