POLITICAL NOTES.

Feilding Star, Volume II, Issue 351, 23 August 1907, Page 4

POLITICAL NOTES.

[By Telegraph.] (Our Own Correspondent.) Wellington, August 22. TREND OF POPULATION. An instance of the effect of the census in adjusting the representation of the people for Parliament is afforded by the figures relating to the North and South Islands for successive years where the electoral districts are constituted on a population basis. The results show tiiat at the census of 1892 I—North1 — North Island members 30, South Island members 40; 1896—31, 39; 1901—34, 36; 1906—38, 38. The districts have been again defined on the basis of the population, as shown by the census taken in April, 1906, with the result that the South Island will, at the next general election, return only 35 members, as against 41 for the North Island. WOMEN VOTERS— SOME INTERESTING FIGURES. In no fewer than fourteen constituencies the women voters on the roll were in excess of the men voters at the last election. Those electorates were — Marsden, Auckland WesV, Grey Lynn, Parnell. Nelson, Kaiapoi, Avon, Christchurch ESast, Christchurch South, Ashburton, Chalmers, Dunedin North, Dunedin. South and Caversham. The members in the present House of Representatives returned from these electorates are — Messrs Maunder, Poole, Fowlds, Lawry, Graham, Buddo, Tanner, Davey, Ell, McLachlan, Allen, Barclay, Arnold and Sidey. It is strange that amongst all these there is only one unmarried man, viz., Mr Poole. In all New Zealand there were at the last election 476,473 names on the roll. Of this number 263,597 were men and 202,876 women. The number of men who voted was 221,---611, and of women who voted 175,046. The males who voted were 84.07 per cent, of those on the rolls, against 78.44 per cent, in 1902. The number of women who voted is 82.23 per cent, of those on the roll, while in 1902 there was the lower proportion of 74.52 per oent. So that there is evidence of a greater willingness now on the part of women to go to the poll. OCCUPATION OF MEMBERS. The occupation of members elected in 1905 show that farmers or runholders furnish more members than any other class of occupation. There were twenty-five of these (besides four given as "settlers") returned in 1905 ; there were nine barristers or solicitors and five journalists. The following is a detailed list of the occupations: — Secretary V.M.C.A., 1; barrister, solicitors, 9; > journalists, 5; mining advocate, interpreter, lecturer, teacher, 3; chemist, 1; insurance manager, 1; landj broker, estate agent, 3; director of financial company, 1 ; Native agent, 1 ; stationer, bookseller, 1 ; draper, grocer, butcher, 3; merchant, ironmerchant, timber merchant, 3; storekeeper, 2; commission agent, clerk, accountant, commercial traveller, 3; j tailor, shoemaker, dyer, 3 ; millowner, '. shiprigger, builder, metallurgical engineer, mine-manager, railway employee, 1; blacksmith, 1; printer, newspaper proprietor, 1 ; farmer, 16 ; sheepfarmer, runholder, grazier, stockj owner, 5; contractor, 3; settler, j gentleman, etc., 8.