THE COUNTY ELECTIONS

Temuka Leader, Volume I, Issue 92, 2 November 1878, Page 2

THE COUNTY ELECTIONS

Nomination of Candidates for the Temuka Riding.

The nomination of candidates to fill the two seats for the Temuka Riding in the Geraldine County Council took place yesterday at the Road Board Office. Dr Rayner had been appointed returning officer, hut, determining at the tenth hour to become a candidate himself, Mr W. Wills was appointed by telegraph from Wellington to fill that responsible office. At the hour appointed for publishing the names of the nominees, about a dozen persons had assembled at the Road Board office, and this number was not largely increased during the progress of the business.

The returning officer opened the proceedings by reading tho advertisement calling for nominations, and explained the change above referred to respecting the alteration in the appointment. The nominations were then read as follows :

Mr Julius Mendelson, nominated byMessrs A. W. Ensor and J. Brown. Mr John Taibot. nominated by Messrs R. A. Barker and M. Quinn.

Mr Alexander Wilson, nominated by Messrs B. Thompson and Cl, M. S. Geutleimut.

Mr Keith F, Gray, nominated by Messrs J. Blyth and J. Hay hurst. Hr Raynor nominated by Messrs J. Hay hurst and J. Talbot. The i’eturning officer then stated that as there were five candidates a poll Avould bo held on the 13th inst., at the usual polling places. In reply to Mr Gray the returning officer said that he had not received instructions respecting the number of votes electors might give, but he rvould tele graph for them. Mr Mendelson addressed the meeting. He considered it important that the electors should know exactly the opinions of the respective candidates. He had previously objected to the bringing of the Act into force, but having very carefully considered the matter he had changed his mind to a very great extent. The County Councils, he now saw, were intended to perform functions previously performed by the old provincial institutions, and which the Road Boards wore not coin potent to perform. This bad been the expectation that the Road Boards would be able to do all the works required in their districts. He could noAV see, however, that those Boards could not properly deal with large works, such as drainage and bridges. Bo long as the Act is not in force, the county is charged with the cost of works such as the repairing of the Rangitata bridge without having any voice in the matter. This bridge should be considered to a certain extent a local work, and the cost of maintaining it should be to a certain extent met by a special local rate. If the Act were in force such a special rate might be ra’sed, but under the present arrangement the county’s share of the cost was deducted from the funds of the whole county. With respect to the collection of license fees of all kinds, it would lie far better to obtain the funds arising from these in a direct, plain maimer than to allow them to' go to Wellington to return in a haphazard manner. Another reason for bringing the Act into force was, that the Road Boards cannot afford to keep men competent to carry out large works. The county could afford to keep such an engineer, who would be able to attend to the greater works of all the Road Boards included in the county. The Boards had done, and avere doing, good work, but they needed assistance in this respect. For these reasons he was of opinion that the Counties Act should be brought into force.

In reply tc questions, Mr Mendelson said he was decidedly in favor of extending the Opihi bridge to Spilane’s. Mr Wilson said that, his views being well known, he need not make a long speech. He compared the whole of the candidates to a piece of conglomerate. Some now condemned who formerly approved of the county system, some now approved who had condemned it, while others had consistently held one opinion all along. Those who so strangely advocated the abolition of the provinces ought to have been ready to adopt the alternative offered by the Government. No doubt the County Act had defects, Irom what he heard he concluded that there were only two intellects in New Zealand that thoroughly understood the Counties Act. One of these belonged to Geraldine, and the other to Temuka. The Government ought to appoint these two to investigate the Act and amend it into a perfect law. He would defy any body of men to draw out in a perfectly satisfactory manner so many Acts as were rendered necessary by the change in the form of Government in the short time that was allowed for the purpose. When the Legislature had so much to do in regal’d to the abolition of the provinces, it con'd not be expected to mature every Act brought forward to create institutions to cake the place of those abolished. The Counties Act is really a well-digested scheme, and if it be taken up tijid thoroughly well tried, the Council ought to be able to go to the Government next session and state what amendments are necessary to make the scheme more perfect. If tho Act had been brought into force earlier, we should have learned a great deal that we have yet to learn. How the Act will work can only be known by actual trial, aiid wherever it has been tried it has been found to work well. If elected he would advocate the bringing of the Act into force as soon as possible. Mr Talbot said that he had not thought of standing until he found that the other candidates in the field were all of the one opinion about the bringing of the Counties Act into force. On finding this ho determined to come forward to maintain the existing state of things. He had not considered the Act very Kelly, but he was of opinion that we were not losing much by refusing to adopt it. We were getting on very well as we were, and change was unnecessary. He was very much afraid that the Council would clash with the Road Boards. The live Boards in this county had such conflicting interests that he could not see how that clashing could tie avoided. He was also afraid that the Council would absorb the Road Boards. [A voice. A good job, too !] As for what was lost financially I by not adopting the Act, he did net know what the amount was, but it could not be much, he would be willing to let it go and consider it a fine for preferring the present state of things. The large works mentioned by previous speakers—the Rangitata bridge, for instance—should be paid for from a fund provided by the whole district. If such works can be carried out without a County Council the Act ought not to be brought into force. If the Road Boards have not power to deal with such works it were better to alter the present law so as to give them power ; then there would be no necessity to introduce a new system. The double system of rating would, bt an evil, and a great one. The Council must strike a general rate, and each Road Board must strike another. Nevertheless, if he were elected, and found himself in a minority ou the question of bringing the Act into force, he would give in and try to make the best of it. Mr Acton, on rising to ask a few questions, said he w r as glad to hear Mr Talbot begin by saying that he had not studied the Act very much. This explained why he held the views he did ; views which were curiously prevalent in the minds of members of Road Boards. In reply to questions, Mr Talbot said that by the clashing of the Council with the Road Boards he meant that the Council would take into their own hands then

levying of rates, and the carrying out of works that are now done by the Boards. The latter would thus be rendered useless and destroyed. He did not know how much the County lost through not collecting the license fees, &c. but he considered that it was not so much as the cost of the Council officials would amount to.

Mr Gray was a little surprised to find that some of the former members had changed their opinions about the Act. Had he been aware of this change he did not think he would have come forward as a candidate. The Counties Act was very complicated, and should be simplified, so that anyone could understand it. If there were difficulties in working it, it was the duty of the country to try co re-model it, and this could only he done after trial. There were only four or five counties that had not adopted the Act, and we were damaging our own position by holding out. The counties on each side of us had adopted the Act, and we were placed at a disadvantage in* dealing with several matters arising between these counties and our own. In fact, the only part we can take now is to share in the payments from such matters. The opposition to the county scheme was the result of a stupid and foolish jealousy on the part of bodies already in existence. The Road Boards have done well —they could not help it—hut a medium between them and the General Government was needed, and the County Council was just such a medium.

Dr Rayner said he had formerly opposed bringing the Act into operation for fear that it would injure the Road Boards. He had been attached to the Road Boards for 14 or 16 years, and he did not like the thought of their being undermined by the new invention. The Road Boards had given complete satisfaction, and he could not, at the time he refereed to, see any necessity for adopting the Act. He had, however, watched the operation of the law elsewhere, and saw that it was working with very great success. He could not see that the powers and privileges of the Road Boards were at all attacked by the County system, therefore he had changed his opinion respecting the advisability of adopting the Act, and was now for bringing the whole of it into operation. By adopting the whole Act the county would receive the dog tax, the fees for publicans’, auo tioneers’, and slaughter-house licenses, and other sums besides. The Road Boards should be preserved, and to this end the Council should take over no road that the Boards could fairly deal with. Large works and such matters as charitable aid would properly be dealt with by the Council.

Mr Wareing, speaking of the large sums paid to some Chairmen of Councils, said he hoped that such prodigality would not be allowed here. Mr Barker, referring to the assertions made to the effect that the county had lost financially through not adopting the Act, said that the fact that Government had power to cheat the county was no proof that it did so. A vote of thanks to the Returning Officer terminated the proceedings.