Declaration of the Poll.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume I, Issue 48, 1 October 1887, Page 2

Declaration of the Poll.

mb McDonald enters a protest’ Tub declaration of the poll for the East Coast electorate took place yesterday afternoon, in the presence of about a hundred people. The Returning Officer, Mr Booth, said :—Gentlemen,—ln accordance with the advertisement I now proceed to declare the state of the poll in this district, which, according to the scrutineers, is as follows :— t Andrew Graham . > .. 774 Allan McDonald .. ~ 583 M. J. Gannon .. .. ~ 320 Informal 20 Rejected 5 1672 I have received a protest by Mr Ward on behalf of Mr McDonald. [The protest was read, stating that the other candidates had not complied with the law, and requesting the Returning Officer to endorse the writ, as a petition would be lodged in due course.] All I hay: got to do now ie to declare that in accordance with the returns, Andrew Graham is duly elected for the East Coast Electoral District.

Mr Gannon then ascended the platform, and desired to thank most sincerely those who had recorded their votes in his favor, because every vote he got was got honestly. He did not speak on the night of the election because he thought what he could have said might have caused unpleasantness in the excitement that prevailed—if he had said what he knew now there would have been a row. It was a mistake for anyone to say he was ungrateful because he did not thank them then. Now that the contest was over he might say he had been offered a seat in another district, with a guarantee of a committee of 400 men, and be could have gone into Parliament too, but he would not go in unless he could go in with clean hands. Every vote he had got had been au honest and genuine vote in his favor, and what he said now as to the other seat he would net have mentioned, only he bad heard it in the public street. It had cost about seven or eight thousand pounds to keep him out of Parliament—he himself had spent no money beyond the actual travelling expenses and he felt no bigger compliment could be paid than to see what the true heart of the people was. He referred to the unfair way in which he had been treated by the Herald, which took his first record when he was politically speaking unknown to the electors instead of giving his second record when he was only beaten by a few votes. If he had said a word against them then tha Herald offloejwould have been torn douffi. It was better that neither of the defeated candidates had spoken on the night of the election, as they all knew what human nature was. He exonerated Mr McDonald of all unfairness, but that gentleman's supporters had not acted in the same spirit, They had used very unfair means, and the result of some of their tactics was that hundreds who would have voted for him (the speaker) turned round and voted for Mr Graham. ,’Ra Mackey here interposed and asked what Mr Gannon meant by his referenees to Mr McDonald's supporters, and said “Wretched, miserable, beggars I—what 'is he?”] Mr Graham thanked the electors for the proud position in which they had placed him. His party had conducted their canvass fairly and honorably, and though he had been pleased to see how quickly all bad feeling had disappeared (except in the minds of one or two), he was sorry to hear references now made to it from the platform, He said ha would endeavor to promote unity and work for the good of the district. He then referred in laudatory terms to Mr Locke, and said he was very sorry that gentleman should have had to give up when, with the new Government coming in, he would have been able to do so much for the district. If the speaker did as well as Mr Locke had done under the circumstances, he would be well satisfied. He asked them to discountenance the class cry which was raised against him (the speaker), and also the report that he had reduced working men’s wages. His motto would be “ New Zealand as a whole, and this district in particular.” He felt the responsibility of his position, and would endeavor to fill it honorably. Mr McDonald wished to kindly thank everyone who voted for him, though he regretted they had not been able to place him at the top of the poll. But he never took polities off the platform, and he regretted to hear Mr Gannon refer to his supporters as he had done. It was cowardly to take politics outside of politics—whatever had been circulated before the election, no man had a right to do it afterwards. If beaten he ought to take it as a man. With regard to the notice just given to the Returning Officer, he had not yet made up his mind about it. He believed and was certain that he was their member now—the law was the law, and there was no getting outside the four corners of an Act. If he were satisfied that Mr Graham and his party would be in power, and that he would do more for the district than the speaker would, he would not sacrifice the district for the sake of his own personal ambition. However, he had twenty-eight Jays to consider it yet. The interests of the district were his, as his interests were the district. He said to let the past be buried, and for them to look out for the future of the colony and especially of the East Coast. They had placed him twice at the head of the poll, and though he was second this tim e he believed that if tbe election had been conli.cted fair anti with an honest and straightforward fight, he would have been at the head of the poll at present. Mr Graham called for cheers for the Beaming Officer and for Mr Locke, and the electors dispersed.