ELECTORAL ROLLS.

Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2405, 16 December 1870, Page 2

ELECTORAL ROLLS.

To the Editor of the Evening Star,

Sir—As the approach ; ng elections are causing tire people to waken up from their usual lethargic and dormant condition, a tradesman of this town, for the accommodation of his customers, called at Mr Burnside’s office, Custom House, Dunedin, and there purchased electoral rolls for the Port Chalmers and North Harbor district, the charge for same being five shillings ; and as such an exorbitant sum was demanded, the purchaser had no doubt the rolls were correct. But judge the surprise of himself and a number of his fellow-townsmen to find the rolls composed of names of persons, some of whom are dead, others have left the Province for years, and numbers of those who still reside in the district have changed their qualifications as well as places of abov*, thereby rendering themselves liable to be challenged by the scrutineers when offering to record their votes, and a very disagreabla altercation ensues ; and to finish my complaints, the rolls being comparatively useless, as there is nothing to denote they are printed by authority, neither are they signed by anyone, or printer’s name attached. This loose style of business deserves the attention of the Government, for if the old roll that has been in use for six or seven years is to be reprinted without revision, a great injustice will he done, and persons who have a right to vote will be disfranchised; at any rate the charge for them need only be the price of printing them. Any information on this subject will be thankfully received by ' numbers interested, and by kindly giving it you will oblige. I am, &c., An Inquirer. Port Chalmers, Dec. 15. \