REPRESENTATION BY THE TRANSFERABLE VOTE. 1 77 



expense, the worry, the irksome work of canvassing, there will 

 be more canch'dates, the field of choice will be widened. A vote 

 is a valuable right of the voter, to be used with intelligence for 

 his country's good ; not to be given for the asking, even if the 

 voter is a poor working man, and if the candidate's wife drives 

 up in her motor to ask him for his vote for her husband. To 

 canvass a man for his vote is rather to insult his intelligence, 

 and it is degrading and greedy begging on the part of those who 

 do it. It tends, too, to give the least intelligent voter, the man 

 who will give his vote because he is asked for it, or is driven to 

 the poll, the casting vote in the election of the member. 



The young, intelligent hard-working farmer is unable to 

 bear the present expenses of a contested election, but could 

 afford at a suitable time to attend the short meetings of the 

 Legislative Council, and come forward and be an acceptable 

 candidate to his fellow farmers, the future backbone of the 

 country. Merit to a greater extent than now would become 

 the qualification for the Rhodesian member of the Legislative 

 Council, and that merit must be shown by public work, by public 

 speaking on the platform, by letters and articles in the press, 

 by taking an active part in all local Associations, thus showing 

 his fitness for election as a member. When not 17 per cent, 

 of the votes, not 117 efl^ective votes, but a 'quota of 'J'jd. is re- 

 quired for election, the member's name must be known in 

 Rhodesia, so that he can get general support, as well as all the 

 local votes in his vicinity. There ought to be the best men all 

 over the country coming forward as candidates, from whom the 

 voter can pick out the seven men most fit to serve their country, 

 make its laws, and determine its policy. No longer will one of 

 the first questions asked regarding a candidate be, Is he able 

 and willing to pay his election expenses ? The change will be 

 greatly to the advantage of Rhodesia. 



18. Thirdly, How will the transferable vote affect the mem- 

 ber? He will know and feel that he has not crept into the 

 Council with the aid of, it may be, a very small relative majority 

 of effective votes, got with much labour, trouble and expense, 

 but that he has a quota of voters at his back, whose eyes are 

 fixed on him and his sayings, his doings, and his votes. His 

 effort will be to earn their appreciation of his work for the good 

 of their common country, and so make sure the question of his 

 return when the next election day comes round. 



Collectively the elected members, elected by the eft'cctive 

 votes of all the people, will feel, know, and realize that they speak 

 for them with just as much authority as the five nominated mem- 

 bers across the table for the Company. They will be urged and 

 spurred on to do their best, knowing that they are not members 

 only, but truly the representatives of the whole people, who have 

 elected them. This will facilitate the common aim and interest 

 of the inhabitants of Rhodesia and of the Chartered Company ,Tr 

 the good and the progress of the country. , ,;• , 



