WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER, 18, 1881. POOR MANAWATU.

Manawatu Times, Volume V, Issue 165, 19 October 1881, Page 2

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER, 18, 1881. POOR MANAWATU.

The people of tbis County Lave gfifml renpon to be tbankful tbat m I the general parcelling out which has taken place, and while her arms and lejrs have- been- lopped off. she has beeu left a body at all with a seat j of yitality.-^Sp ;fai"i s|»ej |aa always been saddled witlTan abselilee vnember, Jbut wJien ?li t 9,|>Jtd reach ejd pro-; I portions to "entitle"' her to a sepond ve— -anji> < w ,* s fondly/ fibpeo?,' ''"'a inoal 'one— 'file' pruning knife wfts brought iuto reqnifeition,.

and hex* life blood laid under contribution to rescue from dissolution her weaker sister of Kangitikei. For years we have pointed out the necessity of Manawatu having an Electoral Registrar for itself,; or at least, if the one official was to. have charge of the two Counties, ithat he. should be resident m, and appointed from, the one m which the majority-, of the electors resided. Take the; number of ele.'tor's.-iipon last: year's roll, for instance,, aiid it will be found that while this County could TJoasTof a population of 5298, Eangitjkei- was,:-vjiist , 2300 i behiud that. .Then, again, there: .-were-18 10 electors on the, roll of Manawatu, while there were not half that number m Raugi--;tikjei, and still the Electoral Registrar held his head quarters at Marton,and claimed silpervision over a district which had grown' twice as large as his own, and of which he was naturally entirely ignorant. '^Ltoongst the recent. Gazette notificatious we notice .that Mr. Joseph Harris has been appointed EeturningjOßicer fori.the D Ma-nawatu electorate at the forthcoming elections. "We wish to know who Mr. Joseph Harris is ? he is not a local'itian, aak why was not a local man appointed. ; Last year Mr. Prank D riG^Tps", another Marton inati, .received tae appointment ; but we suppose hs .was not available upon the present occasion; Why, we ask was not Mr. Forstee, the Clerk of the Distriet'Court selected? It is absolutely necessary, that the lieturning Officer should ha/ye a knowledge of the voters who go to the poll andi.therefore.it is -needless to say that m selecting a man out of the County, it is not possible that they.can possess that essential qualification. It may be — although we dp uot ( ,think.-such.is the case — that "by" the 'new. 'Act civil servants are debarred •> from acting „-aa Returning-, officers ; but if so, that woi^d : -ab^ count for -the , non-appointment of Mr. Foitsxicn; but there ai*e plenty other gentlemen 1 highly eligible and possessed. of far better qualifications fbr the post than any which can be urged on behalf of Mr. Joseph Harris, whoever he may be. For instance, there is >■ Mr,. Fred Mowlkm or Mr. Hoe, whose positions as, rate collectors t6 the County and Highways Boards would admirably fit them for presiding over the principal . booth,, and enable them make iriost 'judicious selections of their deputies. The v evil" or anomaly is only one of the many which is the outcome of absentee representation.