The Evening Star WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 1381.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 4525, 29 November 1884, Page 2

The Evening Star WITH WHICH ARE INCORPORATED The Evening News, Morning News, and Echo

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 1381.

tho cause that lacks assistance, For the wrong that Deeds resistance. For the future In tho distance, Ajad tho good that we can do.

JVVe are still without information as to the proposed provisions of the Bill for the Redistributioa pf Seats which, in 'terms ofiis compromise with , the House of Lords, Mr Gladstone is pledged to introduce at once into the Imperial Parliament; but from a .cable message in another column it ;willbe seeri that the parleying between the Government and the Lords has iesulted in a complete understanding being ..arrived at*—a Vplan pf -re - distribution being agreed upon, which it is expected; will be accepted by. both political parties. In order to understand how important is, the bearing which the framing of this measure has upon the representation of the people, it is only;necessary to glance; at th# outline of a redistribution 'scheme which waapubjjshed some time 'ago in the London " Standard," and Which was officially admitted to be one Of several which had been prepared for 'Government.;- The salient points of the proposal were:— - ( 1. Seventy-fefo boroughs with a i)6pukv tidn under 10,000, ..to be merged in th| counties.;;?. Forty boroughs with a population under 40,000, now returning two members, to }ose ,oae member each. 3. Jfifty?four new members to be given to the 'counties;, 4. Forty-ajv.en seats to be given ito the large towns, twenty-fcye of Which are 'given to London, two to Dublin, three to .Glasgow, and two to Edinburgh. 5. Sayen new borough constituencies are to be; created in England, two with two members ;each, and fi?e with one member each. 6. The three-cornered: constituencies to be extinguished everywhere esoent in' the city of J^ndon. : 7. Where constituencies, return four or sis members they are to be divided Jnto wards, each returning two members. ' These proposals, which may be accepted as indicating tho lines upon which redistribution will proceed, are of a,'! half-and-half" character, and are consequently unsatisfactory to either Tories or Liberals. While, therefore, the "Pall Mali Gagette".characterises the scheme as " a twopenny-halfpenny, milk-and'water measure, which leaves almost, as many anomalies standing as those which it removes," the " Globe " denounces it as sufficient to warrant the moststeewous opposition of the Lords. Considering that flip net results of feuch./ja scheme as jtte above, if adopted, would be to lose si^ty-s^ren seats to the Liberals.as against ibrtyfwe. to the Conservatives, the wrath of ißje-^tsy organ appears rather unreasoning. Yf. qwever, the discussion is altogether premature until the scheme actually resolved upon by tfce Cabinet is made public. Advanced Liberals will be grievously disappointed should the Redistribution Bill not altogether abolish the county constituencies, and form equal electoral districts on the population basis, each returning one member to Parliament; and there is reason to fear that unless radical steps Of that kind are taken, the tinkering of the existing system will offer great scope 'for • the " gerrymandering " tactics of the Tories, who are straining cyery nerye to neutralise the progressive I pO^er represented by the two miLlions of additional voters just enfranchised. , , : -,-,-