The Star. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1918. EDITORIAL NOTES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12243, 15 February 1918, Page 4

The Star. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1918. EDITORIAL NOTES.

THE SOUTHERN MAORI SEAT. We have before protested against the precipitancy with which the election for the Southern Maori seat has been rushed on, and have urged that more time should have been given to enable the electors to adapt themselves to the Dew conditions under which the election will be held. It should be remembered that next week’s poll will mark the first occasion- on which an election for a.Maori seat will.be conducted under precisely the same conditions a§ a European election, previous elections having been conducted under a happy-go-lucky system, which it is now considered to be antiquated in a country where there is really no difference between the races. The Southern Maori seat is easily the largest electorate in the Dominion, and at the last general election there were forty- • one polling places, and included such widely sundered centres as Nelson, 5 Westport, Kaikoura, and Riverton. JEven under the most favourable conditions and with the greatest possible - extension of time, it would be almost if not quite impossible for a candidate to come into touch with the various centres, and the majority of electors would require to take the candidates ■, on trust. It will be remembered that tiie rolls were closed without the least Warning, and that consequently many

found themselves without an oppportunity of securing registration. The consequence will be that the election will be held on an incomplete roll, with the probable result that large numbers will be debarred from participating in the election. In the case of European elections it is the custom for the returning officer to use the public prints to inform the electors as to the date of election, the polling places, and the names of the candidates. Why has this very proper course not been followed in the case of the present election? We presume the change in the method of election—in having rolls —has been inaugurated because of a desire to break down the barrier between the two races, That desire is a commendable one, and a very proper course to follow. But why leave the persons immediately interested entirely in % {\m\\ m to wMfc'is \mm* ing? Why should the Government not notify them through the Press as to the names of the candidates, the polling places, the hours of polling, and all other information? One could not be blamed for arriving at the conclusion that there was a desire to act in secrecy, to deter people from participating in the election. But that cannot surely be. We presume it is the desire of the Government that every possible voter should record his or her vote. The only way to bring this about is to have the election advertised extensively in all the centres interested. In the case of the Wellington by-election, which is now in progress, the authorities have given the event the utmost publicity; the usual advertisements have appeared in the local papers. If that, policy is a. good one in the case of an election for a small, closely settled European electorate, surely publicity is a thousand times more necessary in the case of an elecl- - which stretches for full five hundred miles, where the people have no chance to meet in central positions to hear the addresses of the candidates. It is obvious that the two sys--1 terns cannot be right. In a democracy this difference of treatment should not be tolerated. Although it is now late in the day, the Government by prompt action can still do something to rectify the very grave omission which has been made. Unless this is done it is clear that those most concerned will have a legitimate grievance against the powers that be. THE RUNANGA MURDER. After a trial extending over four days, conducted with great skill by counsel on both sides, and presided over by a Judge who gave to the accused ec ery facility to clear himself of the very grave charge brought against him, William Eggers or M'Mahou was last night adjudged by a jury of his countrymen guilty of one of the most deliberate, cold-blooded and calculated murders that has ever stained the criminal records of the country. For such an abominable deed there could, of course, be but one sentence—death. There are, we are sure, few who will not allow that the punishment meets the crime. Fortunately, miscreants of the Eggers type are rare, just as it is only at rare intervals that fiends incarnate of the Burke and Hare and Deeming and Crippen class are evolved in a civilised ,community. Something can on occasions be said in extenuation of crimes committed in the heat of passion; it is not altogether inconsistent to plead for leniency in cases where even a foul deed is committed without premeditation, and without thought of possible consequences. But the Runanga case cannot under any circumstances bo included in that category. It is unnecessary to recapitulate the evidence, since the very full reports of the case have enabled the general public to form their own opinions, to make their own deductions, and we are satisfied that the verdict—the only one which could have been returned by an intelligent jury in face of the damning array of circumstantial evidence which was placed before the Court—will meet with the full approval of the country. Indeed, the testimony before it, coupled with the entire absence of anything in the nature of rebutting evidence, made the disagreeable task of the jury relatively light. It will be an intense relief to the public to know that the man guilty of this dastardly crime has been brought to hook, and not permitted to plot, perhaps, greater crimes. It was entirely appropriate that before leaving the case the Judge should take the opportunity to compliment the police on the very able manner in which they handled the case. We sometimes hear a great deal concerning the alleged weaknesses of the Police Force and its failure to perform certain duties, but we seldom hear much in its praise. A not inconsiderable portion of the community regard the Police Force as a. target for their alleged wit and ridicule. That that attitude is an unfair one we are quite convinced. The manner in which the Runanga murder has been shewed home affords abundant evidence of the capacity of the Force. When the news of the tragedy first became public there was no clue to the culprit. The police' had nothing to go on. However, a clue, a very slender one, was found by Detective Ward, and followed with an ingenuity, skill and persistency which would have done credit to a Sherlock Holmes, culminating with the arrest, under sensational circumstances, of the accused man in Christchurch. The other members of the Police Force, too, richly deserve the happy words of praise spoken by the Judge, who was well within the mark when he said that the whole case was a fine piece of work by the Detective and Police Force. We are quite satisfied that the Police Force of the Dominion is worthy of the full confidence of the people, and the manner in which the very intricate case which was concluded last night was conducted affords convincing proof on this point. There sometimes arise cases which cannot be unravelled—there are crimes which have never been sheeted home—but it must be remembered that Scotland Yard has been given tasks beyond its capacity to solve, and that the Pinkerton Police have sometimes been nonplussed by astute criminals. The Runanga case is certainly a testimonial to the efficiency of the guardians of the law, and wo desire-to congratulate one and all of its members on their eminently clever handling of the case.,