The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-10-27 00:00:00

POLITICS AT WE MOUTH.

IThe anti-compact candidate, Mr. J. J. Powell, Q.a.
addressed • publie meeting at the Burden hotel, on
Monday evening. Mr. U. Brown presided. supported
1
by the other members of the committee, and the large
room was wall filled.
Mr. Baows briefly introdimed Mr. Powell as a candi-
date to represent the borough.
Mr. Powatz., who was received with cheers, said:
Gentlemen, —Before I begin the observatious that
I purpose addressing to you Hai* evening, permit
me to tender to You my most grateful thanks for
the cordial reception and kind forbearance which both
on the last occasion, and also on the present, you have
political been Pleased to **cord to me. Of course, as • practical
, man, I am very well aware th it in a large auembly,
such as that was, and this is, there must be present a
great many gentlemen whose laical opinions do not
agree with my own; and the act that notwithstanding
such was the case, on that occasion—as I confidently
hope will be the case on this—l was listened to with the
most courteous Wootton, speaks well, I think, not only
for those gentlemen, but also is a matter on which I
may reflect with great complacency myself. Accept my
thanks for that, and this is my chief reason for alluding
to it :-1 beg that if on any future occasion, in this way,
or in any other place in this borough, either of the
gentlemen who may be lulled in one sense inv political
opponents, shall be addressing any public assembly,
gentlemen, who are particular supporters of my own,
will endeavour to rival, for I eta sure they could not
exeel,in showing those gent emen the courtesy which has
, been extended to me, and that they will give to them,
is their friends have given to me, • fair and patient
I hem's' g—(applause). 1 assure you it gives me very
great gratification indeed to meet you this evening as •
candidate for your suffrages—(abeers)—and I trust that
whatever may be the result of my appearance before
I you, that at least you will do me the justice to say that
I have not hastily and recklessly thrown myself 00 this
constituency—(applause). I confess to you candidly—
and I do not know that I should be ashamed to confess
it—l desire • seat in the House of Commons, and I ,
think it ie no improper ambition on the part of a man 1
whose inclination, studies, and profession have led him
for many years to study public affairs and conduct public
business. But if this were a question of mere personal
qualification, I should not have ventured to intrude
myself upon you, because I am perfectly well aware—
no 008 here more than myself—that there are many
gentlemen more immediately connected with you, and
many who might *wily be brought here, who on
' personal grounds have mach better claims on your
aupport than I can beset of; but, bare lam, you have
Invited me, and, as I have said, I did not come hers
recklessly ; indeed, I think, some of you may consider
that, as schoolboys say of stash other, "I was somewhat
backward in coming forward" in this contest; but, it I
have been so allow me to assure you it has not bten
from soy disrespect or any distrust of you; it has
simply been because, as a practical man, I felt it my
duty to see my way pretty clear that your sea/ had not
outrun your discretion, or allowed you to involve
yourselves in a contest by which you might vex your
friecds and neighbours without doing good to anybody.
I did not originate this contest, and I any not responsible
for it; but from the first moment when I tame amongst
you, obseiving, as I believed I did, the strong and
honest desire which prevailed amongst so many of you
to free yourselves and your borough from the bondage
which has been alike prejudicial and diagiaoeful to both,
that I resolved, if requested, to become your candidate,
and I now appear before you in the capacity —applause).
Having said that let me ask your attention for • low
momenta while I consider (1) what has been the past
condition of this borough, (2) what it is at present, and
(3) what course I presume to think you de-ire your
representative should take in the future Parliament.
Weymouth is one of the most ancient boroughs to the
kingdom. It has been represented in Parliament for •
great number cif centuriea—froin • time when the
representation in this country like almost tt hing
else—was in • very different state from what it is at
present. I am not going tonight, when we have
arrived at • period when mere talking should give place
to action, to detain you by a long and dry historical
discussion; but it may not be uninteresting, and not
useless, to refer for a few moments to the state of this
borough in former times, and of boroughs generally, in
order that we may the better understand the precise
, position in which we are now. Many of you are probably
, aware that in the early times there was • very different
feeling in boroughs and in counties with referenoe to the
power, right, or privilege as it is now termed, of
representation, from what now exists. Originally there
was the greatest possible objection in almost every
county in the kingdom to return members to Parlia-
ment; and they resorted to the most extraordinary
and curious excuses, when the i writs arrived from the
sovereign that they should return members, to avoid
compliance ; and, on the other band, so far from gentle-
men in those daya seekiog to go to Parliament, boroughs
, and counties experienced great difficulty in getting any.
body to serve ;and, even when returned, they frequeutly
failed to preteut themselves at Westminster or where-
ver the Parliament was held, and went abroad or any-
where rather than do so. Bo much was this the case,
lot
tPhaerliaplacineenatrptttetbdcy.wdoupeldrfdonnuly
that the sheriff actually took bail of the persons returned
tihmeiaer dauttiteshe.mieThivwe
explanation o this curious state of things is, not so
much on account of the great expense of returning
members in those early times, although members were
amid by the constituencies for their services, though it
was only 2s. • day for a burgess and 4s. for a knight of
the shire (the shilling, however, representing then much
more than it does now); but because members were not
then amembled to form a COII2BIOOB House of Parliament
in it. present form, but for the sole purpose of taxing
the people to raise supplies for the sovereign. Boroughs
and counties were consequently very unwilling to send
members, and gentlemen were unwilling to go as such
because if they did not rote • large subsidy for the
Sovereign they were sure; to be bullied by the king
or his Minister, and, if they did do it, the con-
stituencies they had represented were about as
langry with them as they were with some of them at ,
i voting for an income tax—(laughter). Besides this, in
those early days, the members were compelled to attend
to their duties, and in default their constituencies were
fined. It was now to be seen by the Parliamentary
record, that the knight' of the shire or the burgesses of
such and such • borough were mulcted of their wages, as
It was termed, because, as the record bluntly expressed
11, they had neglected their work. Thit went on for
some time, till &change °cot reed, w bich brought about the
state of things under which we have latterly been
suffering so much. lii process of time, as the Commons ,
got auore wealthy and independent, and the crown lost '
Its revenues by distribution amongst favourities
—for they there was no civil list—the sovereign became
.more dependent for thesupplics necessary for his military
propensities, or other pleasures, and for domestio
purposes, on the Commons, and the constquenoo was
that the minister of the dey was obliged to conciliate
them. Then he began to flatter, and to court, and
, ultimately to bribe the Commons; and so it came to
pass that whereas originally members were extremely
unwilling to serve, and would not do so
unless , bound by reeognisanows, they were
now very anxious to do so. This consequence
also followed—the man who sold his vote in the House
of Commons found it necessary to buy the suffrageo of
those who could send him there. Thus came the
political corruption from which we have suffered so
mush in later times. Some of you may say, well, but
that is all very general, and has little to do with the
object for whieh we are assembled this evening; but I
will show you that it lias a direct bearing upon it, for I
now come to give you an illustration of the state of
things I have indicated by the case of this borough. As
I have told you, Weymouth from • very early periosl,
and Melaimbe Regis two, for originally they each
returned two, has sent members to Parliament ; and it
happened about 150 years ago that the patronage as it
was called of this borough, together with that of Bride
-
water, Dorchester, and another the name of which I
ust now forget, belonged to • gentleman whose name
was Bubb Dodilington. By some means or other—
whether by local territory or in what way
did not appear—he acquired great influence in
theses four boroughs, so great in fact that
he practically had the returning of the members to
Parliament Sir Robert Peel, the minister of the day,
was a man than whowno one knew so well how to
"tickle" • member, and there was no man liked better
to be "tickled" than L Bubb Doldington. the patron of
this borough, and be having the returning to Parliament
of two members for Weymouth, two for Meloombe
Regis, two for Dorchester, two for Bridgwater, and two
for another place, made himself and was • person of
very great importance in the eyes of the Minister. At
this time George 11. was on the throne, and unfor-
tunately be and his son Frederick, Prinoe of Wales,
were at variance, and the son headed an opposition
against his father's Government. As eight members. in
such a movement, were important, the Prince bought
Bubb Doddington, and Bubb Doddiogton gold his eight
members and they supported the opposition _mule by
the Prinoe against his father the King. But, as Burns
sung—