H.—No. 14.

12

REPORT OP THE MOTUEKA ELECTION COMMITTEE.

23rd Aug., 1871,

sth Sept., 1871

Mr. Travers: The proper mode would be to produce the certificate of birth, verified in tho usual way. The Chairman : The Committee will receive the affidavit of Mrs. Hagan to the effect that the person named in it is her son. Mr. Bunny : We are not bound by legal forms. The sth clause of the amended Act gives us the power of regulating the form and manner of our proceedings. Mr. Travers .- The Committee would not receive the evidence of Mrs. Hagan that her son was the son of James Hagan, whose name is on the electoral roll; she might state that he was the son of her husband, and give the date of his birth. I shall not offer any objection to the affidavit if it is put in the ordinary form of pedigree proof. On the motion of Mr. Gillies, Ordered, That the Chairman do apply to the House for leave to adjourn the Committee till sth September, for the purpose of obtaining material witnesses from the Province of Nelson. Resolved, That the Committee do now adjourn till 2 o'clock p.m. to-morrow. The Committee then adjourned. Tuesday, sth September, 1871. The Committee met at 10 o'clock this morning. Mr. Brandon in the Chair. Mr. Allan appeared for the petitioner, Mr. Charles Parker ; and Mr. Ollivier for Sir David Monro, the sitting Member. Minutes of last meeting read and confirmed. Mr. Ollivier: I appear to-day on behalf of Mr. Travers, counsel for Sir David Monro, and have been instructed to apply for an adjournment on the ground that Mr. Travers is engaged as counsel in a case of importance in the Supreme Court, which will probably occupy two days, as there are a number of witnesses to be examined. Mr. Travers quite overlooked the fact that this morning was appointed for proceeding with the case. The adjournment I ask for would not in any way prejudice the petitioner, as there would be no opportunity for his witnesses returning to Nelson until this day week, 12th September. I would therefore ask the Committee to adjourn this inquiry, if possible, until Thursday morning, at 10 o'clock. The. Chairman: The Committee cannot adjourn until that time. If you tell us that you will not be able to proceed until that time, the Committee will take the necessary steps to obtain the adjournment asked for, unless there be some valid objection to it. Mr. Ollivier : Of course I apply to the Committee for an adjournment as a matter of grace. Mr. Travers is engaged iv an important case in the Supreme Court, and will not be able to attend before Thursday next. Of course it is a matter of importance to Sir David Monro that he should be represented on such an inquiry as this by Mr. Travers, the counsel who has hitherto taken this matter entirely under his own charge. I therefore ask the Committee to take such steps as are necessary to obtain an adjournment of the Committee until the day I have mentioned. Mr. Allan: Of course I am]entirely in the hands of the Committee. On the part of the petitioner, I do not wish to throw any obstacle in tho way of Sir David Monro being properly represented here, and his case being conducted with all tho ability and judgment of my friend Mr. Travers, and therefore I shall make no objection to the Committee adjourning the inquiry if they should think' fit to do so. Tho only thing is that we have several witnesses, and it is essential that those witnesses should be sent away by the 12th of this month, or upon the first opportunity. The Committee will understand that if we are put to any loss or inconvenience by the witnesses being kept here beyond that time, we must not, of course, suffer from that delay. If the case comes on on Thursday, and the Committee sits from day to day, we should be able to finish our case before the 12th. Mr. Fitzherbert: I think the application for adjournment most unreasonable, and contrary to the spirit which should guide the conduct of our proceedings. AVc are here charged with the duty of seeing who is really to represent the Electoral District of Motueka in tho House of Representatives, and all these delays arising from causes outside are inconvenient to all parties, and interfere with the progress of the investigation. Mr. Pearce: I understand the case Mr. Travers has in chargo is one of a very serious nature, and probably some indulgence should be granted on that score. The trial is upon a matter of life and death, and therefore it is of more importance than an ordinary case. The Chairman : We should consider that the original adjournment was granted on an application from the other side. Mr. Allan : I think that in courtesy I should consent to the application, the only condition being that, if our witnesses are kept here beyond a reasonable time, it should be considered by the Committee. Mr. Bunny : The question is whether we could not go on with the case ? Mr. Allan might open his case to the Committee. Mr. Allan : I may remark that the last adjournment was not so much our fault as the practice was entirely new. We could not summon witnesses to attend without an order, and no person could give that order but the Committee. The Speaker could not summon any witnesses to attend until after the Committee had met, so that really it was not our fault. The Chairman : There was no fault on your part, for until the Committee had met, you could not have got a summons for the attendance of witnesses. Mr Fitzherbert: I have an additional reason to urge against the adjournment, on the ground of the expenses that parties would be put to. This is an inquiry which we should deal with, simply as a matter of conscience only; and it would be a monstrous thing if success should depend upon the man who has got the largest pocket. That is why I consider these delays to be unjust and injurious. The Chairman: This is a question which will be better discussed by ourselves.