The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. MONDAY, JUNE 2.

Southland Times, Issue 3416, 2 June 1879, Page 2

The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. MONDAY, JUNE 2.

There appears to be some misconception as to the obligation of municipal bodies in their mode of advertisingofficial notifications. There is an idea abroad that the vehicle of advertising must be a Government Gazette, and this, we can assure our readers, is . absolutely erroneous. A case in point occurred the other day in connection with the borough of East Invercargill. It was thought that the publication of .that borough's bye r laws would have to be in the Government organ, and into that organ the bye-laws went. Now, in order that such 'mistakes may be avoided in future, and for the guidance of our municipal friends, we will give the gist of the matter as laid down by the Municipal Corporations Act of 1876, which is very clear upon the subject. Amongst the general provisions of the Act is the following clause -.—"When anything is required to be ~ published or publicly notified, or public notice of anything is to be g'iven,iiis meant that a notice thereof shall bepublished insome. newspaper circulating in the borough, or where there is no snch newspaper in general circulation then that piinted placards containing-the notice shall be affixed to public places in the borough." Wc think this is explicit enough, but in order to be specific we quote the 339ih clause relating to byelaws. " The council of every borough may from time to time make, alter, and repeal bye-laws . . ." Again in the second sub-section of the SiOth clause. "They (the bye-laws) shallbe published in the borough seven clear days before being considered by the council."

There is nothing whatever in the Act that even suggests much less compels publication in a Government newspaper, or Gazette, and as we are very

considerable losers already by the Corrupt action of the Government in ■ confining Government advertisements to journals, which wear the Government livery, we must protest against the grossly unjust system being carried into private life, and hence we modestly put forth our claims to receive a fair share of what is going outside of the (jbfellmen^clr^le; -•' We can assure our municipal friends that as an advertising medium, we are second to none in the district, and should it come to " printed placards" we can supply a most conspicuous kind that could not fail to catch the eye. We mention this matter in justice to ourselves, as well as to remove false impressions that have got abroad.