LICENSING POLL PETITIONED AGAINST.

Press, Volume LIII, Issue 9605, 21 December 1896, Page 2

LICENSING POLL PETITIONED AGAINST.

A petition signed by fifty electors of the Kaiapoi district/ has been lodged at the Magistrate's Court, Rangiora, in which the petitioners say they verily believo the result of the licensing pwll holden on December 4th, and declared on December 10th, is incorrect on the following grounds •:— (1) That the Returning Officer, in arriving at the result, improperly counted as voters a number of electors who either, did not vote at all, or did not properly record their votes ; (2) That the Returning Officer omitted to include with the number of votes recorded ia favour of the proposal " that the number of licenses exieting in the district' be reduced" those ' votes which were recorded in ' favour of the proposal that no licensee be granted in the district ; (3) That' voting papers were issued to electors which had been already used or so marked as to render them unfit for electors to record their votes; (4) That different methods of counting the

various proposals were adopted at the dif- i ferent booths; (5) That other irregularities occurred in and about the said election which tended to defeat fairness. The petitioners . apply tor an enquiry, in terms of the Alcoholio Sale Control Act, 1895, and the Regulation of Local Elections Act, 1876, and that the poll may be declared void. Tlift signatories were W. Wadoy, C. Anderson, A. Anderson, H. L. Rogers, K. ■ ■ M. Keir, Mrs McKay, D. McKay, M. Sklaark, H. Maynard, Robert Evans, S. Evans junr., James Gulliver, W. Mcccli, Chaa. W. Bell, Agnes 8011, Helen Smith, Alfred H. King, Ermina F. King, John W, A. Sinclair, Mary Patterson, Agnes Sinclair, Emily Dale, Marion Dale, Jos, H. Reynolds, S. A. Avers, Mary Rogers, Mary J. Sinclair, James Sinclair, Prudence Hcinuomnn, F. Jluinneman, Joseph Reynolds, Helen Gilleapie, George Gulliver, P. R. Monro, Andrew Shankland, Bkmdell Strong, Willie Effbrd, Mary Amelia Strong, Bridget Jano Alfnrrl, Wm. Harman, Ellen Naeh Ogden, Annie i Ogden, Minerva Ogden, Abraham England, I Letitia England, Snrah Jane England, i Thomas Carr, Caroline Hickmotand Thomas Keir, the signatures being vouched for by Messrs H. L. Rogers and Jos. F. Reynolds. In a letter to the Returning Officer for* j warding tho petition, the Secretary of the Rangiora Prohibition League states- he is instructed by the League to inform the Returning Officer that in petitioning, for a recount of the votes oast at tho licensing poll, they do nol, hint in any way at hie integrity, but think it would be satisfactory to a number of the electors to know how the votes had been counted. That certain irregularities were conspicuous at Rangiora the . j Secretary of the League says was evident, ,|' ? and for this reason the petition was lodged. 'f ;