THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE. 993

for each railway district, who shall appoint a Re-
turning Officer to take the poll in each outlying
district, borough, or road district, or part thereof,
in the railway district. The Presiding Officer shall
furnish the Returning Officer with a signed copy of
the roll for the outlying district, borough, or road
district of which he is Returning Officer.
14. The Presiding Officer and every Returning
and Deputy Returning Officer shall, before entering
on the duties of his office, make and sign, before a
Justice of the Peace, a statutory declaration in the
form in the Third Schedule hereto.
15. The poll shall be taken at such times and places
as the Governor shall appoint.
(1.) The Presiding Officer shall give public notice
in each outlying district, borough, or road
district, or part thereof, within a railway dis-
trict, setting forth the day on which a poll
will be taken, and in such notice he shall
specify the polling-places.
(2.) The Presiding Officer shall give notice to
every Returning Officer, requiring him to take
the poll on the day so appointed.
(3.) The Presiding Officer shall cause sufficient
voting papers to be printed in the form in
the Fourth Schedule hereto, and shall, ten
days before the day so appointed, forward,
by registered letter addressed to every rate-
payer and owner on the roll entitled to vote,
one of such voting papers. The address shall
be that appearing on the roll as appertaining
to such ratepayer or owner.
16. Any voter who wishes to vote must fill in or
cause to be filled in the voting paper. If the voter
consents to the construction of the railway, he must
insert the word "Consent;" if he does not consent
to the construction of the railway, he must insert
the word "Refuse;" and his vote shall be deemed to
have been given accordingly.
17. The voter shall sign the voting paper in the
presence of a Justice of the Peace, or of some other
person being a voter for the railway district, or the
Returning Officer, or Presiding Officer, who shall
attest the same.
18. The voter shall deliver or cause to be delivered
to the Returning Officer for the outlying district,
borough, or road district for which he is a voter, the
voting paper, at any time after 9 o'clock in the fore-
noon of the day appointed for the polling and before
six o'clock in the afternoon of the same day.
19. Before receiving a voting paper the Returning
Officer shall satisfy himself by reference to his roll
that the person so voting is entitled to vote, and has
not already voted: he shall initial the voting paper,
and immediately deposit it in the ballot-box.
20. If any voter is blind, or is unable to read, the
voting paper shall be filled up by a Justice of the
Peace or the Presiding or Returning Officer, at the
request of the voter. The Justice of the Peace,
Presiding Officer, or Returning Officer shall read the
voting paper when so filled up to such voter, who shall
make his mark. The Justice of the Peace, Presiding
Officer, or Returning Officer shall certify in writing,
on the back of the voting paper, that the voting
paper was read over to and understood by the voter.
21. The Returning Officer may appoint one or
more poll-clerks to assist him in taking the poll.
22. The Returning Officer shall provide the fol-
lowing things for taking the poll :-
(1.) One or more rooms for polling-booths. No
polling-booth shall be in any house licensed
for the sale of spirituous or fermented liquors,
or in any premises belonging to such house.
(2.) In each booth a ballot-box, having a lock
and key, and a slit in the upper side by which
the voting papers may be put into the box.
(3.) In each booth one copy of the roll, and a
sufficient number of voting papers and pencils.
23. If there is more than one polling-booth the
Returning Officer shall appoint a deputy for each
booth at which he cannot be present in person, and
such deputy shall have, in and about the polling-booth
to which he is appointed, and in taking the poll
thereat, all the powers and duties of the Returning
Officer.
24. The Returning Officer shall, before the opening
of the poll, see that the ballot-box is empty, and
shall close and lock it, and retain the key in his pos-
session; and the ballot-box shall not again be opened
until after the close of the poll.
25. If the proceedings are interrupted or ob-
structed at any polling-booth by riot or violence, the
Returning Officer may adjourn the polling at such
booth to the day following, and, if necessary, may so
adjourn the polling from day to day until the riot
ceases, when he shall again proceed therewith.
26. Immediately on the close of the poll the Re-
turning Officer and each of his deputies, if any, shall
send the ballot-boxes, unopened and with the key, to
the Presiding Officer.
27. When all the ballot-boxes from the different
polling-places are sent in to the Presiding Officer, he
shall in the first place ascertain the majority in number
of the votes for or against the proposal, and then he
shall ascertain the total value of the rateable property
within the whole railway district represented by that
numerical majority. Where the ratepayer and the
owner shall, in respect of the same property, have both
voted for the construction of the proposed railway,
or both voted against such construction, then the
value of such property shall only be taken into
account once.
28. If such total value last mentioned represents
more than one-half of the value of the rateable pro-
perty within the entire railway district, then the
majority will be considered absolute, and the pro-
posal will be assented to or dissented from, according
to the manner in which such majority shall have
voted.

The Presiding Officer shall forthwith notify to the
Governor the result, and the Governor shall there-
upon cause to be published in the Gazette a notice
declaring that the consent or refusal, as the case may
be, of the ratepayers and owners has been given;
and such notice so published shall be conclusive evi-
dence of such consent or refusal.

FIRST SCHEDULE.

FORM OF ROLL for an Outlying District situate in
a county in which the whole of the Counties Act,
1876, is in operation, Borough, or Road District,
or the part thereof situate in a Railway District.

A.B.,
Revising Officer.

N.B.—The numbers in the first column must be
consecutive from one upwards.