The Westport Times AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1871.

Westport Times, Volume V, Issue 772, 4 February 1871, Page 2

The Westport Times AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1871.

The topic of the week has decidedly been olecliot)fetinL r , and" to-day the electors nre called upon to decide whirh of the candidntea they Rhall return to represent tlie.ii in the next Nov Zealand Parliament. The candidates have addressed the electors throughout tho district, and Mr O'Onor, after having hud his meetings, was not entisfied, but must take advantage of the presence of the electors assembled to hear Mr Donne to weary tbem once more with an exposition of

hia viuws, and he i 3 iio'.v " doing*' the district a third time for the purposool' impressing upon the electors that nothing but a licnse of truthfulness, and an earnest desire to serve the constituency, had governed his action in the Provincial Council. It will be a difficult matter to convince the electors of ttii*, and, doubtless-, so thinks Mr O'Gonor. On the other hand, he holds Mr Donne up as a place-hunter, urging in proi.f his acceptance of a seat iu the Nelson Executive. The charge emanating from such u source is scarcely worth refuting, but it may be only just to Mr Donne to remind the electors that no salary is attached to the office, and that Mr D, nne ouly accepted the office on such terms in order that the goldfields should not be deprived of the benefit of active supervision,'and of the influence that a representative in the Executive could exercise in their behfdf. Mr O'Conor, on the other I and, left no stone unturned to annul the measure of refoim carried by the Council, and. in having been instrumental in abolishing the salary of the GMdfields' Representative, he anticipated that the Act would be found impracticable, and an excellent argument furnished for its repeal duri-ig the next session of the Council. Kather than that a measure, which would conduce so largely to the improved management of these goldfields, should be thus rendered ineffective, Mr Donne preferred to fill the office without salary, devoting time and money to the iute ess of the constituency. That he has discharged the duties in connection with his office honestly and faithfully cannot be doubted ; Mr O'CoDor has not, we believe, ventured to assert to the contrary—and for these obligations under which he has placed us, Mr O'Conor would brand him, as a man without honesty of purpose, and as one who, in place of earnestly working in the interest of the community, sought alone his personal aggraudisemeut.

Setting aside,ho\vever,any individual action in the Provincial Council, anddealinjj; with theeandidatesaccordingto their respective qualifications t<> represent this constituency in the General Assembly, we think that public opinion must attach itself to Mr Donne. He certainly is not so loud in denouncing ihe oppression, the injustice, and the wrong, under which il pieases Mr O'Conor to remind the electors that the community suffers, at the same time Mr Donne admits that there are abuses to be rectified, and he shows himself far superior to las op. ponent in one important particular —that, in dea iag with an abuse, hj at least, surests a remedy. Mr O'Conor appears totally incapable of suggesting any means of relief. He attacks every institution of government and is, at the same time, totally incapable of even hinting at a scheme by which the grievance may be amended.

There is one important feature in connection with the present election which is certain to exercise a very important influence and that is the introduction of the ballot into the electoral proceedings or'this Colony; and it requires no gift of prophecy to foretell that I.ere, probably as elsewhere, it will bring about very important results The threat used at previous elections, that voters who failed to record their vote in a particular direction would be " marked men " cannot be used on the present occasion, or, if used, may be "safely disregarded. Under ihe ballot system pressure cannot be put upon the electors, and they will now invariably exercise their right to vote in exact accordance with their independent convictions. Under the open system of voting a man was often afraid to vote at all, or if he did so, lie voted, on the ground of expediency, against his own conscientious convictions. JN T ow the people, protected from threat and eapionnage can exer cise,their right and privilege without the'wghtest apprehension of ulterior consequences.