The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1891.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3974, 27 November 1891, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 1891.

, " ONE-man one-vote " is supposed to be a sacred principle with the democrats, but the alacrity with which leading members of the party will make one man count two, three, or half-a-dozen votes, shows 4hat they are not sufficiently honest to practice that which they preach. A man, lor example, enjoys a vote and desires for electioneering purposes to make it two. He gravely informs the authorities that he has leased some paltry sLed to his son, and requests that the name of the latter be put on the roll. The Mayor lends his countenance to the iniquitous process, and the Council, apparently with its eyes open, makes a neat finish of the job. It follows that we shall soon see the legitimate votes in the Borough swamped by dummies. Every stable, every fowl house, and almost eyery dung-heap may be made to furnish a mushroom elector. The clerical work of the Borough will be doubled, and the administration of its affairs will be hampered. Of coarse, if the demo crats follow up the trail they have struck by further stuffing of the roll, it will be absolutely necessary for the other side to do the same, This species of dummying is an outrageous and unclean thing, but it is sanctioned aud approved by the elected head of the town and by the Councillors, and under these circumstances it will be an absurdity for one party to resort to it and the other to leave it alone. Let us hope that we shall hear no more protestations about liberal principles, for it is quite evident that for practical purposes none exist. flow is it that our local contemporary, who was instrumental in causing some hundreds of pounds to be thrown aiyay in a ridiculous dummy hunt in the Eatsey case, has nothing to say about the municipal dummying ? We venture to predict that he will not only be silent about the chief culprit, but that he will, within twelve months, if his party remain in power, recommend the offender to the Ministry as a proper person to be made a Justice of the Peace. Services to the party like dummying cannot be too highly awarded, and we feel quite certain that every unprincipled act done on behalf of the men now in power will be gratefully paid for. If the voting power of the party c£.n be increased by trickery or chicanery there will be joy in the Cabinet. There was a time when a Master lon Borough Council would not lend itself to such a practice as stuffing the roll. When men like Mr McGregor, Mr I'Vist, oi MrCaselberg were in the Mayoral cbajr po one would have dared to propose any roll tinkering of this kind, but we fear that a lower tone now pervades the Council, and that it is now open to influences of a very dpubtful character. The councillors, in permitting the roll to be stuffed, were disloyal to the burgesses whose interests they are elected to protect.