FEUDING.

New Zealand Times, Volume LVIX, Issue 2999, 10 December 1896, Page 1

FEUDING.

The elections are over, and I presume the defeated candidates will return to their various avocations, and not entertain any bitter feelings towards the successful candidates or their supporters. I think Mr Bailey has taken his defeat with very good grace. There were a few objectionable tactics adopted by the supporters of Mr Lethbridge in connection with Mr Bailey’s statements on the licensing question, which alienated some of his support. A number of the Prohibitionists jould not sea through the letters that were inserted in the local press in fe that end read the said letters as being true There* ff ero fiomo statements reported at Mr Cheltenham meet, ing which were eith,' r Bailey had made in or, ■ £ ee tf n h fully explained at h.a K % 0 tho J* tut his opponents still adhere. port they had circulated that ,«*-: 0 ~ was not sound on the licensing qut - ’ However, the die is oast, and it is nseit * to stir up the mud again. There were some amusing incidents in the polling booths and outside during election day. A Chinaman elector, after retiring to the compartment which was provided for electors to mark their papeis and studying what he was to do, came back to the returning officer and requested to bo informed which was the top line on the licensing voting paper, as ho had been told not to strike out that lino. An old lady carefully folded the voting papers given to her and took them to her homo. She was escorted back again by her friends, and the returning oflioer had to do tho voting for her. Another lady voter, after spending some considerable time studying oyer the voting papers, emerged from the private compartment and informed the returning officer that she did not know what she was to do, and was expecting her daughter to come to her assistance. Another old lady, who came from the Emerald Isle, after studying over her voting paper for about half an hour, drew back the curtain and delivered herself of the following : " Sure, are you gintlemen going to keep mo hero all day ? I might shtay here till X die before any of yez come to me.” It appears that she had been waiting for someone to come and instruct her what to do. A number of people—men as well as women—were under the impression that the papers' given to them outside of the door of the polling-booth by the publicans: and Prohibitionists were the voting papers. There was not much enthusiasm shown by either side as tho returns came in. A number of people assembled outside of the office of the local paper to watch the returns as they were posted from time to time. There was a strong smell of rotten eggs in the vicinity. Some folks got grey hairs upon them in a very short space of time, not on account of the worry they had experienced during the election, but from sundry bags of flour that wore being dispensed. . Most of the folks retired to rest before 12 o’clock. I did not notice a single case of an elector being elated by drink. The committees worked hard for their candidates. Mr Bailey's supporters anticipated that he would poll better in Peilding. The weather was exceptionally flue for the races. A number of people were in town bn both days.’ The hotels and boarding-houses were taxed to find room for the visitors.

- Quite a flutter -was. caused in the churches on Sunday evening by the firebell striking the alarm of fire just in the middle of the service. About half the people left the church to find that the fire was some rubbish heap burning in the suburbs of the town. Messrs Barraud and Abraham, seed merchants, have removed into their new and commodious premises in Ferguson street., Mr Ralph Heald has completed the contract for the erection of the new Club Rooms in Kimbolton road. The rooms have been fitted up in first-class style with all modern improvements. It is anticipated that there will bo a large number of visitors from the country to Wellington at Christmas to "do" the Exhibition. ' . The Liberals must have worked well in Wellington to return two candidates. A number of Mr Wilson's old friends in Rangitikei would like to have seen him one of the successful candidates.