ELECTION DODGE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume III, Issue 788, 21 October 1878, Page 2

ELECTION DODGE.

TO THE' EDITOK OF THE EVENING MAIL. v : Sir, —-I. note by a recent issue of your : paperj.tliafcthe election of mcmbers'to serve invtheJCounty Council takes place \sliortlyWe -smcerely hope our riding (Otek&ike) will be well represented in the next Council. We have been counting on having a better choice at command. "Who will be seeking our suffrages I do not know, but sincerely trust that neither a squatter nor a squatter's nominee will be in the field, as you know well, Mr. Editor, they are a sort of cattle that do not stable well witli the digger. In fact, judging by past experience, if" the squatter could only have Iris way there would be 110 such animal as the gold digger. But about the dodge says you? "Faith I am just coming to that same." Well, Sir, in order that your readers may understand it, I must first explain that the Otekaike Riding is peopled by an essentially gold-mining people, barring some two or three shepherds. Its boundary on the one side is the Awamoko, and on the other the Otekaike ; and what does the Council do (I presume at the suggestion of its Chairman) but make the polling place Mr. Campbell's Otekaike Station, actually outside the riding; and that gentleman's overseer the returning officer ; and not only is it outside the riding, but ten or twelve miles removed. from ninetenths of the electors. Why, sir, it is as plain as a pike-staff that if this little game is carried out all the voters w r lio will attend the polling booth will be the few shepherds referred to, and Livingstone and its inhabitants will be disfranchised. Is there no remedy for such a bare-faced injustice 1 Are we as a community to be sold by a squatter who has in several instances done his best to shut us up ? Are we to be ignored—worse still, down-trodden — 1 in this unblushing manner ? Perhaps you will kindly advise us what steps to take to circumvent the attempted injustice. Last election the nomination and,polling took place in the schoolroom at Livingstone, and the schoolmaster was the Returning Officer. At that time all who had a vote recorded it and lost no time, to do which in this instance will cost each man at least a day's work and a journey of say 24 miles, whilst others will lose their water too, which will be even a more serious loss than their time. I say nothing of the illegality of the question. The election would be as beneficial to us if held in Dunedin, as we can take no vehicle there except by a very circuitous route. The journey must be made either on foot or on horseback. Trusting you will show us a way out of the difficulty.—l am, &c., An Elector, but jco Shephekb.