PROPOSED ALTERATION IN THE MUNICIPAL ACT.

Evening Star, Issue 3225, 21 June 1873, Page 2

PROPOSED ALTERATION IN THE MUNICIPAL ACT.

A meeting called by the Councillors of High Ward was held last night in the Mis-sion-house, Russell street, for the purpose of taking into consideration the propriety of adopting certain alterations in the Municipal Corporations Ordinance. The meeting was fairly attended. Mr Paterson was called to the chair. Cr. Mercer introduced the business by explaining the objects for which the meeting had been called. The report on the Municipal Ordinance induced them to believe that it would better to call a meeting, in order that they might have an expression of the views of their constituents before them.(Applause.) For his own part, he was in favor of the four wards having an increased representation of one councillor. He was also in favor of South Ward being enlarged.; and with that view he would advise the annexation of portions of High and Bell Wards to it. With regard to the proposed change in the mode of electing their Mayor, he was at one time in favor of the election being made by the councillors out of the Council. At the same time he wished it to be distinctly understood that he was quite willing the final decision of the point should be left in the hands of the people he represented. He was entirely against the proposed plurality of votes. He could find no reason why the holder of property . worth many hundred pounds should have more voting power in his hands than the owner of property to a less amount. Cr. Ramsay, who spoke at some consider-

able length in favor of the proposed change in the election of Mayor, urged the following reasons in support of his views : —lst. That be believed it would be the means of introducing into the Council at least a few of the leading business men; 2nd. The councillors ought to be the best judges as to which of their members were best qualified to preside over them. In support of that opinion, he urged the practice followed by -heir Road Boards and Legislative Councils. In the one the chairman was invariably elected by the Board, and iu the other the Speaker was elected by the Council. It saved a great deal of unnecessary trouble, and the position of president or chairman, as the case might be, was filled with just as much efficiency as if the election had been made by the constituency. As a further reason, he urged that so long as the City Police Court was presided over by the Mayor, he ought not to be elected by the suffrages of the ratepayers. In America, elections of this kind had been left in the hands of the people. Magistrates and judges were elected by the voice of the people, and the result had proved to be most disastrous. To such an extent had judicial corruption prevailed that Lynch Law had actually been resorted to. Councillors, he contended, ought by right to have the election of their own Chairman vested in themselves. No councillor who had faithfully and efficiently discharged the duties of his office, and who, in the opinion of the majority of the Council, was properly qualified for filling the office of Mayor, should be compelled to undergo the fatigue, and experience the annoyance of a public election, to gain a position which he had already fairly earned. In reply to a question put by Mr Millar, Cr, Merger said he would support any measure that would keep down fagoc voting. Cr. Ramsay also replied to the question. He would, he said, be prepared to move for an amendment of the present Act, so that only one vote might be recorded, no matter where the property was held. In answer to other questions, the representatives expressed opinions adverse to the tenant and landlord having each a vote in respect of the same property. Cr. Ramsay added that he could not see why property valued at, say L3O, should return two votes—viz., a vote by the owner, and another vote by the occupier—while the next property, of even greater value, occupied by the owner, should return only one vote. Mr. Millar : Do you not think the ratepayer has a right to claim the vote if he pays the rates, even although he is only a tenant ? Cr. Ramsay : The system is for the landlord to pay rates for the number of tenants or occupiers of his property, and by that means they become qualified as electors. No matter what the character of the phanty may be, under the present system both the tenant and landlord can claim a vote. Cr. Barnes : Only one vote in each ward. In reply to another question, Cr. Ramsay said that it was quite possible a Mayor, under the present arrangement made for bis election, might be elected who did not posses the confidence of the Council. At the very last meeting of the Council some five of the councillors were opposed to the Mayor; but immediately after the matter was disposed of, the parties settled down to work and continued to work harmoniously together. If the election of the Chairman was made by a majority of them, in number, it was quite possible the work would be got through more harmoniously. Cr. Barnes : Then what would become of the minority ? Cr. Ramsay : They wmld very likely give in, as all minorities ought to do. If the electors chose an outside man whom the councillors did not approve of, it was quite possible that the business of the Council

would be considerably delayed. A Voice : Then we would pet the Super* inteadent to grant a dissolution,—(A laugh.) (Jr. Ramsay : I hold it to be a matter of principle that no man should be Mayor unless he has served the ratepayers for a time in the Council as a councillor. Councillors who had served their constituents faithfully had. a right to expect that no man should be' forced upon them who was personally obnoxious to them. A Voice : What about the salary ? Or. Ramsay did not think there was a gen- - tleman in the Council who coveted the position for the sake of the salary.. j They only looked upon it as necessary to maintain toe; duti&uppoied oil them,

in favolil thoseby the ratepayers before being *teptefl. He thought it advisable 1 that a public meeting should be called, in order that the ratepayers might have an opportunity foregoing into the whole question. In reply to Mr Millar, Cr. Ramsay said wouldl not, daring the present tenure of his office, be prepared to agitate for the abolition of the Mayor s Court. When he first mooted the question, his views were supported by a large proportion of the councillors; now, with the exception of one councillor, he stood alone. To an Elector: If the ratepayers do not wish me to vote for the alterations proposed by tbe clause of the. Act under review, I will not vo!e for them. Mr Millar proposed, and Mr Gilchrist seconded—“ That the whole question-should he delayed for by a public meeting of the ratepayers, and that the representatives of the ward be requested tp - advise the Mayor to convene such meeting.’’ Cr. Thoneman : I beg to say that a meet- ; ing of that kind would have been alreadycalled by the Mayor, but for the excitement/ consequent upon the late elections. The motion wad then pat and carried without dissent.

After Cr.BARNes had spokenagainsttbepro- ■ posedchanges, Cr. Thoneman was called upon by the meeting, and spoke to the following effect This question first cropped up some four or five years ago. It was again revived within the last year. Before anything definite was done in the matter, it was distinctly understood that the opinion of tbe ratepayers should be ascertained. His opinion, and he believed Council at first, was that it was' Advisable that the Mayor should be elected froqi the Council by the Councillors. He alfsys under-* stood, however, that nothing definite was to be done until the opinion' of the ratepayers had been ascertained. At the meeting in Bell Ward, he told the ratepayers that this question ought to be made their election test. In reply to a question put, he said .he was in favor of each ratepayer having a vote for the election of Mayor, and one for the election of representatives for the ward in which he lived. Mr Pinkerton then moved, and Mr Davidson seconded— 14 That this meeting strongly disapproves of the proposal for electing tbe Mayor by the Council.” Tbe motion was put and carried without' dissent. Mr Millar farther moved— 44 That the system of plurality of votes be abandoned entirely, and that the ratepayers have only one vote for the mayoralty.” Mr Burt seconded the motion, which was also put and carried without dissent. Cr. Ramsay said that after the expression of opinion that had been given, he begged to say that he would not vote for the Mayor being elected by the Connell, nor yet for the proposed plurality of rotes. Be had addressed them in good faith ; he had given them the reasons he entertained upon' thesubject, and now that he found them opposed to it, as their representative lie would abandon his 'intentions on the point;. Whatever resalt the public meeting arrived at, be would not feel justified in moving ik the matter.—(Appausa.) On the motion of Mr GiLCdßisr, a vote of thanks was awarded to the representatives for their addresses. A similar compliment was paid to the Chairman,, after which the meeting dispersed. c'