ELECTION HUMOUR.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17327, 26 November 1919, Page 9

ELECTION HUMOUR.

INCIDENT AT NEWMARKET. A great deal of amusement was create* at Mr. Clutha Mackenzie's' Newmarket meeting last evening by the behaviour o two individuals in the audience at ques tion time. The first was extremely anxiou; to know whether the candidate, if elected . would vote in favour of there being ix poll on the prohibition question for 1; . years in the event of that issue being de feated'at the coming poll. After putting his query from the fron seat in the theatre and not obtaining wha ' he* considered a satisfactory answer, thi persistent person, who proclaimed that hi f was a " digger," went up on to the stage There he repeated his inquiry. Mr. Mac ~ kenzie good-naturedly replied that he wa; 3 in favour of separating the issue from thf ' general elections, but that he was not ir S favour of the prohibition poll being ? " pushed out" for 12 years. { While the " digger" argued the point } with the chairman of the meeting as to 1 whether or not he had had his turn and " must resume his seat in the body of the 3 hall, the second man to contribute to the 3 diversion of those present arose. » He was an elderly man with a dec' dec, b 1 foreign accent. He was understood to «£ ? that he was a Dutchman. .Might ne ask 1 Mr. Mackenzie a few qf*' 01 *- «f. *"' 1 ~,irnrl h!andlv H" «'»« told he might. * and when«S first disturber of decorum ' had been persuaded to be quiet, he was < 1 heard to ask the candidate why he had 5 I not stuck to Balclutha instead of coming • Jo Newmarket. " I've only been here -Line months," he said." ba I m wellknown. They call me 'Old I nek. tit, • £> had come from Balclutha. he said, and there was no more gold there. I Mr Mackenzie jocularly remarked that that was why he had come to Newmarket. : After some further exchanges, the meeting was brought to the customary conclusion.