The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 1882.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 3, Issue 966, 5 January 1882, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 1882.

It is claimed for Kuripuni that at the approaching municipal election it should return two councillors. Kuripuni has been wont on occasions like the present one to dictate to the rest of the Rorough, and perhaps it is unnecessary to consider whether the claitii ; put forward is a just one, If the Borough were divided into wards, Kuripuni would be entitled to its own representation, and no more; but as it is not divided into wards, it can claim a fair share of the services of each member of the Council, and no more. Kuripuni, however, wants to be buttered on both sides, and to have on the one hand the privileges which it wouldpossess 1 if it were a ward without givihg'up the advantages it dorives ;by : iiot being.a ward,, No section of the' town, as the representation now 'stands, has a right to claim a seat, in the Council- There are 110 Kuripuni, : Upper Plain) Qpaki, or Makoi'a seats at the Council, and wo' most decidedly object to any man coming forward merely because he is a resident in one or other of these localities. It will be remembered- that last year Kuripuni put two of its men on the Masterton school committee, and promised this year to put in three, In doing this the Kuripuni settlers did not seek to promote the general interests of the town, but the smaller interests of their own locality—for of the two men-whom they returned one did not seek election and finding himself unable to discbarge the duties which had been thrust upon him, speedily resigned, the appointment. The fact is, Kuripuni in a purely selfish spirit wants a finger and thumb' in every borough, pie, and unless it be allowed its own way, threatens the rest of the Borough; Hitherto, for the sake of peace and quietness, Masterton has given way and permitted Kuripuni to ride roughshod over it. It is time that this sort of thing should cease. We hope the coming election will show that Masterton is riot in leading strings to Kuripuni, The burgesses will, we feel sure, select the men most capable of serving them, irrespective of whether they live-on the Upper Plain or in Kuripuni. ' If at any time a Kuripuni candidate comes forward who is better fitted, tor .serving the Borough than any other candidate, he will have bur oordial support; but we must protest against being told that residents in the centre of Masterton must vote for a Kuripuni candidate without reference to his fitness for the office,- The only

settlers in the Borough of Masterton who, as it were, hold aloof: from the town and try to separate their interests from those of the Borough as a whole, are the residents of Kuripuni. They have asked for a-'good deal in the past from tlie. Botougli Council, and, they lmve perhaps on the whole got "more i than they were entitled to. 'Emboldened by their successes, and having discovered the value of a block, vote,, they take every opportunity-to: work a point in their own favor. To this we do'not object 1 They are entitled'if they think proper to devote themselves to tlieir; own special advantage!)- rather than to benefit the town as a whole; but.they must, not claim that the . town should treat them with exceptional generosity while their attitude towards it is one o! i pure selfishness. '