SATURDAY, MAY 7. 1904. THE MAYORAL ELECTION. Mr. Aitken's Flattering Tribute.

Free Lance, Volume IV, Issue 201, 7 May 1904, Page 6

SATURDAY, MAY 7. 1904.

THE MAYORAL ELECTION. Mr. Aitken's Flattering Tribute.

IN returning thanks last week for Ins election as fifth-term mayor, Mr. Aitken spoke of his 'handsome majority." He took it as a vote of confidence m him and the Council. He expressed regret that the two unsuccessful candidates had not polled more votes You may be quite sure he is greatly distressed about it People usually are in. obtaining that which they greatly covet or desire And, in conclusion, he thanked all and sundry for ' the very flattering tribute that had been paid him." • • * Let us examine this so-called flattering tribute. Mayor Aitken slips back into the chair with a minority vote. He polls 3052 votes against 3095 recorded against him, and divided nearly equally between Messrs Wilford and Hislop He owes his return, in fact, to the tnangular duel and the divided vote Some of his oratitude is due to his opponents If it had been a straight-out fight with either of them the chances are he would have gone under. Last time the Mayor contested the mayoralty, he received 5801 votes against Mr. Wilford's 2732 This time, he polled 2500 votes less, or only 3052 out of 13,660 on the roll This is "a vote of confidence" and "a very flattering tribute" m Mr. Aitken's estimation. • • * But, the most significant and disheartening fact about the whole thing i« that 7513 electors out of 13,660, or considerably more than one-half, didn't bother themselves to vote at all. They thought so little of their electoral privileges, or felt so indifferent about civic affairs, that they couldn't take the trouble, or spare the time, to record a. vote at the nearest polling-booth. It is not a healthy sign. It is not encouraging to those who exerted themselves several years ago to broaden and popularise the municipal franchise Laxity and unconcern on the part of wie public are conducive to civic evils of all sorts Where was the Ratepayers' Association on this occasion? Must either be dead or sick to death with the palsy At any rate, its voice was not heard • • • As for the press, the "Post" is jubilant because its instructions to the city were that Aitken was the only man worthy to fill the chair, and Aitken has been returned, albeit by less than one-fourth of the electors. The "Times" sat on the rail till it saw how the cat had jumped, and then it hops down itself and offers congratulations to all and sundry. So like the "Times " For our part, we agree with Mr Hislop that the result Is a condemnation of the Mayor in hanging to office and of his policy. His re-election is one of those victories that are as bad as a defeat. He polled 2500 votes le<=s

than before, and there were more votes cast against than for him. # * * We trust that both the Mayor and City Council will read this plam lesson aright, and mend their ways There is great need for improvement in the administration of municipal affairs Mr Hislop and Mr. Wilford made that abundantly manifest in their election addresses Their criticism has let in the searchlight upon the City Council and *ts methods Will the burgesses keep awake long enough to insist upon a few reforms? If they can manage to keep their eyes open just for a while they might bring some pressure to bear to compel the Council to either admit the press to its committees, or else do a fair share of its work under the public eye. It is too fond of hole-and-corner methods And municipal administration will be unsatisfactory just so long as the Star chamber policy continues.