PUBLIC MEETING AT LITTLE RIVER.

Press, Volume XXX, Issue 4078, 22 August 1878, Page 3

PUBLIC MEETING AT LITTLE RIVER.

A public meeting of the ratepayers in Little River Riding was held in the Boad Board office, Kaituna, on Monday the 19th inst., for the purpose of taking into consideration the advisability of dividing the district into sections, in the event of the County Council, at their next meeting on the 29th inst., deciding that the riding should have increased representation in the Council. Mr T. H. Parkinson, Chairman of the Road BoaTd, presided. The Chairman having read the advertisement calling the meeting, proceeded to explain -hot tho large area of the riding. compared with the other ridings on the Peninsula, and al»o the difference in the valuation, would justify him in saying that one member was totally inadequate to represent the interests of the district in the Council. A small district like Okain's Bay, with a valuation of £_550, elected three members, while Little River, with a valuation of £14,876 not £10,680 as erroneously stated—elected one member only. This sum, it would be seen was more than the Port Victoria, Pigeon Bay, Okain'. Bay, and Port Levy valuations put together. Upon reference to the map it was evident that the Little River riding fell rery little short of being as large in area aa all the rest of the Peninsula ridings combined.

Considerable surprise was expressed that there thould have been such an unequal division of the representation, and it wa? attributed by some of those present to _ou»

take ; but it transpired that Mr Montgomery had admitted that it wsu through his recommendation that the.present apportionment had been mide. Mr "W. Coop «aid lie thought that possibly the case might be met if ea-h erd of the district elected one member, the Kaituns Creek b»ing the lice of demarcation between the two sections or wards. This suggestion did not meet with much support, is being urged that the riding, if represented as others, in proportion to area or raluation, would be entitled to six members at 1-ast. Ultimately Mr Coop proposed the following resolution— "" That, considering the difference in the areas of the riding* in the Akaroa County, that of Little Biver being nearly three times the extent of any of the others, with one exception ; also, that the valuation of the Little River district amounts to four times as much as most of the districts on the Peninsula; this meeting would earnestly but respectfully ask the County Council to take into consideration the desirability of the Little River Riding electing three members to eerve in the Council." The resolution was seconded and agreed to unanimously. Mr John G-ebbie, the member for the liding in the Council, who was present, promised to give hi» best support to the resolution. Ditcussion then ensued relative to the boundary lines to be recognised for the three divisions, when the following resolution was agreed to without a dissentient.—" That, in the event of the County Council deciding that the Little River Riding shall elect three members toierveonthe Council, the riding be divided into three divisions, with the following boundaries, viz. : The Tai Tapu or western ward, to be bounded on the west by the Selwyn County, on the east by the Heathcote electoral boundary line ; the central ward, on the west by the last named boundary, on the east by a straight line drawn from the beach end of Lake Forsyth to Mount Herbert Peak; the Little Eiver or eastern end, on the west by the last named line, and on the east by the boundary line of the riding." A copy of the resolutions waa ordered to be eer.t to the chairman of the County Council, and a vote of thanks to the chairman terminated the proceedings