The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas, et Prevalebit. SATURDAY MAY 27, 1882. Electioneering Tactics.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume III, Issue 647, 27 May 1882, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas, et Prevalebit. SATURDAY MAY 27, 1882. Electioneering Tactics.

TOWN EDITION. [lssued at 4.40 p. m. j

The leading columns of the Burnett street sheet this morning contained another of those disgraceful attacks on one ot our citizens for which that publication, under its present conductor, is rapidly becoming famous, or rather infamous. The late registrar of electors is accused of endeavoring to sit in judgment on a case in which he was virtually prosecutor. The charge is as ridiculous as it is untruthful. Mr C. P. Cox ceased to be registrar of electors for Wakanui some lime since, and, as everyone knows, has nothing whatever now to do with the office. And although, as a Justice of the Peace, he may have had no jurisdiction in.the electoral cases brought before the local Court yesterday morning, he had a perfect right to take his place on the bench; for how often have we seen Justices siding with Resident Magistrates, although, perhaps, in one solitary case which may be brought before the Cou’-i, the Justices may have no locus standi. Of course ihese of„repealed and contemptiu'e lacks on a well-known man will do him no harm in i’ne circumsn iued sphere where the calumnies receive the g eaiest puafi<-it.y. but there is just a poss'b’h’ly of a s'cay copy of the publication containing the uncalled-for slanders finding us way where the respective chamr ers of the traducer and traduced are not so well known. The fact is, Mr Cox has been unfortunate enough to incur the displeasure of the printer politician who has never lost an opportunity of heaping abuse on the head o! that gentleman for simply doing his duly. We contend that Mr Cox had a perfect right to act as be did yesterday, for his

connection with the roll and all that appertains to it has ceased as entirely as Mr Ivess’ regard for veracity. Our contemporay also finds fault with the State being pat to the expanse cl purging the rol 1 . and contrasts, of course unfavorably, the conduct ot ihe pu.ies who are anxious to see a fining man elecled for Wakanui, wiih that of Mr Joseph Ivess. Why, only a few weeks ago, we were told in the columns of the same remarkably consilient paper that it was disgraceful to allo>v priva-e parties to be saddled with the trouble and expense of purging an electoral roll of unqualified names. It has been laid down that “ what is sauce for die goose, is sauce for the gander,” but it seems that in ibis case what is sauce for the constitutionalist is by no means sauce for the advocate of “ progressive democracy.”