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That space in the RA axis is for a 'polar scope'. The polar scopes I know of are mainly for the northern hemisphere and show where the star Polaris should be placed to make your mount polar aligned (it's supposed to save you time). Although I think I have seen some with four stars that help you align to the south celestial pole.
The idea behind polar aligning is that once the mount is aligned and you switch a drive motor on the mount should track an object across the sky without you having to make any further adjustments to the direction the scope is pointing.
To point at a object you will need to move the mount on both axes. The RA moves in the east-west direction, the Dec in the north-south direction.
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