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—the wise, the good, or at least the strong. Bat the freedom of 

 choice affects the character of the Legislature in a manner more 

 direct and more effective ; it fosters a spirit of independence, since 

 a candidate can spurn a dishonest compliance whenherelies upsn 

 the electors of a colony. No longer compelled to humour the 

 several sections of a single constituency, he is freed from a 

 disagreeable dilemma— so c jmmon and so demoralising ! Avoiding 

 alike the mean subterfuge and the fatal avowal, he relies for 

 support upon the diversity of his electorate. In such respects, 

 a comparison of the Hare system and the Referendum suggests a 

 fact of some importance. The Referendum is the natural resource 

 of a people perplexed by the domination of a corrupt or unrepre- 

 sentative Legislature. But the reference to the popular vote 

 implies a diminution of Parliamentary responsibility, and may, 

 therefore, aggravate those evils whose effects it is designed to 

 correct. The Hare system seeks, by improving the character of 

 the Legislature, to remove the causes of the evil. 



This seems the proper place to consider the argument of 

 Bagehot that the Hare system is inconsistent with the indepen- 

 dence of Parliament ; that a voluntary constituency would be a 

 Church with tenets, and would, therefore, reserve the despotism in 

 its own hands. This argument is fast losing whatever importance 

 might once have attached to it. The difference between the 

 candidate elected under the Hare system and one elected under 

 the usual system, is not that the latter is the more independent, 

 but that the former is bound to a constituency whose general 

 sentiments he represents, and not to one whose general sentiments 

 he represents in part but must respect in toto. 



I have spoken of the merits of an equality of representation ; 

 of a new and deeper interest in political life ; of politics made 

 purer and of a Parliament made more worthy At this stage 

 it might seem proper to attempt a systematic consideration of the 

 objections which have engaged the attention of Constitutional 

 writers. Such objections, however, may mors conveniently be 

 discussed in connection with the modifications adopted in this 

 colony for the purpose of weakening, if not destroying, their force. 

 It will be seen that a compromise has not always been effected 

 without some diminution ol the merits of Mr Hare's scheme. But 

 I think in each case there is a great and obvious gain. Of the 

 modifications tc which allusion is made, the first has been generally 

 associated in this colony with the name of Sir John Lubbock. It 

 must be regarded as a complete answer to the objection, so 

 commonly urged and so difficult to impugn, that the Hare system 

 is too complicated to be practicable. The student of Mr Hare's 

 treatise is often tempted to regard the task of the returning 

 officer as beyond the reach of mortals. In the application of 

 the method to a whole country, voting as a single constituency, 

 and returning not less than 100 representatives, the formation of 

 voluntary constituencies might well involve all the evils of 

 a constituency - making trade. In the fasmanian Bill, the 

 method has been confined to city constituencies. These 

 return six or four members. Though the constituencies 

 might be larger with advantage, the present arrange- 

 ment has one very obvious merit ; the argument from 

 complexity only remains as the frail support of those whose 



