The Chronicle. PUBLISHED DAILY TUESDAY OCTBER 21, 1911

Horowhenua Chronicle, 24 October 1911, Page 2

The Chronicle. PUBLISHED DAILY TUESDAY OCTBER 21, 1911

i !IK.\l)OI'.\KT!')l!S FOR OTAKI KLKITORATH. iTiik fact that the headquarters of j this eloetoi-'ic are at Otaki tmvii!s. 1 lip should give good reason for ' scrioifs ill f»• i<a 11L to duellers in the ( larger and more progressive centre of Levin. The very name of Otaki Klcetorate i- a misnomer, seeing that the elect! raLe < 'iinprisos the towns of Foxioii. J-'hannon and Lev- j .in on the north all of greater im- ; portaiue t'lan the o!:l mission sta- ; tion - and aiso. t:> the south-ward, j j the string oi fairly important to'Wii- j ship-; known as Te Hnro, AYaikan- ' j no. I'aokaknriki. and half a dozen j j others. Otaki township- as we , j li-mv" '!>:■ -n ■■o:i!|.v!!.'d by truth to re- . I mark once before is a remnant of j I former (Lays which owes, its present j (importance to departmental tradi- j ;tion. Many yeai.s ago the town- i I ship of Otaki was one of the chief ' I settlements l;etween Wanganui and I I Wellington, so what was more nat-inr-al than to make it the lieadi|iiart- j ers of an electoral constituency j and to name the seat Otaki Elector- j ate? Since those days the current : of events has moved a great deal. ! and always away from Otaki; hut ! the old name and the old situation j of headquarters remain. A few j months ago the Levin Chamber of ' Commerce sought to get the -anomaly ; removed, and tn have Levin— -41s ! the most central town and the most: j important and populous one -ap- ; pointed hcadonailers for the elec- ! torate. This proposal, 'however, l mot with a- refusal from the Gov- I eminent department in whose charge i the noifter was. and the answer \. was acccompaniod by a comniunica- j tiou that no sufficient reason for the change had been shown. Yet I we affirm that a dozen good rea- I, sons, and severaJ individiKilly sufficient ones, have been advanced to justify tho application. The reason for the failure of the movement, wo take it, lay in the shortness of the time which was left for inquiry after the Chamber' of Commerce had forwarded its letters and rea- \ sons. There could be one or two additional reasons for ;Jie suggested -.ha.iige supplied when the Levin > oil-i/.oi.'s make their next collective!' reo.ii I.si to be placed in their proper j' !>:• ih':.u ree;ar::!)ig headquarters, j ] Hie ; hi. i' ■;■ ihem. we take if, lies 11 in the i:iisi:o!i!i'!l of "Otaki Fleeter- i i »te. ' Tiio electorate is 110 more ,

, Ciaki's ti'au it is KcputanVs or : \V':ikin:;.e's or AVJiitaimi Limited'* or a '•(■■[)!•(' <).l* 'other centres of popn- | hiv.n a! eg this coast. The nc- ; t'i d centre of the electorate, it I .should he remomhered. is at Kukti. la little south of Ohau, and as that i spot is comparatively afar from all j telegraphic and telephonic .and office J faeiltios, the Tact is outstanding that Levin .should be- .selected as the most convenient place for the returning officer's headquarters. Tt is the only town in the electorate wherein the Telegraph Office is open till 8 p.m. nightly and wherein telephonic communication is up-to-date in regard to hours and other matters ; it is tiie only town in the electorate with a Press Association agent in it: it is the onlv town in the electorate possessed of a daily newspaper: and, altogether, it is the most progiessivo and centra], and best-managed baibugli that iS to ho found on the coast. The I category we have enumerated m&7 J

smack somewhat of vain glory on our part; hut needs must when the powers that ho .assume, an adamantine aspect and decline to bo persuaded by the more modestly expressed enumerations of Levin's facilities thai, have been placd before them previously. It is desirable, we suggest, that an oudeavour to elfeci: (his change ol headrpiartors should lie commenced anew, am! continued month in and month out until success crowns the movement. The citizens of these parts 'should commence the movement as soon as the turmoil of the current general election is done with. In December the Chnm'her cf Commerce should re-open the matter with a lotto.- to the department, giving some jadditioua! reasons in favour of the change, and follow up the movement, in IHI2 with a petition for presentation to Parliament asking to have the niisuomed of Ofaki Electorate expunged from the official designation. if once the electorate became known as IT.orowbenua. Electorate--which name would correctly describe foiir-lifth.s of the whole coni ituency-Mie determination to retain Otaki townhip as headquarters woidd be effect ivoIly weakened. In tangible fact its riglds are very few indeed.