LAST OF EVIDENCE TODAY

Chronicle (Levin), 6 May 1947, Page 8

LAST OF EVIDENCE TODAY

FLECTDRAL CQURt WiLL TJ1EN niiiixH Ai>L»jtvji'bc3.jc.ja. . " .HAAi.iJ-.TUN, May 5.. ' * Contrary to e-\pectations, hexd pn Frioay, me . Li-eciurai L,yurt oio . no,c quite complete me Jieariug^ ox eyAuenf:*. io.day ana sonie little tinie will by re quired to deal with the remaining qu, jections toiqorrow beioj'e Air." x. i\ Uieary begins his. submissioqs on behatt of resp.onqeut, Alr. Baxter.. HLe \v;H-4jR^ xpllowed. 1% Mr. VV. J/ »Si'in,": feo.4 pe.titioa.er,"Mr. Jolmston.a.- , ' ; Fyidence, fq^'iaal natare wus, giyen thia "aftefnoonA-Tn. ysaR£jqyt o.t resp.oadient-'& pb'jjeptioas to.. a. -y.uinb.er o^ absentee and p.ostal votes on varioyex grounds of alie'ge.d failute. tp comple.te. vdrrectly ihe deelaratioy madp qt' tlu t|me of voting. Tbp ahsehiee yoteEh iyst included. si'x eleptora wno had no.v named their ele.etpyate\ ox had'? 'named, the w-rqng eieptprate- (petitioyer 's ■ iiat had no coriyspohding pbjectioys;. Them vyery, hve. votcrs wha haR_ struck"' out ti. clause of their deelaration, oue of thenaines appearing ajso on the list cu petitipnei* who had ay equal numbpr o.i abyections in this categpry., T\yo, ypteu-a. were challenged^'or failing to sign thpi-v.; declargtipns compared with thiee ou petitioner 's list. Fight \;otes . wpre challenged. bpcause the declara,tion>. were. unsigned by the deputy-retuyning olRper. Two of the names also appeared on petitiouer's list of ten objeetipiis'iu; this group while another. two, had earlier .been chall.enged by r'espondenl on residential grounds. ' One . electoi was challeygedf' ys having; ma,de no, deelaration as. was a case op petitipn er 's list. •- - ' In the postql voting- class pne objec tion heard was that the decia.ration. was not signed by pn authorised person, .Tphn Leathard, a farmer, who vyit nessed the voier's declara.tion, clairae.t.l he had auth.or.ity to act as y witnesft b} yirtue of having held a co.mmission in the HoTae- Guard. He had' no othei qualifi.catioji to witness the dpelaratioii but he was told ,at the P.bUiag booth ii was in order for him to take the: voting papprs to the piector who wqs ill, He 6bta.ined the. papers, took tliem to tluelector and ret.urn.ed them to the booth after the wpman had signed them. Witness" said the d'oputy return ing pfficer hacf understood that ht (Leathard) wroukl witness the decia.ration. Before the Oourt rose Mr. 'Oleary announced that six ob.jections were being abando.ned, four of them to dec.lnratipns which it had been aileged wpre signeo by a disqualified person and two to, voters whom if -had been ■ aileged werc disqualiiied to vote by reason of their aniplaynient. . .- C--. . /' "The .cardlneL principle of pur eleetoral law is.that the secr,ecy of the ballot must be . pr-eser.ved," , said Mr fompki.ns rpplying to a submissioii b,\ Mr. Cleary that tlie voting. paper on which an elector. wrote "fpr Labour" should be.allow.ed. . , The Magistrafe, at; the recpunt, held that the writing .had distinctive chnracteristics from, .whiph the- elector miglit liave been identjfied. Mr. Tompkins, suppprting the/jMygistrate's findihgs, said the vote. was cast at Te Mata, .a small booth;, whgre only 17:9 votes. were cast, and any oye of the persons acting in. tlie booth as y deputy-returning offieer, pr as an assistant, might have seen the ballot pypey when it was opened for counting, and might, from the writing, hav.e identilied jthe elector.