Poverty Bay Herald.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XIX, Issue 6477, 21 September 1892, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald.

PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING, GISBOBNE, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1892 THE ELECTORAL BILL. Recent events bring out distinctly the danger of including female suffrage in the Electoral Bill. The proposal aims at no trifling amendment of the law. The principle is of immense importance ; its adoption would double the number of voters in the colony. But although the principle is thoroughly endorsed by the great majority of the people of the colony, and has twice passed the representative Chamber, there is now great risk of it being sacrificed through a dispute between the two branches of the Legislature on the question whether the four principal cities shall return their allotted number of members to the House of Representatives singly or in batches of three, an issue : that in really not worth fighting about. The party falsely called Conservative voted for the amalgamation of the city electorates. The alteration in the law was not made for party purposes, although the change was strongly resisted by the extreme Radical section of the House, on the ground that the enlargement of the constituencies would handicap i\ poor man j in the election contests, in fact, might prevent many from coming forward at all. That foreboding has not turned out to be correct. At the last general election the Labor party won eleven out of the twelve city seats, Mr Duthio, one of the Wellington representatives, being the only supporter of the late Government returned by any of the triple electorates. Mr ! George Fisher, another Wellington member, has changed sides since elected. It may here be remarked that the system of triple city electorates was adopted owinc to the strong desire of the people directly concerned. S'^me members of the Opposition in the Lower House and the majority of the Council appear to have come to the conclusion that the amalgamation of the city electorates has worked in favor of the party which now hold the reins of power. They have also discovered that the triple representation of the large towns is unfair to the country districts. Now, it is quite possible to confer an advantage on one man without injuring another. For our part, we do not see that the rural residents have any sub stantial ground for complaint. The present arrangement does not confer any additional representation on the cities. The whole thing resolves itself into a question of the modo of election. Besides, it is not at all clear that the late Government would have fared bettor at the general election of 1890 if single constituencies had prevailed without exception throughout the land. The majority of suburban and country electorates decided against the Atkinson Ministry. The Labor troubles and hostility to the Property Tax were the principal influences at work in the last election. The excitement of the strike died out loner ago and the Property Tax has been replaced by a Land and Income Tax. Elections in the cities would probably now be attended with a very different result from that which occurred in 1890. It is a trite saying that one never knows what m;iy occur in politics. The outcome of elections held during a period of excitement cannot be taken as a permanent guide. The great principle of woman suffrage should not be sacrificed through petty calculations as to the political party most favored by the amalgamation of the city constituencies. As for the amendment of the Council that women should have the privilege of voting by electors' rights lodged with a postmaster between nomination and polling days, surely the members of the Ppper House must be aware that, once the franchise is conferred the women will have power to enforce that concession. Should female franchise miscarry this session the Legislative Council must share the blame with the Government.

The Fire Brigade meet for manual practice to-night. A meeting of the Caledonian Society is called for this evening. Our readers are reminded of the sale of Mrs 11. McDonald's furniture, etc., to be held by Mr C. Dean Pitt at 11.30 to-morrow morning at the residence on WhaUupoko, near the fellmongery. A break for the conveyance of intending purchasers will leave the Masonic corner at 11 o'clock. Tenders close at the County Council office on Friday next for transforming the Waimata bridle track into a dray road, and for the erection of three bridges on the road. Tenders close on Saturday for forming 2.^ miles of dray road from Ngatapa homestead to the Tangihanga block, also for forming a ll\ mile dray road from the Gisborne- Wairoa road to Te Aroha. It is announced that the Busshmere estate, which comprises as good land as is to bo found in a remarkably fine district, will be sold by auction, in sections of convenient size, in the middle of November next. The locality is near enough to Gisborne to be suitable for a suburban residence, being within half-an-hour's drive of the business portion of the town. The terms on which r.he sections will be submitted are exceedingly liberal. The Weather. — Weather forecast for 24 hours from 9 a.m. to-day. Wind between north and west and south-west at all places northward of East Cape, Taupo and Raglan, and southward of Timaru and Q.uecnstown, and between north-east an;l north and west afc all other places. Barometer further rise at all places northward of East Cape, Taupo and Raglan, and fall soon at all other places. Sea heavy on western coast, and between Castlepoint and Kaikoura after twelve hours. Warninngs for northerly gales and rain have been sent to all places south ■-■■ ard of Napier and New Plymouth. Synopsis of last 24 hours : — Throughout the country the barometer has continued rising with southerly winds. There have been sharp frosts in Otago and cold weather generally. The following is a list of the liabilities and assets in the bankruptcy estate of E. Fannin. The first meeting of creditors will be held on Monday next at 3 p.m. at the Official Assignee's office :— Yen. Archdeacon Williams £10 lGs, James Craig £14 14s, Pettie and Harper £7 19s sd, G. R. Moore 18s 9d, John Townley £1 13s 7d, M. Garrett £1 4s (id, McGuire*& Co 18s, Jas. East £10 11s lid, J. F. Lines £n lT>s 6'd, H. M. Porter £21 17s 3d, Agnes Reardon £SO, G. T. Fannin £20, A. Teesdale £10, Whitby and Partington £4 17s, R. Little £2 3s 6d, Mrs Hicks £1 10s, A. R. Muir £3 10s, John Allen £7 10s Gd, D. M'Guire £4 14s, T. Webb £4 15s; total, £215 lls Id. Assets, stock In trade £10, furniture £20; total, £30. Deficiency £135 \U Id.

The programme of [the entertainment to be held in the Theatre Royal on Friday evening, in aid of the widow and family of the late J. W. Smith, is published aa an inset with this issue. The two properties submitted to-day for sale by Mr Bright were withdrawn the reserve not being reached on Mr Mazeiigarb's property, and there being no bid for the section on Childers Road. A meeting of the Waimata Road Board was held yesterday for the purpose of receiving tenders for the Waimata river road. Three tenders were sent in, but owing to the Board considering them too high, none were accepted. Probably fresh tenders will he called for at the next monthly meeting of the Board. In 30 years there have been 9201 known fatal cases of cancer in Victoria, the mortality being greater among females. The medical authorities state that judging from the returns for the last eight years, cancer is much more fatal in Victoria than in any of the other Australian colonies. Some men are born unlucky. The Australian Blondin gave an open air tightrope performance at Fox ton the other night, but was not lucky enough to get a very big monetary collection. His bad luck pursued him, however, for some mean thief stole the proceeds before the show was over. According to Mr T. Fleming, of Invercargill, at the present moment the millers of the colony, from Auckland to Bluff, had to deal with this difficulty — that their mills were producing 1000 tons of flour weekly in excess of requirements. A committee had been appointed to devise some equitable way of regulating the output. Scarcely a ton is being exported at a paying price to millers. A Southern contemporary says : — The cablegram, in reference to the exhibition by the National Chrysanthemum Society of blooms sent to England by Mr Earland, of Wellington, preserved in blocks of ice, is susceptible of extension. Mr Earland, who is gardener to the Mayor of Wellington, is one of three enthusiasts in this colony who have devoted a great deal of attention to obtaining seed from chrysanthemums with a view of producing new varieties — a thing which has been found almost impossible in England, but which has been accomplished in the Channel Islands, the South of France, and some parts of America. Mr EarlancVs efforts proved successful, and amongst his seedlings were a number of really good new flowers. He was naturally desirous that English growers should have an opportunity of viewing the product of his patient skill, and, as we recorded some time back, he hit upon the idea of sending Homo specimens frozen in blocks of ice, through which the blossoms could be clearly seen. Mr Harmann Payne, the Corresponding Secretary of the National Chrysanthemum Society, was notified of the coining of the frozen flowers, and when the last mail left London the horticultural journals were busy speculating upon the probable results of an interesting experiment which now appears to have proved eminently satisfactory. The following letter, entitled " The Drivel of our Members," appeared in the Evening Post : — The drivel of our members, it echoes in the halls where the voice of living heroes should shake the very walls ; where Tribunes of the nation should voice the nations Wrong, and tear the mask off Evil, the sceptre from the Strong. Arraigned arc you, O members, with quailing in the van ; with fear to face the Issue, the martyrdom of man. No conqueror ever conquered if daunted by his Thought, and you whose courage fails you shall triumph over naught. Upon our shields we raised you, and hailed you as our own, and bled for you, and vanquished, and placed you on the throne ; and now, with bitter passion, we watch our brainless fun — O God/ O God.' for one man to lead our legions on. Aye, maunder on, ye members, you alter not one vote ; you speak not what you're thinking, but drive', learnt by rote. Witli wrath and scorn and sorrow it's counding on our cars— the drivel of our members, their laughter and their jeers. In anger fierce we listen, or luuig our heads in shame to think that all our efforts for ever end the same : to think of what we've suffered to place you where you are, and now to see you flinching when comes the shock of war. Oh ! the drivel of our members ! it echoes in the halls where the voices of the valiant should, thunder on the walls. Opposing forces gather — Hark/ Hark/ the signal gun — O God/ O God / for one man to lead our legions on. I am, &c, D.D.D., Gallery, House of Representatives, July, 1892. The opera "lolanthe" will be rehearsed at the Rink this evening. Ladies and gentlemen are requested to attend at seven o'clock.— Advt.