The Press.
London, England, 1854-03-04 00:00:00

THE NEW REFORM BILL.

Tats bill has been printed and issued under the
title of " A Bill Further to Amend the Laws Re-
lating to the Representation of the People in England
and Wales." It contains 67 clauses.

The bill commences with clauses totally disfranchising
the 19 boroughs in Schedule A, now returning 29 mem-
bers—viz., Andover, Arundel Ashburton, Caine, Dart-
mouth, Evesham, Harwich, Honiton, Knaresborough,
Lyme Regis, Marlborough, Midhurst, Northallerton,
Reigate, Richmond, Thetford, Totnes, Wells, Wilton.
These boroughs are disfranchised because they have either
less than 300 electors or less than 5,000 inbabitants ;
and their disfranchisement will leave Abingdon the
smallest constituency in England, the electors there being
in number 312.
The bill next provides that the following 33 boroughs
(Schedule B), now returning two members each, shall
hereafter return but one—viz., Bodmin, Bndgnorth, Brid-
port,
Buckingham, Chichester, Chippenham, Cirencester,
Cockermouth, Devizes, Dorchester, Guildford, Hertford,
Huntingdon, Leominster, Lewes, Ludlow, Lymington,
Lichfield, Maldon, Mahon, Marlow (Great), Newport
(Isle of Wight), Peterborough, Poole, Ripon, Stamford,
Tamworth, Tavistock, Tewkesbury, Tiverton, Weymouth,
Windsor, Wycombe (Chipping). These boroughs are this
dealt with because they have either less than 500 electors
or less than 10,000 inhabitants.
Of the 62 seats thus obtained, together with four
for Sudbury and St. Alban's, previously disfranchised,
making in all 66, the English Reform Bill proceeds to
dispose of 63, the number which Lord J. Russell allots to
England.
The following 37 counties, or divisions of counties,
having more than 100,000 inhabitants, exclusive of the
population of the represented boroughs, are in future to
return three members instead of two, viz.:—Bedfordshire,
West Gloucestershire, Middlesex, Monmouthshire, North
Salop; North Hants, East Surrey, East Sussex, North
Warwickshire, East Worcestershire, East Yorkshire, North
Yorkshire, Glamorganshire, and both divisions of the
following counties—viz , Cheshire, Cornwall, Derbyshire,
Devon, Durham, Essex, Kent, Lincolnshire, Norfolk,
Staffordshire, Somerset, Suffolk.
Lancashire is to be formed into three divisions—the
northern, comprising the hundreds of Lonedale, Amoun-
derness, and Blackburn, the election to be held at Lancaster ;
the south-western division, comprising the hundreds of \Vest
Derby and Leyland, the election to be held at Wigan ; and
the south-eastern, consisting of the hundred of Salford,
the election to be held at Bury. The West Ridingof York-
shire is to be formed into two divisions—the northern,
comprising the wapentakes of Staincliffe and Ewcross,
Claro, Skyrack, and Morley, the election to be held at
Leeds ; and the southern, comprising the wapentakes of
Barkston Ash, Osgoldcross, Strafforth and Tickhill, Stain-
cross, and Agbrigg, the election to be held at Pontefract.
Each of these divisions of Lancashire and Yorkshire is to
return three members, so that Lancashire will return
nine instead of four, and the West Riding six instead of
two.
Having thus given 46 new members to the counties,
the bill proceeds to assign 17 to the towns. The (new)
borough of Chelsea, consisting of the parishes of Chelsea
and Kensington, is to return two members ; the Univer-
sity of London, one; the Inns of Court (the Inner Tem.
le, the Middle Temple, Lincoln's-inn, and Gray's-inn)
jointly, two ; the (new) boroughs of Birkenhead, Burnley,
and Stalybridge, one each ; Salford, two instead of one ;
and the following eight boroughs three instead of two—
Birmingham, Bristol, Bradford (Yorkshire), Leeds,
Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, and Wolvelhampton.
The largest unrepresented towns in England will then be
Gravesend, with a population of 16,633 ; Leamington,
15,692; St. Helen's (Lancashire), 14,566; Barnsley, 13,437 ;
Keighley, 18,050.
The bill proceeds to provide that at every future con-
tested election,where three members are to be returned, no
voter shall vote for more than two candidates, or in London
for more than three. The old constituencies affected by
this clause are those of London, Berkshire, Buckingham-
shire, Cambridgeshire, Dorsetshire, Herefordshire, Hert-
fordshire, and Oxfordshire.
Every male person of full age, entitled to any yearly
sum of not Peso 1001., payable in find portions not less