CHRISTCHURCH.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 11021, 19 July 1901, Page 5

CHRISTCHURCH.

LOW POLLING AND NO EXCITEMENT.

THE QUIETEST ELECTION ON RECORD.

Anyone searching *or the embodiment of the phrase "deadly dull respectability" would have bad no difficulty Lα meeting with it at almost every polling booth in the oity electorate yesterday morning. A visiflbr who had dropped in promiscuously from a neigh-

bouring planet, would have detected no outward and visible sign that the free and

independent electors were being moved to the very depths of their being over the selection of a fit and proper person to represent them—simply and solely because they were not being so moved. The descriptive writer looking for incidents found -them not; indications of excitement, or even of interest, were also totally absent from the day's -proceedings. "lohabod"—"the glory hath ! departed"—appeared to be writ large over i the whole proceedings, and regrets for "the i good old times" seemed to be in the minds of the few who congregated round the more important polling booths. The new Act may have been intended to clarify election proceedings—if yesterday's can be taken us any criterion, it has succeeded admirably. Tire.apparent lack of interest, is of course, attributable to other causes. For instance, the fact that no local option poll was proceeding at the same time robbed the contest of muoh of the excitement that usually accompanies a general election. The issues before the . electors, also, can -hardly be said to have been of such a nature as to arouse deep public feeling; the different candidates were practically all on one side of politics, and tiheir points of difference were, in many instances, of a> minor character. Added to these causes, th& unfavourable state of the weather, and fhe unpleasant condition of things underfoot had their effect in reducing the attendance of voters at the booths. ROUND THE POLLING BOOTHS.

One of the tilings that struck the stroller round the polling booths was the entire absence of those crowds of pushful agents of the various candidates that erstwhile bothered the electors us they stepped in to exercise their votes. 2vo one presented those cards and bills intended to direct the

voters in the way they ought to go ; there was no buttonholing of the electors with the intention of giving them verbal advice as to the particular virtues of 1 the would-be politician that the button-rholer was -working for. To a<ll intents and purposes the poll might have been one of those quiet, uneventful recordings of the opinions of ratepayers on some municipal proposal. "The quietest Parliamentary election ever held here" fittingly described the proceedings of the day. One candidate only appeared to have gone to the trouble to provide assistance to the voters by having agents, with tables a.nd copies "of the roil, from which the electors were given their niumber written on a small piece of paper, having printed on it a brief account of the particular candidate's political views. As it contained no direct invitation

to vote for the candidate by. whom, it was issued, it is presumed that its issue does not contravene the section in the new Act prohibiting canvassing, although some amateur interpreters of the law imagined that it could be brought within the four corners of the statute.

At the chief polling 'booth, the Provincial Council Ohambers, vo,ters dropped in in very small numbers—in five minutes scarcely as many electors had recorded their votes. When the voter got inside the booth, he (or she) could hardly be seen in the crowd of poll clerks, who were falling over each other, metaphorically speaking, in their endeavours to relieve the great pressure of business. At other places the only indication that a polling Doot-h existed was the presence of a man. in blue, usually encased in an overcoat. At one place the representative of the majesty of the law was found standing .."right, in. the middle.of the road." This action had been necessitated owing to the crowds of electors having left no room for his burly presence any nearer the booth. He had recited the Riot Act, under his breath, two or three times, in case of trouble • arising, and had been been acting generally as a good Samaritan by informing people with prohibitionist tendencies that, as it was getting near noon, they had better get all t—eir groceries in quickly, as the hotels would be closing their doors. At other booths visited' things were proceeding quiet!}', and with no signs of hurry or excitement. Matters at the larger polling booths improved slightly as the day wore on. There appeared to be a greater number of vehicles conveying voters to the booths, but nothing like the number that have been seen at previous elections. There were no calico or other signs hung upon them telling all and sundry to "Vote for So-and-So"—evidently the candidates were determined to keep well within the provision of the section prohibiting canvassing. Up to the time of the closing of the poll the streets presented a practically empty appearance. More interest seemed to ba taken in the re-opening of the -hoteTs than in the closing of the poll, and it is related that a few minutes before seven o'clock a number of thirsty souls were knocking for admission at the door of a suburban publichouse. This having been the first election held under the Act of last session, a considerable amount of doubt existed aa to whether the half-holiday from noon, which is declared by the Act, would be generally observed. It is understood that several employers took legal advice on the subject, and. were informed that owing to the vagueness of the section, it was doubtful if it was incumbent on offices, warehouses, and factories to close. However, when noon struck, the employees from the factories were to be seen emerging therefrom, the shutters were put up on shops, and the hotels closed their doors. Very generally it appeared that the spirit of the law was being observed, although it might be safely said that a large percentage of those who obtained the holiday were minors, and had no possible interest in the election.