36 



must be settled afterwards, but the regular Board should be constituted in the manner proposed iii his 

 amendment. In his opinion that was the fairest and best solution of the difficulty, and he hoped that the 

 Conference would fjive it lair consideration at all events. He moved, therefore, the following to be an 

 addition to clause 5, as amended, " for the purpose of administering this Act only two members bo added 

 to the existing Sheep and Stock and Pastures Boards, such members to be ejected by the stock-owners 

 and other persons taxed under tin's Bill ; each stock-owner or taxpayer to have only one vote." 



Mr. LITTLE (Bullock Creek) seconded the motion. 



Mr. BKOOKE (Boggabri) thought that under those circumstances the Board would be too heavy 

 and too expensive, and if they did this they would have to reduce the Pastures and Stock Board. 



Mr. CUMMINO (Hillston) thought they could get over the difficulty by merging the two Boards 

 into one. It would simplify matters and make things less expensive. The Board would then be more in 

 touch with both classes. He would move an amendment that the voting power be joined and that all 

 vote for the one Board. 



Mr. LESLIE (Forbes) would like to ask the mover whether he intended later on to extend the 

 franchise in the direction of making it more liberal than at present it was, under the Pastures and Stock 

 Protection Act. 



The Hon. EUPERT CARINGTON (Jerildcrie) said they had nothing to do with that. They were 

 considering the Eabbit Act, not the Pastures and Stock Protection Act, or the Diseases in Sheep Act. 

 This was quite another question altogether. 



Mr. LESLIE (Forbes; ea : d that they had not up to the present heard of a franchise which would 

 give the taxpayers a vote, the smaller men were not being considered. There was no franchise laid down 

 by which the electors were to return representatives to the present Board. The Hon. Eupert Carington 

 had proposed to increase the number of the Board from eight to ten, and he wanted to know before that 

 went to the vote whether it was proposed to make the franchise very low, or whether it was intended to 

 increase the franchise. 



Mr. ALISON (Canon bar) had not heard this before, and must confess that it was a new idea 

 altogether to him to have two extra members on the Board. He could hardly see from the movers 

 explanation how they were going to fix it. He wanted to have it discussed. He was not sure that he 

 did not like the idea, but had not had lime to consider it. It was a total innovation altogether. He 

 would like the mover to explain to him first, were the eight old members still to be elected under the 

 Stock and Pastures Protection Act ; second, was the franchise under the Stock and Pastures Protection 

 Act still to remain the same ; third, were these two new men to be elected under a very much extended 

 franchise ; and fourth, who was going to vote for them. There seemed to him to bo forty or fifty questions 

 arising out of this proposal. He would like the mover to explain who was going to vote for these two 

 new men. 



The Hon. BUPERT CARINGTON (Jerilderie) : Everybody. 



Mr. ALISON (Canonbar) : And who were going to vote for the eight old men ? 



The Honorable BUPERT CAHINGTON (Jerilderie) : Everybody. 



Mr. OAKHEN (Cobar) wished to know, in view of the resolutions already passed to substitute the 

 Stock and Pastures Boards for the Babbit Boards, if they were in order in discussing this question. 



The CHAIRMAN said he did not see any difficulty in the matter. It had been decided that the Stock 

 and Pastures Boards were to administer this Act under an extended franchise. He now anticipated that 

 the Conference would pass a franchise for the whole oE the members of the Pastures and Stock Boards 

 irrespective of what was contained in the Pastures and Stock Protection Act. They need not run their 

 heads against that Act, because if the Minister agreed with them he would make a new franchise and 

 amend the Pastures and Stock Act. There would be no trouble about that if the Conference agreed as to 

 what was to be done. With regard to Mr. Cumming's amendment, that was practically the same as the 

 resolution of the Honorable Bupert Carington, passed the previous day, and was out of order. 



Mr. GIBSON (Hay), speaking on behalf of the small owners, of whom he was one, pointed out that 

 the difficulty they were under was this, that they had appointed two different sets of men under different 

 franchises to constitute this Eabbit Board. Five were to be elected under the Diseases in Sheep Act and 

 a stockowner must be possessed of 500 sheep in order to be empowered to vote for one of those five men. 

 Now that matter had been kept quiet, it had not been ventilated. It had been continually pointed out 

 that the small holder if he were of any consequence at all would have ten head of large stock, and would 

 thus have power to vote for the three large stock directors. Under this, however, the small holder would 

 only have voting power for three men out of eight. Now the small men would lay down this principle, 

 that they must be entitled to vote for every member of the Board. Of course they saw the right for the 

 large holders to have extra voting power; they agreed that a man with 20,000 sheep should have greater 

 voting power than a man with 100 sheep. He would propose as an amendment, " That all holders of ten 

 head of large stock, or 100 sheep, or owning a sufficient area of land to carry either, shall be entitled to 

 vote for all the members of the proposed Eabbit Board." 



The CHAIRMAN explained that they had constituted the Pastures and Stock Protection Board, the 

 Board for the administration of the Eabbit Act, but that an extended franchise was to be given to every 

 rate-payer under the Eabbit Act and Pastures and Stock Act to vote for the whole of those gentleman. 

 Before making any amendment probably it would be better to settle that question as to whether the 

 Pastures and Stock Board was to remain as it was, with eight members, with the right of every taxpayer 

 to vote for the eight. 



Mr. NrxoN (G unbar), said he would second Mr. Gibson's motion. 



The CHAIRMAN said, that that was not before the meeting. 



Mr. OAKDE.V (Cobar) said he thought it would meet the case if a franchise under the Diseases in 

 Sheep Act were reduced from 500 to 100 sheep. He said it seemed to be impossible that they should carry 

 out their intentions without amending the Pastures and Stock Act. It would be a simple matter to 

 reduce the minimum from 500 to 100 sheep. 



The CHAIRMAN said that he was out of order. The question before the meeting was the amend- 

 ment by the Honorable K. Carington. 



Mr. T. BROWN, M.L.A. (Budgerabong), proposed an amendment, "that for the purposes of this 

 Bill the constitution of the Stock Boards be altered so as to provide for (1) the appointment of a Chair- 

 man by the Governor ; (2) that one additional member be elected on an equal franchise by all contributors 

 under the Eabbit Act assessments ; (3) that three members be elected under the Stock and Pastures Act 



as 



