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Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 2, Issue 73, 12 February 1859, Page 1 (Supplement)

which of the said Candidates he intends to vote* 8. On such Candidate or Candidates being named by the Elector the Deputy Returning Officer or Poll Clerk shall enter the vote accordingly in a Poll Book to be kept for that purpose, and the Elector shall affix his signature to the entry ; Provided always that when the Elector affixes his mark, it shall be witnessed by the Returning Officer, Deputy Returning Officer, or Poll Clerk. -4. It shall be lawful for the Elector at any time before he has affixed his signature as aforesaid, to have the entry of the names of the C.nidi«3ates for whom he desires to record his vote altered, but no alteration shall be made after the entry is signed. •'5. As soon as the Elector has signed the entry he shall immediately lsave the Polling Booth, and on his refusal to do so, shall be forthwith removed by order cf the Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Oitlcer. 15. No inquiry shall be permitted at the time of Polling as to tire right of any person to vote except only as follows, th.it is to say, the. Returning Oißcer, or Deputy Returning Officer shall, if he think fit, or if required hy any Candidate, or his agent authorised in writing, or by any Elector of the Electoral District for which the Election is beinc held, put to any Elector before hs shall have affixed his signature as hereinbefore provided, and not afterwards, the following questions, or either of them : — 1. Are you the person whose name appears as (A. B.) in the Electoral Roll now in force for the Electoral District of (here state the - name of the district) ? 2. Have you already voted here or elsewhere at this present Election f >r the Electoral District of (here state the name of the district. J ? 17. The Returning Officer or Deputy Returning Officer shall also, if he think fit, or if required as aforesaid, administer an Oath in the form numbered 6, in the said Schedule to any Elector before he shall have affixed his signature as aforesaid, and not. afterwards, and such Returning Officer or his' Deputy shall likewise, if he shall think fit, or if required as aforesaid, administer an Oath against Bribery, in the form numbered 7 in the said Schedule. 18. No person so required to answer nny such Question or take any Oath as aforesaU shall be permitted to vote until he shall have answered such Question or t:ken such Oath ; and if any person shall vilful y make a f;ils3 answer to any such Question, or shall upon any such Oath wilfully swear falsely, such person shall be deemed guilty of Misdemeanour, and on conviction of making such false answer shall be punished by fine and imprisonment with or without hard labour, for a term not exceeding two years, and on conviction of wilfully swearing falsely shall suffer the like penalties as persons convicted of wilful and corrupt perjury. 19. No Elector at any Election shall "be required to take any Oath except as aforesaid, either in proof of his qualification or right to vote or olhrrwise, and no persons claimi: g to vote at any Election shall be excluded from voting thore-at, except it shall appear to the Returning Officer or Deputy ■Retumin x Officer upon putting such questions, as aforesaid, or either of them, that the person so claiming to vote is not the person whose name appears on such Electoral Roll as aforesaid, or that he lias previously voted sX the same Election, or except such person refuse or neglect to answer cither of the, -questions, or to take either of the said ?Oaths, when required as aforesaid. 20. If at any Election any person •shill knowingly, personate and. falsely as;«urne to vote in the name of any other person "whose name appears on the Electoral Roll then in force, whether such other person be ihen Lying or dead, or if the name of the -said other person he the name of a fictitious person, every such person shall he guilty , of a Misdemeanour, and on being convicted .thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for a terra not exceeding 2 years, together <jviih hard labour; " : - " ' 21, . If during. the tame any person shall Tbe 'in any Polling Booth, any agent appoint? edin writing as aforesaid,. by or on behalf 1 of'any Candidate, shall declare in writing to, to the Returning OfScer or his Deputy that JJe" verily believes' and undertakes; to prove that the said person is not in fact the person in "whose name he assumes to.vote, or to the

like effect, then, and in such case, it shall be lawful for the said Returning Officer or his Deputy, and he is required, by word of mouth, to order any Constable (if any such be present) to take the person assuming to vote into custody, which order shall be suffcient warrant and authority to the said Constable for so. doing : Provided always that if such person shall insist on voting notwithstanding such charge of Pe;scnation is made against him, he shall be permitted to vote before he is removed. 22. Every such Constable shall take the person so in his custody at the earliest convenient time before two Justices of the Peace having jurisdiction at the Polling-place at which such person shall have voted as aforesaid : Provided always that in case the attendance of any such Justices cannot be procured within the space of 3 hours after the close of the Poll, on. the same day on which such person shall have been taken into custody, it shall Ire lawful for the same Constable, and he is hereby required at the request of such person in his custody, to take him before any Justice of the Peace having jurisdiction as aforesaid, and such Justice is hereby authorised and required to liberate such person on his entering into a recognizance with one sufficient surety conditional to appear before any two such Justices as aforesaid, at a time and place to be specified in such recognizance, to answer the said charge ; and if no such Justices shall be found within four hours after the closing of the said Poll, then such person shall ba discharged from custody : Provided also that if in consequence of the absence of such Justices as aforesaid, or from any other, cause, the said charge cannot be inquired into within ths time aforesaid, it shall be lawful nevertheless for any two such Justices as aforesaid, to enquire into the same on the next or some other subsequent day, and if rcecesary to issue their warrant for the apprehension of the person so charged. 23. If on the hearing of the said charge, the said two Justices shall be sa;isfied upon the evidence on Oath of not less than two credible witnesses, that the said person so brought before th?m was knowingly personated and falsely assumed to vote in the name of some other person within the meaning of this Act, and is not in fact the person in whose name he voted, or has offered to vote, then it shall be lawful for the said two Justices to commit the said offender to an\ gaol, to take trial according to law, and to bind over the witnesses, in their respective recognizances to appear and give evidence on such trial as in the case of other misdemeanours. 24. If ths said Justices shall, on the hearing of the charge be satisfied that the person so charged with Personation k really and in truth the person in whose name he voted or offered to vote, and the charge of Personation has been made against him without reasonable or ju;t cause, or if the person so declaring as aforesaid, or. some one on his behalf shall not appear to support such charge, then it shall be law. fnl for the said Justices, and they are hereby required to make an order in writing under their ban-is on the person so declaring as aforesaid to pay to the person so fals?ly charged, if he shall consent to accept ths same, any sum not exceeding the sum of £20, nor less than £5 by way of Damages and Costs ; and if ths said sum shall not be paid within twenty-four hours after such order shall have been made, the same, may be levied by warrant under the hand of any Justice of the peace having jurisdiction as aforesaid, by distress and sale of- the goods and chattels of the person so declaring as aforesaid, and in. ea~e no sufficient goods and chattels of the said person so declaring can be found on which Fuch levy conns made, then it shall.be lawful for the said person to whom the said sum of money was ordered to be paid to recover -the same of the person declaring, with full Cost 3of Suit, in an Action or Suit to be brought in any Court within the Colony having jurisdiction to the amount of the ? aid sum so ordered to be paid : Provided always that iFlne person so falsely charged shall consent in writing to ac-. cept such, sum as aforesaid by way of damages and costs, and if the whole of the amount so ordered to be paid shall be paid or tendered to such '.person; in •asy. i such case, but not otherwise, the \Sajjd, person: so declaring as aforesaid,; and every other person shall be released-frbtn all Actions, Suits, arfd other -"prnwedings,! Civil ..or Criminal,, for', ot/ in resjject'of, the said charge and apprehension. , j; ' „.."'! " 25.. JWhen the proceedings at any Polling Place shall he interrupted by any riot or open violence, the Returning Officer or his Deputy, may from time to time adjourn

the taking of the Poll until after such interruption shall have ceased, when the ..Returning . Officer or his Deputy shall jjgain' proceed with the taking of the Poll ;^rt the pointut which the sume may hav..e been . ''interrupted, so that the Poll shall be kept open for seven hours in the whole; and all the Votes given under such circumstances, shall he as valid and • effectual as if ihs same had been recorded during the regular hours on the day fixeel for the Polling : Provided always, that 110 such adjournment shall extend beyond the day fixed for ths return of the Writ, and if the Polling shall not have been com.pleted by that clay, or the election cannot be regularly completed within such time, from any cause \\ hatever, the Returning Officer shall make a special return stating what has been done, and the facts which have prevented the Election from being duly completed. 2G. The Returning Officer for each Electoral District, as soon as may be piactible after he shall have received the state of the Poll at all the Polling Places within the District, shall proceed to ascertain the numbers Polled for each Candidate at such Places collectively, and shall at the principal Polling Places of the District, and at a time to be fixed, of which at least fortyeight hours' notice shall have been given, in such manner as he may deem best calculated to give publicity to the same, publicly declare the persons found to have the greatest number of votes to bo duly elected : Provided always that if the number of Votes for any two or more Candidates be equal, the Returning Officer shall then and there decide by his Casting Vote which of the Candidates shall be elected : Provided also, that no Returning Ofncer shall vote at any Election for the Electoral District of which he is Returning Officer except as aforesaid : Provided also that it shall be lawful for any Deputy Returning Officer notwithstanding his acting as such to vote as an Elector for any Electoral District for which he may be duly registered. 27. The' Returning" Officer on the day of which such declaration is made, shall endorse on the Writ the names of the persons so declared to be elected as aforesaid, and shall add thereto a declaration that such persons are elected in pursuance of the said Writ, and shall also date such endorsement on the day on which the same is made ; and shall then forthwith despatch the Writ to the Governor. 28. No election shall be held to be void in consequence of there being no Returning Officer at the time of the issue of any Writ, or in consequence of any delay in the holding of the Election at the time appointed, or in the taking of the Poll, or in the return of the Writ, such delay not extending beyond the day named for the return of the Writ, or in consequence of any impediment of a technical or formal nature. 2D. Any Returning Officer, or Deputy Returning Officer or Poll Clerk, or other pergon employed in the conduct of an election, who shall wilfully neglect or refuse to perform any of the duties which, by the provisions of this Act he is required to perform, or shall misbehave himself in the performance of such duties, shall for each offVnce forfeit and pay a sum not exceeding £50, to be recovered in a summary way before two Justices of the Peace. SO. It slnll be lawful for the Governor to authorise the payment of all necessary expenses to In incurred in carrying the provisions of this Act into execution, to be. defrayed out of any sums to be voted by the General Assembly for that purpose. 31. When any matter or thing shall be required under the provisions of this Act, to be performed on a certain day, and that day happen to be Sunday, Christmas day, or Good Friday, the said matter or thing shall be performed on the next succeeding day. 32. And whereas divers of the Electoral Districts under this Act are far distant from the Seat of Government, and of great extent, and unforseen difficulties or delays may arise in carrying into effect the several provisions herein contained with regard to Elections for the said districts, :• Be it therefore enacted that within the period of forty day s, before or after the day appointed for the holding of any Election, it shall be lawful for the Governor in Council, to extend the time allowed for, the hold- ! -ing of. such election, or for the .return of '- the 'Writ%sxied for-the same notwithstand - ing the day may have'paSsed on which 1 such Writ shall be returnable, and to adopt, or cause to be. adopted', such measures as may " be necessary to remove any obstacle of a technical or formal nature by, which the due course of any such Election may b.e impeded, and to supply any deficiency that

may otherwise affect the same .: Provided always, that any such measure so adopted by the Governor in Council, shall be duly : jiptified in the 'New Zealand Gazette.' 33. Throughout this Act in the construction thereof the terra 'Polling Booth' shall include any house, building, or other place at which any Poll is being taken ; and the day of the return of the Writ shall bs deemed to be the day on which the Returning Officer shall have endorsed thereon the names of the persons declared to he duly elected, and not the day ori^vhich the Governor shall receive the same. 34. This Act shall come into operation on the first day of January, 1859. 35. The Short Title of this Act shall be 'The Regulation of Elections Ace, 1858. '