CHRISTCHURCH MUNICIPAL COUNCIL.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XVII, Issue 971, 1 March 1862, Page 4

CHRISTCHURCH MUNICIPAL COUNCIL.

On Thursday night, at 7 o'clock, the inhabitants of Christchurch assembled in the Town Hall, pursuant to requisition, to elect nine persons as municipal councillors for the city, under the ordinance in such cases provided. John Hall, Esq., E.M., occupied the chair, and explained the objects of the meeting. Twenty-four candidates were nominated, of whom two declined to serve. Mr. Ollivier was one of these, and he stated that his reason for declining the election was an anxious desire to see the ordinance fairly tested under the action of men who were not only free from political bias, but were supposed to be so. He had for many years endeavoured to discharge the duties devolving upon him as a citizen, righteously and in a patriotic spirit; but some were present who.failed to recognise that fact, and as his prime object was the organization of a body, who should be above suspicion, to direct those efforts for the sanatory improvement of the town which all sensible men felt to be not only desirable but necessary; lie must decline the honour which some of his friends proposed to confer upon him.—This declaration appeared to be very distasteful to popular feeling. The candidates put to a show of hands were Messrs. Anderson, J. Hall, E. Eeece, J. Barrett, W. Wilson. W. D. Barnard, G. Miles, W. Stringer, P. Bennett, G. Gould, R, Parker, E. B, Bishop, H. E. Alport, F Thompson, W. D. Wood, D. Inwood, J. G. Hawkes, T. R. "Fisher, G. Allan, G. B. Woodman, J. Daymond, and G. Williner. All the candidates present briefly addressed the meeting, and the popular voice was said to be in favour of the first nine names Aye have given—Mr. John Hall appearing to be most in favour. The Chairman said a poll Avould taken on Friday at the Resident Magistrate's office, and the business then closed. _ During the Avhole of yesterday considerable excitement Avas manifested about the precincts of the Eesident Magistrate's Court, but there were no evidences of bad feeling; nor, so far as ate perceived, anything but an earnest desire to give a fair chance to carry out the bill in its entirety. At the close of the poll the Eesident Magistrate declared the following person duly elected:— J. Hall, 154; J.Anderson, 133; G. Miles, 119; W. Wilson, 107 ; W. D. Barnard, 98 ; E. Recce, 89 ; J. Barrett, 8S ; H. E. Alport, 80 ; G. Gould, 78.