The Wairarapa Daily. MONDAY, MAY 2, 1887. SPARSELY POPULATED COUNTRY DISTRICTS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2587, 2 May 1887, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. MONDAY, MAY 2, 1887. SPARSELY POPULATED COUNTRY DISTRICTS.

When Sir Robert Stout first announced that a concession to sparsely'populated country districts was a prominent feafuro of his new Representation Bill, we were suspicious. We did not care to look his gift horse in the mouth, but we felt that a Ministry which depended for support on the larger centres of population, was altogether unlikely to give country districts a large slice of the electoral cake. The real strength of the radical party lies in large towns, •In Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and Dmiedin, radicals can carry all the elections if they choose to do so. In Wellington the other day wo saw a contested election fought by three candidates all on one political platform. Apparently the opposition party, representing the men of moderate views, did not thhikit worth whilo even to put up a candidate against the radical trio. Knowing the link which binds the present Ministry to towns wo are not astonished to find that under Sir Robert Stout's Bill the concession to sparsely populated districts means taking seven members from country districts and giving them to towns. This is how it really works out and the benevolence to country districts is to be found, not in the Bill, but merely in the specious utterances of the Premier. No doubt Sir Robert, as a lawyer, is quite prepared to explain how it unfortunately happens that the Bill kills the country districts which it is supposed to benefit. In the middle ages it is recorded that certain unfor : tunate bantlings, which were of doubtful paternity, were baptised in such a maimer that they never afterwards drew another breath. On the same principle Sir Robert appears to have dealt with " sparsely populated country districts,',' He has blessed them with his mouth and smothered them quietly in the legislative font.