TAMPERING WITH THE ROLLS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 6212, 14 October 1881, Page 5

TAMPERING WITH THE ROLLS.

In our issue of yesterday we drew the attention of our readers to the necessity of thoroughly inspecting the electoral rolls, for the purpose of seeing that their names were inserted thereon, and intimating that there was reason to believe that a careful scrutiny was desirable. Our warning has not been long in bearing fruit, for yesterday we believe Mr. Cotter, or some of his assistants, discovered sufficient to justify him in taking steps to set the machinery of the Corrupt Practices Prevention Act into operation. The person against whom proceedings are to be taken is one who himself aspires to legislative honours, and who has recently been making himself very active in respect to matters connected with the electoral rolls, namely, Mr. Garrard. There are other cases, we believe, about which proceedings may be instituted shortly, so that those who have been in the habit in times past of putting bogus names on the roll, for the purpose of personating when au election came round, will find that they have a more thorny path to tread now than they had formerly. We quote a small portion of the Act, to show that bringing men from the grave, or creating fictitious men for the purpose of an election is to be dealt with differently than formerly. Under the heading of " Personation " we 2nd the following : "Clause 27: A person shall, for all the purposes of the laws relating to elections, be deemed guilty of the offence of personation who at any such election applies for a voting paper in the name of some other person living or dead, or of a fictitious person, or who, having voted once at any such election, applies at the same election for a voting paper in his own name. 2S: A person shall also, for all the purposes of the laws relating to elections, be deemed guilty of the offence of personation who at any time, without a written authority to do so :—(1) Sends in any claim to have the name of any other person inserted on any list of voters, or on any electoral list or roll; (2) attaches or writes the name of any other person or any such claim, in order to make it appear as the claim of such person ; (3) procures the name of any such person to be inserted in any such list of voters or electoiv.l list or roll. 29. The offence of personation, or of aiding, abetting, counselling, or procuring the commission of the offeuce of personation by any person, shall be misdemeanour, and any person convicted thereof shall be punished by imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour, at the discretion of the judge."