DARGAVILLE BOROUGH ELECTION.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 12 October 1916, Page 3

DARGAVILLE BOROUGH ELECTION.

PRO GERMAN GREGORY

ONE FOR MARY JANE.

The election to fill the extraordinary vacancy on the Dargaville Borough Council, caused by the disqualification of Mr Gregory, following upon the recent conviction under the War, Regulations, will take place on Friday next. The circumstances are somewhat novel, insofar that Mr Gregory, being himself disqualified, apparently seeks that the fortuaes of his house shall be redeemed by his " betterhalf." Other considerations,, of vital importance, are introduced into the contest, and it becomes the duty of every elector who holds his or her , vote as a sacred trust, to intelligently I and carefully weigh the issues befoie delivering final judgment at the ballot box. Some people may hold the franchise lightly, but as a community we shall bitterly rue the day if we mane but sport or nonsense of serious municipal affairs; and if we trifle with the larger affairs of Dominion and Empire we shall sow to the wind and reap the whirlwind. To give shape to the present contest, it is necessary to briefly review recent eventa. With a view to fulfilling our obligations to Empire, and reinforcing our kinsfolk soldiers at the battlefront, the Government issued posters calling upon men to register. It was required that every owner of a, place frequented by the public, should exhibit a poster in his premises. While every other man in the town requested to do so, exhibited a poster, Mr Gr«gory flatly refused. Evidently forgetting his doctrine of " passive resistance " for the moment, he became aggressively defiant and said to the police sergeant —v You can write down in your book that Alfred Gregory refuses to put up the poster." This was a little piece of stage heroics, that no doubt flattered the objector's proverbial and mischievous egotism, but it waa really quite silly, "Passive resistance '' might easily have saved the situation for Mr Gregory, but, preaching peaco, he "was evidently looking for trouble—or advertisement —and got it. He was fined £5, and convicted of. an offence punishable with 12 months' imprisonment. As a result, he forfeited his seat on the Council. To get even with the law, and to defy it, Mr Gregory now desires to sit on the oouncil in petticoats. In other words, he asks that. Mrs Gregory be elected to vindicate his lawlessness, And, in our opinion, in asking this be asks what is impossible to any self-respeoting British community, Mary Jane Gregery and Ben. E. Williams are the candidates.