THE Marlborough Express. SATURDAY, MARCH 20, 1869.

Marlborough Express, Volume IV, Issue 164, 20 March 1869, Page 3

THE Marlborough Express.

SATURDAY, MARCH 20, 1869.

“ Givk me tue liberty to know, to utter, ami toergue (/rely acconliiio to conscience, above all otliei liberties.’ Milton.

Blenheim is now a Borough. A proclamation under the hand of the Governor, and duly sealed with the seal of the Colony declares that “ the conditions and terms by the said Act imposed for the constitution as a Borough of the district within the town hereinafter specified have been duly performed, have happened, and have been duly complied with.” He therefore “constitutes and proclaims the districtcomprised within the Town of Blenheim, as the boundaries thereof are defined in and by the Municipal Corporations Act, to be a Borough under the said Act.” A reference to the schedule shows these to be Sections 46, 47, 48, Opawa, and 1,3, 50, 51, Omaka, as shewn on the New Zealand Company’s plan of the Wairau Plain. So far, so good, and we may congratulate

those of its inhabitants who have joined in the effort to obtain some indefeasible form of real Local Self-Government for Blenheim, on the success which has attended them ; not forgetting that we have one fact fairly and fully established at the commencement, namely, that everything ne-‘ cessary has “been duly performed, has happened, and been duly complied with,” a certificate for which we may some day have reason to be thankful. The next point to be considered, is the manner in which the inhabitants are to proceed in order to bring the Act into active operation. It provides that “the in-* habitants of every Borough shall be a body corporate under the name of the Mayor, ’ Councillors, and Burgesses of the Borough.”* The Burgesses elect nine Councillors, who again elect the Mayor from out their number. The qualification of a Councillor is that he was on the 20th day of, June last past, entitled to be. enrolled in respect of “ one or more tenements” of not less annual value than £25, on the burgess-roll in force, it any, or otherwise his name must be on the electoral roll in force in the district, in respect of property situate within the borough. There are several disqualifications, as females, bankrupts, insolvents, persons" attainted of treason, or who have been convicted of felony, perjury, op any infamous crime, persons of unsound .mind, and those holding place ox* profit under the Council, except it be in respect of lending it money. The qxxalification of the Burgesses may be briefly, stated thus : Ey'ory.male,; 21 years of age, who on . the 20th: June in any year shall be in occupation, or be the owner of a.ny rateable property; in the,'borough, and liable on that day to btr.rated.in respect ofi j spehg propeftyj and being., enrolled. Af plurality of votes is allowed on the following scale : For property, the annual value

of which is below £SO, one vote ; below £IOO, two votes; below £l5O, three votes; below £350, four votes; and £350 or upwards, five votes. None but persons who have paid such rates as have fallen due above three months previous to that d«tte will be entitled to be enrolled. / A close examination of the Act shews however that while all likely cases are very adequately provided for in the case of first Elections under the Act, the case of Blenheim is not. It has evidently been assumed by*’’ the framers that the late Board of Works would continue until the first Election took place under this Act. But as they did not do so, and no members being elected last September,, it becomes a diffi-

cult question to say which (if any,) clause is most applicable. Clause 51 provides for the case of original Boroughs, as Blenheim is, by the first schedule, considered to be ; persons whose names appear on the ratepayers’ roll immediately before its constitution as a Municipality, shall be entitled to vote at such election. Clause 77 will most probably be found to apply the nearest of any, it states that—

“ For the first election of councillors under this Act in every borough in which no councillors shall as yet have been in office, those persons enrolled on.any electoral roll which, under the provisions of “ The Registration of Electors Act, 1866,” shall, for the time being, be in force, whose qualifications are, in respect of lands or tenements, situate within the borough ; and none others shall, on such day as the Governor shall appoint, not being forty days after the same shall have become such borough, and in the manner hereinafter mentioned elect from the persons capable of being councillors, the whole number of councillors hereby assigned to such borough.”

Of course this applies to places where there has never been a Town Board, but we see no reason why it should not be tipplied to our very exceptional case. Clause 35 provides that if. there be no roll in force, persons on the Electoral roll shall be entitled to vote. This contingency has arisen here, since last year’s rates were not collected. At: any rate the difficulty may be met by the application of clause 380, which says that- ’

“ In till cases in which no provision, or no sufficient provision is, in the opinion of the Governor, made by this Act, it shall he lawful for the Governor from time to time, for the purpose of facilitating or more effectually carrying into execution any of the objects thereof, to make and prescribe all such regulations and orders, either general or applicable to particular cases only, as he shall think (it, and such regulations and orders from time to time to revoke or alter, as to the Governor shall appear to be requisite.”

The sth clause of the Municipal Corporations Act Amendment Act 1868. also applies to the case, and provides a remedy in still more distinct terms. It savs—

“It shall be lawful for ilie Governor in Council to extend the time allowed for the holding such election or meeting of councillors, or for the doing of any such act, matter, or thing as aforesaid, notwithstanding the day may have passed on which the .-anie ought to have been held, or done, and to adopt, or cause to he adopted, such measures as may be necessary to remove any obstacle of a technical or formal nature, by which the carrying out of the provisions of the said Act may be. impeded, and to supply any deficiency which may be required to be supplied in order to enable the said provisions to be duly carried out.”

We may therefore from the reading of these clauses in conjunction, assume that the Governor will proclaim when the first election shall take place. It will however be necessary that a representation of these circumstances should be made to the Government by some means. Most likely His Honor the Superintendent, who seems to us the most fitting person, will take the proper steps to lay the case before it, in order that the election may take place as speedily as possible, and the Borough Council be enabled to proceed to business ere the winter arrives, especially as considerable works require immediate attention. Previously to the first election taking placQ, we will recur to the subject, and further explain the duties and powers of the Council.