THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL ELECTIONS.

West Coast Times, Issue 240, 29 June 1866, Page 2

THE PROVINCIAL COUNCIL ELECTIONS.

(PROM THE GREY RIVETI ARGUS, OF YESTERDAY.) In another column wo reprint an article from tho Hokitika " Despatch," on tho subject of the qualification of voters and candidates at the approaching elections oil the West Coast. And there is no escaping the facts of the case a& therein stated— that unless the elections aro permitted td be irregularly conducted, the district will bo effectually disfranchised. It is singular that such a bungling piece of work should havo left tho hands of" the Provincial Council, and pass through so many dhannels where its defects Should have been detected. The Very first occasion on which the new Ordinance has to be applied, it is found to have no application whatever. Tho question now is, what is to be done? What course will the Returning , Officer take ? Tho nomination is appointed to tako place to-day, and, unless some direct instructions' are received by Mr Sale to postpone the proceedings, tho elections must go on, and the risks of illegality must be incurred. And this raises another question :—lf: — If no person has, according to the law aS it ndw atrinda; any right to vote, it follows that every person is" oil an equal footing ; and that, if any illegal votes are to be accepted, any person may vote who chooses to do so. There is no getting off this dilemma — if tho election is to proceed on an illegal basis, no liifeit can be applied to that illegality. Our Hokitika contemporary suggests that tho General Assembly could probably be prevailed on to pass au Act to render the elections valid. Probably it might, providing thai the Canterbury Government approved such a course. But it is as yet quite doubtful as to what instructions Mr Sale may have received, and unless he has orders to postpone the elections, there is hardly time to make other arrangements than to simply allow the proceedings to pass off, and trust to the General Assembly to legalise them. Had this question been raised earlier, it would havo been possible for t|ie Superintendent to have recalled his proclamation, and deferred the Westland elections until October, in which month the new Electoral Roll will come into force. The Greymouth district would certainly hav"e beiieflttfed by such an arrangement, as it will havo almost quite as many votes on tho roll as Holdtika, and will be able to return three members instead of one. It has been suggested that, if possible, the election should be allowed to lapse, and that Mr Moorhouse be asked to bring in a Bill, and get it passed rapidly through its stages, to provide for the election of at least three goldfields' members for Westland, under the Miners' Franchise — say one for tho district north of tho Teremakau, and two for the goldfields south of that river. If this Were done, tho present members might bo divided, three to Hokitika and two to Groymouth, aud could be elected under the Electoral Roll in October * next. But the difficulty is in delaying the elections as already arranged, and we fear that nothing can bo done but to allow matters to take their own course. It is very certain that if any candidate be elected in any form, it will bo necessary that the Assembly should legalise his return before he can take his seat in the Council. It is a curious and very annoying predicament to bo placed in; but it is one that we cannot sec any clear way out of. To add to the complication, It is possible the Returning Officer, Mr Sale, may be unable to arrive at the proper time for the nominations, on acoount of the flooded rivers.