The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1866-05-15 00:00:00

HOUSE Of COMMON&

Ties BADISTILIICTION &HMI was laid
before the Home of Commons on Monday night
by the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Mr.
Gladstone premised that his remarks would be
divided under three heacia—the details of the
re-distribution scheme, the extension of bound-
aries, and the mode of proceeding with the
whole subject. He reminded the House that in
recent Bills the seats necessary fur notifying the
balance of representation had not been obtained
by the extinction but by the limitation of the
representation of small li,roughs, sad, in die-
cussing the merits of these oonstituensies, he
came to the conclusion—which he illusteeted
from recent experience--that while they did not
deserve condemnation by • special liability to
corruption, they had not earned any title to pro-
longed existence by dualtarging the function of
returning young men of promise to the House of
Con.mous The (lovernment, therefore. had
determined to proceed on the principle of pro-
viding the means of extending to the large and
growing communities of the countr) that ade-
quate share of representation which they did not
at present enjoy, simply by restricting the
present superabundant representation of small
boroughs; and after considering carefully the
degree of leniency with which the principle
shoul be applied—remembering always that the
small boroughs could say now what they could
not say at the time of the Reform Bill of 1832
that their members represented a real con-
stituency—it believed it would best meet the
claims of equity and the state of public opinion
by not extinguishing soy borough, but resorting ,
in lien to the Scotch system of grouping. A
strong reason for tnis course was that experience
had shown grouped boroughs were almost entirely
free from corruption. Having to take votes in a
plurality of places was found to be an obstacle to
bribery. After soon further prefatory remarks,
Wanting the merits in this respect of the Bills ,
of 1864 and 1880, he stated that the Bill pro-
posed to obtain for disposal 49 seats by the
double operation of withdrawing one member
from every borough at present possessed of two
with a population of lees than 8,000 and by
grouping together as msay of such boroughs as
could be collected together with geographical
000vellieD00. Groups having a population of
under 15,000 would have one member, those
above that limit two members, ani while the
lowest in population would have 10,000, the
highest would have 21,000. The result of this
process of grouping, by which 41 seats would be
gained, would be as follow.:

Woodstock. Wallingford, Abingdon . . 2
Lbkosni, &Ando lannonstoo
oa . . .
Toto, lauivooutt, Ashburton . . . 1
Bridport, Hornton, Lyme Regis . . 1

llorehatier, Wareliau; 1
Kaboo, Harwich 1
Cirencester, To. keebary. Evesite.ao .
tkiatawsr,.Lygni.agtou

Ludlow 'lerominster . . . . . 1
By., T4etford . . . . . . 1
Horsham, Midhurst, Petersbeld, Arundel . 2
Chipprobam, Ma'member', Cake .
Westbury, Welk
Duna. Marlborouph
Ripon, Ingretioyo!gb, Tbirok . .

lahMo4d, Nortdsarios . . . . I
Beside, these the following boroughs would re-
main ungri.oped, and would be deprived of one
member each :

Bridg north Fluotingdoa
Buckingham Litohlt Id
Cookermouth Marlow
Hertford Newport
This would leave 49 seats at the disposal of the
Government. Mr. Gladstone after a few
general remarks on the respective claims of
counties and towns, then announced that 28 of
these seats would be given to the counties, by
dividing South Lancashire iLito two parts, giving
each Division three members, and by giving a
third member to each Division of a county
whit*, not already having three members,
according to the census of 1881, possessed a
population of 1150 000, exclusive of the present
or future borough constituencies. These addi-
tions are thus represented :

_
South Lancashire, by tbe creation of a new
divbkia

cb. got r• Nolik
Chreeire ( Rooth) 1
Oars esil (West)
Derbyshire (North)
Doses I North)
Dever (Unlit)
Durkee (North) 1
Durham (South) 1
Fri (North)
gest (Keith)
1E at (West)
?Coot (Fee) 1
lasesahire (North)
1 isenin.hor• (ruts Di Liadisy) . .
Norfolk (Wset)
Somers (Wee)
Somerset (lust)
Staffordshire (Nasth sod South). .
Saner (See)
North IS the of York . . . .
West Bides of York (N. sod S. Dislikes) 2

It was not intended to give any additional seat
to Middlesex, on the ground that on the whole
it had affinity rather to the metropolitan than the
county constituency. An additional member ,
would be given to the following boroughs :
Liverpool I Leeds
M amnesties I &Lord
Bireueeham
The Tower Hamlets would be split into two
Divisions, two members being given to each., and
Melees and Kensington, being taken out of the
Middlesex county oonstituencies, would be
crested another metropolitan constituency. In
addition to these the following new ow-
stituencies would be created, with one member
each :
Bander• Middlesborough
Stahsybridge Dowebory
Orevreend Louisa Ualvsenity
Hartlepool
Thus Mr. Gladstone diapered of 42 seats,
and he created much laughter by announc-
ing that the remaining seven would be given to
I the following Scotch constituencies :
Ayrshire Edinburgh
Lanarkshire Diced*.
A berdeenahiro Soot& Universities
Glasgow
The enfranchisement scheme, disposing of 49
seats, may be thus summed up :
Additional roembrre to ociantiss . . 16
Additional -cambers to borough.. . I
To now constituencies. • • • 11
To Scotland

Total
Passing to bin second brad—the re-arrangement
of boo arias—Mr Gladstone, after showing
with great elaboration that tbe plan proposed in
Mr. Disraeli's Bill of 1.110 for this =
would have led to great dculty and in
went, explained that this Bill provided that,
wherever a municipal borough extended over so
area Dot included in the Parliamentary borough,
the Parliamentary area should be widmed to that
extent, making the Parliamentary and the mini-
eipal bouadaries ideutioal, and with regard to
tbe new constituencies, their boundaries would
be wattled by the Enclosure Conuniesioners.
Future extensions would be regulated by the
Bill which Sir G. Grey was about to bring in for
he rectification of municipal boundaries, which
would enable the Queen in Council. Belied to
the approval of Parliament, au the petition of
the inhabitants, to add to • uniirp.l borough
any outlying district whisk spin its williar-
nem Is the rem of any such enlargement for
municipal purposes this Bill provided that • eo-.
extension of the Parliamentary boundaries should
follow. Oo the important question of procedure.
Kr. Gladstone announced that, within certain
limits, the Government welt willing to conealt
the eenvenience of the Home. They were de-
termined not to lose time by PoeZoeleff the
question I. any way, but they were • ling either
in go on sitting or to apse to a abort adjourn-
meat say from July or august to 13Zessir
°amber ; bit they would not advise
to prorogue Parliament until the whole qusuhosi