REQUISITION TO THE MAYOR.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 3249, 5 July 1872, Page 2

REQUISITION TO THE MAYOR.

A deputation of about 30 citizens waited upon the Mayor, at the City Council Chambers, yeßterday, and presented him. with a requisition, signed by 385 persons, requesting him to come forward for reelection as Mayor.

Mr Norman Wood made the presentation, stating, on behalf of the requisitionists, that, should Mr Fish accede to their request, they pledged themselves to accord him their support.

Tho Ma yon replied as follows :—Mr Wood and Gentlemen—l need hardly say, that I feel extremely flattered by your kindness in presenting me with a requisition so numerously signed, asking me to again contest tho election for the office of Mayor for the ensuing year,, The fact is itself gratifying from tho numbers who have signed it ; but it is doubly gratifying to me, inasmuch as it leads me to believo—and I trust I atn not egotistical in saying so—that my conduct as Mayor during the past two years has been such, at any rate, as hits satisfied a large number of my fellow-citizens. I gather this, and I think I am justified in doing so, from the fact that the requisition to me to stand for tho third time has been numerously signed. I have no doubt that a great number, and especially those who have not signed the requisition, will say that it is wrong for a person to come forward for the third time as a candidate for the Mayoralty. Whilst I have held ifc to be a sound principle that there should be a change, I do not think I havo stated in my election speeches or in ony other way, so far as I am aware, that there are not circumstances which alter cases. In fact, it is generally admitted that there are circumstances which alter cases, and it is quite possible that there are circumstances in reference to the Mayoralty that may alter cases. However, the question as to whether a man ought or ought not to be elected more than once to the office of Mayor is one altogether in the hands of the citizens. If they do not think it politic to elect the same man twice or thrice, tho ballot-box affords them the opportunity of saying so. If, on the other hand, they say that notwithstanding the' principle that may have been enunciated by some, they desire to elect an individual who has already filled the office, I hold it to be the duty of one like myself, who has received so many favours from tlve public, to at once accede to tho request, believing as I do that the citizens are the best judges in a matter of this kind. Ido not know, gentlemen, whether you require my answer now. One of the Deputation : We leave it to yourself. The Mayor : Well, gentlemen, I do not think it is necessary that F should delay the matter. I will say at once that I consider it is my duty to accede to your request. Perhaps some of my friends will say that I am glad to have the chance of doing so. That may be true, for I freely admit that for a man to be asked by nearly 400 of his fellow citizens to contest for the third time the election for the office of Mayor is a very flattering position to be placed in. Therefore, I am not prepared to say that I am not glad to havo the opportunity of again seeking re-election. But I may also state that unless I had been asked to do so by a large number of my fellow citizens, I should not have come forward again. In signing this requisition, you have no doubt sufficiently good reasons for feeling satisfied that you are adopting a proper course. Therefore I will state, without further remark, that 1 gratefully accede to tho request made to me in this requisition. If I should be returned, and this numerously signed document leads me to believe that I shall be, I hope that at the end of my next year of office you will be justified in saying that I have done my duty for the third, time. Gentlemen, I again thank you for your kindness in presenting me with this requisition. The dejnitation then withdrew.