To the Editor of the Hawke's Bay Herald.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 2, Issue 70, 22 January 1859, Page 3

To the Editor of the Hawke's Bay Herald.

Sir, — The Stafford ministry have long been famous for their blunders, but in the preparation of the electoral divisions rolls of the new province they appear to have brought the art of blundering to the highest pitch oi' perfection of which it is capable.

Taese blunders are evident enough at the fh*st glance, but as the correctness of the electoral rolh is a subject of some pubib import anr-e (in the opinion of all but the ministry) I have thought it worth while to examine tiie:n a little more closely, and the result of this examination 1 shall now state as concisely as po?sibK

It appears that Donald MoLein Esq.. v?&3 appointed to form ths Electoral Rolls, and if, as is possible, he was also eonsultc.l with regard to the boundaries of the E en oral DisUijtt, woaderful must be his notions of- geography in general, and of the geographical divisions of the Province of liawke in ' particular. " ""' '

To~ begin with tha N'ipierDistrict : — Following the east (right) bank of the Tutaekuri river never could bring th_> boundaay to the Awatoto, which is an outlet from the lar^e swamp to the waters of the Ahuriri harbour. The c tsi bank of a rlv-iv which like Tutaekuri runs east and wast is a misnomer. Following the coast line from the entrance of Po. t Napier to the Tutaekuri mouth, is simply impossible, unless we are to read for 'coast line,' margin or shore of the harbor. Meauee Sp;t omitted from town, although sold as town land, and although several electors having their qualifications there are placed on the Napier Roil.

Next comes the Hapier Country District. : —

The eastern boundary of the Maraekakaho bldek does not 'cross' M.mgsonuku, but stops short there, and then th;ifc stream becomes the southern boundary of ths block.

There is no southern boundary common to the Aorangi and. Oiarangi blocks, perhaps 'boundaries' was intended.

For Pol.atu Naha, read Pohatu Hah?. For the -Waikari and Mohaka rivers to 'fork,' tne former must run up one side and down ths other of the Maunga Haruru range. The truth is the Moha'.a river runs for some distance in an easterly direction to the northward of, and parallel to that range, and then turns round, its termination, and, taking a S.E. direction, empties itself inio the waters of Hawke's Bay, -whilst the Waikari rises in the Maunga llaru.ru range on the southern side of the hill, which thus lies between it and the Mohaka, and renders the formation of a 'fjrk' (qy. confluence) of these two rivers physically impossible. The Waikari runs from its source to the sea in a southerly direction; there is therefore no starting point for the 'line bearing 310° 30' magnetic,' which is spoken of with so much mathematical accuracy. After another confusion of the coast line with the shore of .the. harbour, and a mistake as to the position of Awatoto, avo come to the Clive District. Here we are met almost at the outset by a vision of the Mata block flying across the Tuki Tuki over Kahuranaki, to form a convenient boundary" between the Clire and Waipuktoau districts, where, however, it is not allowed to rest in peace, for, as we shall presently see, the whole block (including Munn's, Chambers' and ail) comes back • again to doduty as-'a boundary between Clive and Te Aute, ' Well," in course of time and after pass-

ing'sundiy doubtful localities -with -hard, Maori - riaraea, we roach -'the Tiikituki tiver at Hawea'.; ' ' J - after which we are ; met by another difficulty, for - ."we are told to follow' the east (right) bank of that till we-reach 'the boundary of- ' the- natire re;.

sarve (Eohine Eakau),' which happenmg to be on,-, """'th6..op|iosit'ebank of theTukitukijOnefbela some-' - : what piizzleii liow toteach it ; after hav-' •'"ing partak©n|pf : Mr.|Wv'Couper's hospitable pot■^'ltiiik and 'doohandfiuvrasf we'willttakethe- liberty* of leavingrour offibiakguide on .the. eastern,- bank,. v> , or r rather,v?e wijl march, him acro?s with us-tb \ \ Kohiiije -Eaiau, where tib our ■ astouislimciit wo find ■<cthi9Mati=blo^ (which:,wa.left;|usfc now beyond the ; iifftirfaerffpiiemitj ;ot ! Mr.;Couper'B r|Hi), safely '.': "i landed Again ia ite old position j here we cmae

more feel at home, and actually reach the starting point at Manawai'akau without encountering another blunder. . .

The boundaries of the Hohaka ■ district are in the -main correct, with the. exception of the unlucky 'fork' of the Waikari and Mohaka'-rifers alluded to above,. - . TeAute District. -...'■-'^..---~ ~' Here wa begin at a Point on the Ngarurpro river, (wherever that may be) and following 'the south bank again encounter bur old friend theMata block, who again appears to be travelling about as before, for we are told to follow the boundaries of that block to Hawea on the Tukituki river. Now as Hawea is some miles further up the river than the nearest point of the IVlata block, and a3 it is moreover on the opposite bank, we are somewhat at a loss how to find our way there without leaving our official guide to his own'devices and following a course of his own. But the most egregious blunder is yet to come ; we are told to follow the Tukituki till we come 'to where; t.he Mangatauri joins it,' and 'thence by aline clue west to Taumata o Mekura on the Ruahine Range.' ■ Now will any one believe that the Mangatauri'a'ctually runs into the Waipawa and not into the Tukituki river, and that Taumata o Mekura lies, due west from a part of the former not of tho-lat-ter river ; so here again we have hills and rivers' endowed with strange-powers of locomotion, and in order not to lose a single opportunity of making 'confusion worse confounded,' two more blunders appear before we reach the- end of this extraordinary district : — Ist, following the west (right) bank of the Manganuku would not bring a wanderer, in search of these boundaries, in contact with the eastern or any other boundary of the Maraekakaho block ; that boundary stops short on the left bank of the river. The second blunder is leaving out words essential to the meaning of the concluding part of the paragraph; instead of'following the west bank of the Manganuku stream . to the eastern boundary of the Maraekakaho block to Omuomakui, &fi.,' it was evidently intended to say 'to the eastern boundary of the Maraekakaho block and thence following the- said boundary to Oinuomalcui,' &c. ; as" it stands, ths." sentence is' simply nonsense. ■ ■- .

Waipukurau District. For 'running along the northern boundary of Puketoi to the Puketoi llange,' &c, read of Akitio block, &c. For Te Euamea read Tiraurnea, and with inference to Mangatauri, Taumata o Mekura and the Tukituki, vide remarks above;

Somuoh for the boundaries of districts, -for the numerous errors in winch the ministry are directly responsible ; their ignorance of the subject seems really to amount to wiiat the la»ryei\3 have termed crassa ignorantia.

But bad as all this is, the gross ignorance and carelessness displayed in the formation of the electoral roll is, if possible, still worse. Mr. McLean having kindly consented to become the ministerial, soapc-goat, ths Ministry are only indirectly answerable, though deserving of ths severest reprehension, for not having taken a little more pains to guard the electoral -rights of all persons in the new province.

To begin with the Napier District 8011, which is quite as correct as some others, we havo Carter Charles "Hooking, C'harltori"George, "Pen-it and Richardson, who are all qualified by Freehold' Meanee, which is in the Napier Country district, also several names, with Napier qualifications, are omitted and placid on other rolls.

In the Napier country district live similar mistakes occur, beginning with A. Mohaka is correct with the exception of ons omitted.

Ta Aute has numerous errors of the same kind, besides the boundary question, which makes a difference of 15, according as th 3 Tukituki or the Waipawa is assumed to be the limits of the district.

In the AYaipukurau district the mistakes are still more numerous, and still more inexcusable, not to mention tha boundary difficulty, which applies hero as it does in the -case of Te Ante.

These are all palpable errors, which any one may discover in half an hour, and note down for thenmlves, and I hava- onlyjuuticulamed in a few instances, as a specimen of the nature -of the blunders to- which J wish to call public attention ; many of them- might have been avoided by the most ordinary' car j ; it is difficult to conceive how any one, having the old electoral roll to consult, could have made them, and the -maps must be of very ancient date that would not enable any person to give better definitions of electoral districts than those contained in the proclamation of the Ist Dat'ember.

I have confined myself, a3 far as possible, to a statement of facts, although the apportionment of the representation and the electoral division of the province I believe to bs most unjust and likely to bd pi'oductive of very serious consequences ; but these are questions of general policy into which I will not now entsr, as my design in writing this letter has- been to .point out the almost 'suoerna- j -.tural stupidity,' which appears to have presided over the manufacture, of tiiese precious electoral j roils, in the hope that the electors of. the province will endew our to remedy the evil, instead of bl'ndly worshipping the Stafford ministry becfus-a" th' 9 inter, sts of thos ? gentlemen and th.3 opin^otfs of the settlers of this district happened temporarily ..to coincide. ..... v Ak'ELECrOB OF THE PbOTCKCE.