ROAD BOARD ELECTIONS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume X, Issue 1926, 10 May 1888, Page 2

ROAD BOARD ELECTIONS.

Gheat disappointment h&L. been caused on the Plains by thogl^tion of members without sufficient notice being given. Many ratepayers at Otakeho and north of that place were absolutely ignorant of the fact that any election was pending. One short advertisement of an election may be sufficient notification iv the eyes of the clerk or of the chairman, but on matters affecting the whole district it is usual to take opinion of the whole board before departing from the previous custom. The notice given of the annual meeting of ratepayers was also absolutely insufficient. It was a notice addressed to ratepayers scattered over an area of 140,000 acres. The notice first appeared on Monday evening, convening a meeting for Wednesday, at no particular hour. It was obviously impossible for such a notice to come before one half of the Waimato ratepayers interested until after the event. Those "who saw the notice could not tell at what hour to attend,

and as a matter of fact the meeting, which was fixed for 11 o'clock, lapsed for want of a quorum. The Board, however, adjourned the meeting to a later hour, and in the afternoon some twenty ratepayers attended. Some very important resolutions were then passed, but inasmuch as the district as a whole was not represented, one cannot attach much value to such resolutions ; unless, of course, they should be confirmed by a more representative meeting held after longer notice had been given. One regrettable result of the insufiicient notice of the nomination of candidates is the compulsory retirement of Mr. Thos. Parsons. He has been a member of the road board for some five or sis years. Whenever he has contested an election he has been returned at the head of the poll. All those ratepayers who know the uniformly good work given and sound sense shown by him in his capacity as commissioner would have taken steps to prevent his being shut out from the election had they known of its coming. It is an invidious thing to propose to upset any election, but in this case it might be defended. We should be sorry to have it supposed that any mere economy of advertising on the part of the board has influenced us in this matter. The law compels a certain amount of advertising, and provided the legal requirements in that respect are fulfilled, we never have nor ever shall complain. We are satisfied that local bodies are quick to recognise that the notification of tenders for public works in the press saves expense, and will endeavor to so arrange advertising expenditure as to secure the benefits at the leust cost. We have ever found the local bodies in this district ready aud willing to give the Star fair and generally speaking very liberal patronage in this respect. Iv the present case we should have avoided touching on the subject if there were not a risk of an important and, as we believe, an erroneous step being taken, on the strength of resolutions passed at a meeting which, while representative in name, was not so in numbers or in fact.

The session, which opens to-day will certainly mark an era in New Zealand history. Ministers come before Parliament pledged to rigorous retrenchment, revision of taxation, and of Customs tariff. With little prospect of an organised Opposition, but with a strong probability that when Customs tariff comes on for consideration there will be an attempt made to divide parties into Freetradei # s and Protectionists, the programme promises a tough session. Freetraders in New Zealand, of course, admit that it would be madness at the present time to strike off or even to reduce important revenue producing Customs duties when every available source of income has to be made the most of. But there are many men, some perhape within the Ministry itself, who are determined to go no further in the direction of protection, but, if possible, to simplify the tariff and reduce the number of dutiable articles. Such men could, if more revenue were required for the State, consistently vote for an increase of the duties on spirits and tobacco, and, if necessary, even on sugar and tea, without much violation of their principles as freetraders. Nevertheless, it would be a great surprise to us if Customs duty should be increased on the two lastnamed articles. It seems strange that in New Zealand the Tory mantle of protection should be so proudly displayed on the shoulders of the advanced Liberals. T/his may be cited as another instance -of how, according to English notions, all things are reversed at the antipodes, even in politics.

From Wellington it is reported by the Times that the anti-Chinese proclamation declaring certain Asiatic ports infected with contagious disease is all ready for issue, but is said to be awaiting the signature of his Excellency the Governor. An impression prevails that this signature may not be readily appended to the ment, and that possibly special instructions from Home may be deemed requisite before so pronounced a step is taken. Sir W. Jervois is an old soldier. Probably no one in this colony knows better than he what an embarrassing step to the Home Government, at the present time, the exclusion of Chinese from New Zealand parts, might prove, if effected by a little artifical dodgery, as proposed. We believe that if he has declined to become a party to the bit of sharp practice proposed by the proclamation of certain Asiatic ports as infected, he will rise in the estimtion of all those who are not affected by the popular outcry of the moment.

How do those Protectionists who cite the example of the United States as an instance of the success of Protection and of its effect in raising the, or at least in maintaining a high, price for labor, account for Major Dane's distinct denial of the truth of the statement that such has been the effect there ? The Major asserts that iv the United States labor is worth from 4s to ss, as against 6s to 8s per day in New Zealand. There has been no notice taken of the statement by the Protectionist newpapers as yet.