The Express.
London, England, 1849-01-01 00:00:00

COLC I I ESTE R.

A large and handsome town is Colchester, and a
busy one, too, on Saturdays, when all the Essex
farmers come from miles round to its extensive mar-
ket. It is the ehief, though not the county, town of
Essex, and a thriving trade is carried on in every-
thing that farmer, want to buy or that they have to
sell. Colchester is consequently well to do in the
world, and is rather increasing than otherwise. Its
sixteen parishes embrace nearly 12,000 acres, and
contain a population approaching 20,000 souls.
Electorally, Colchester is sacred to the memory of
Daniel Whittle Harvey. That gentleman, before the
Reform Bill, struggled for a length of time to obtain
and to secure a seat in parliament for Colchester.
It seems now-a-days a bold thing to have been at-
tempted at such a time, by a man with neither rank,
nor purse, nor public fame. But the position and
circumstances of Colchester were singular. Mr.
Harvey had acquired there a local reputation, in con-
sequence of conflicts with the then existing powers.
He was the idol of the mob : they, however, could
not have carried him. But the constituency of Col-
chester, before the Reform Bill, consisted of the
burgesses free of the town, resident or non-resi-
dent. Essex people, from their vicinity to London,
have a strong predilection for the metropolis, and
crowds of them, as Whitechapel, Shoreditch, and
other parishes can testify, come up and settle here. Of
the 1,500 freemen of Colcheeter at that time, two-thirds
were non-resident ; and we all know what men gain in
liberality of sentiment by a removal from a country
town to the wide sphere of a metropolis. The out-
voters in those days used to be brought down in
shoals; and though this body was frequently found
excessively corrupt, it was the out-voters of Colches-
ter who used to carry Whittle Harvey.
Not unattended with expense were the contests
at Colchester between Mr. Harvey and his various
opponents. Occasionally a candidate or two was
ruined by a protracted contest, or a quick succession
of elections; bat that was nothing. When the Re-
form BlTerer, Mr. Harvey and Mr. Mayhew,
a wine ant din Fenchurch-street, were the mem-
bers for the borough. The latter had got in in 1830,
in consequence of Mr. Spottiswoode, the King's
printer (who was returned upon the poll), being
obliged, as a government contractor, to resign his
seat. Mr. Mayhew had a struggle at the general
election with Mr. Spottiswoode, and another at the
single election which followed the resignation, and a
third when the parliament was dissolved in 1831.
Three hard contests in two years in Colchester, could
scarce be called a joke, especially when, as at the
last, there was opposition by so inch a candidate as
Mr. Sanderson, the London bill-broker.
The first Reform Bill proposed to disfranchise alto-
gether the class of voters known as the non-resident
freemen. And it is a pity that the measure was cot
carried out. But people in those days were foolishly
jealous about existing privileges ; so the second Re-
form Bill left the franchise in the hands of all the
i freemen residing within seven miles of the town for
Iwhich they claimed to vote. By this measure the
political position of Colchester was altogether
changed. The borough was thrown into the hands
of an agricultural population living beyond the town,
who had influence enough to turn the scale between
the tolerably equally divided parties forming the new
electorate within its boundaries. The constituency was
reduced to 1,150, of whom 700 may be said to have
been tones. At the first election after the Reform
Bill, the Tory candidate, Mr. Sanderson, who was
beaten the year previous, came in by a large majority
at the had of the poll, the numbers being, for San-
Iderson 847; Harvey, 408; Mayhew, 272.
In 1835 the feeling of the nistrict was more con-
servative than ever, and it was doubtful whether even
Mr. Harvey would have succeeded. That gentleman
found a plum of refuge in Southwark, and Mr. Tuf-
nell, who is Essex born and bred, contested the town
upon the liberal influence with Sir Geo. Henry
Smyth, a resident tory, who was one of the represen-
tatives in 1826. Mr. Sanderson polled 635; Sir
George Smyth, 567; Mr. Tufnell, 505. The sitting
members stood again in 1837, and were opposed by
Mr. Rundle Todd, a London solicitor, who re-
ceived bat faint support. In 1841 Mr. Sanderson and
Sir G. H. Smyth were so fully established in the
favour of the town that it was deemed useless to

I oppose them, and they both walked quietly over the

The influence of Sir George Smyth in Colchester
is that of association and connezion. He is &resident

landlord sad a popular one. Be is regarded se a
good practical sgneultarist, and in all that appertains
to farming Colchester delights. Personally-he is re-
spected and esteemed. Publicly he has done all his
supporters have wished of him by voting true blue
of the deepest possible tory shade on every available
occasion. This is just the man for a thoroughgoing
tory agricultural town. Such a constituency does not
Idesire genius or talent. On the contrary, they are
rather suspicions of those qualifications. " They were
so deceived in Peel." They regard even Mr. Ben-
jamin Disraeli as doubtful, and would rather be ex-
cused having him than otherwise. Your old topboot
and pigtail member, without a word to my except at
the agricultural show, is the sort of man for the tones
&inch a town as Colchester.

Mr. Sanderson's popularity in Colchester was
maintained in a different way and at a higher price.
He was the " moneyed member." Colchester boasts of
numerous charities, great or small, and to all of
these, miscellaneous though they were, Mr. Sander-
son was • most liberal contributor. His extensive
bounty was dispensed without reference to details.
He knew neither high church nor low church, nor
any other class distinction—he only knew " the
town." Hundred pound donations, and ten guinea
annual subscriptions were forthcoming from
his purse whenever they were required. At
the last election there was published by an ardent
admirer a list of some of Mr. Sanderson's good deeds
in Colchester. There are five-and-twenty local ob-
jects to which he is therein stated to have subsoribed :
ICOL for blankets in the winter ; 31. 3e. to the chil-
dren's annual dinner ; 3001. to the new town-hall, and
W. to the Wesleyan chapel ; 21. 2s. a year to the
Quakers' charity for widows, and 41. 4s. annually to
the botanic garden. We regret for Me. Sandersou's
sake that we cannot go through the list. It is a long
one, and conclude*, significantly, thus, "bender
HIRABLE sums on PRIVATE applicAtione
In addition to these charitable bequests, Mr. San-
derson's puree was open at all times for other local
purposes. Tne tory members were allowed to get in
far Colchester undisturbed in 1841 ; but political
feeling found its vent in the municipal elections which
followed. It always happens that a party who have
long enjoyed power in a municipality, and have had
to impose and levy rates on the inhabitant., become
in course of time unpopular. The tories of Colchester
bad several valid complaints brought against them
for their administration of local affairs, and it was de-
termined to try and oust them from the town council.
The liberals, however, soon discovered that this
was by no means so easily accomplished. Not only
were the tory party prepared to fight, but it was
apparent that they had an extraordinary amount of
powder and shot. A system of treating was com-
menced at these annual elections, which has since been
carried to a disgraceful extent. " Who pays for it
all ?" was the question asked by the liberals.
" Shouldn't you like to know?" replied the tories. 01
course the rejoinder to this was "Oh, we do know—
it's Sanderson." So, whether justly or unjustly, all
the people in Colchester laid at Mr. Sanderson's door
the perpetuation of the tory majority in the town-
council, and perhaps this very thing contributed more
than anything else to occasion his being turned out of
the borough.
Fur the tory council grew more sad more unpopu-
lar. Every succeeding contest created a more vio-
lent animosity against them. It was tried to beet
them with their iwn weapons, but this cost money
and only added to the vexation. At last some people
began to ray, " We must put a stop to this : we will
have in our councillors, and, in order to get them in,
we will go to the root of the evil. At the next
general election we will have a shy at the' beef and
blanket interest,' " as Mr. Sanderson's party bad
come to be contemptuously designated.
Down a little side street in Colchester, known as
George-lane, there is a small tavern kept by
a Mr. Wire, • name which has attained some celebrity
in a larger sphere than Colchester. This inn is called
the " Fencers," and for many y ears past there has been
accustomed to assemble at it a knot of liberals, who
fur a long time had little else to do than deplore the
position of their town. This little committee now be-
. came the head and front of the opposition to the sit-
ting members for Colchester. They were not a very
influential body, and consequently they were looked
downupon with indifference by the all-powerful tories.
But they knew their own strength and where it lay.
The first thing necessary for them to accomplish was
to get a man. This was not so ca.y a matter. I fe-
served's- or not, Colchester hes a bad name. Amongst
the liberals in town it was also regarded as quite •
forlorn hope ; besides that, the weight of Mr. Simder-
son's purse was understood and dreaded. At last the
liberal party hit upon a gentleman in the county who
seemed calculated to suit them —a Mr. Hardcastle.
Mr. Hardcastle is a member of a family
much respected in Essex, and is married
to the only daughter of one of the weal-
thiest commoners in the county. His name is
especially good amongst the dissenters, for although
a churchman himself he stands connected with dis-
seating families, and one of his relatives professed
and served dissent in days when it was much less
popular than now. Mr. Hardcastle came and tried the
feeling of the borough quietly, and was rather afraid of
it. Hews pre csed strongly to fight the battle. The most
confident assurances were given him of the sincerity
of those by whom he was solicited, and of their firm
belief that he could win. At length he consented,
and a canvass was commenced. The effect of
the municipal contests upon the liberal party be-
came immediately apparent. It was evident that
those battles had organised! and well combined
them. Their canvass was conducted systematically—
their arrangements were all complete and certain. Oa
the other hand, the tories were not only at sixes
and sevens, but were so confident of winning easy
that they took no trouble. By degrees, as the polling
day approached, the batteries of their opponents were
opened on them unexpectedly. It became evident
that if Mr. Sanderson had money, so had Mr. Hard-
castle. The tap flowed freely at the liberal houses :
Mr. Sanderson'* friends could not conceive that any-
thing of the Fort was necessary. Their confidence
continued unshaken to the last. Mr. Sanderson went
to sleep on the night of the nomination without a
gleam of apprehension. He awoke late the next
morning, and found the poll had opened and that he
was at the bottom of it. There was no recovering
the lost position, and at two o'clock he left the town,
routed thoroughly, and desperately chapfallen.
Let as look at the moral of all this. Here is a
large constituency, the majority of which entertain,
no doubt, strong tory predilections. They are repre-
sented by two members with whom they have
no fault to find—who do their work for
them effectually, let that work be what it
may. They are wrapped in blankets and
flannel, filled with Christmas beef, and warmed with
winter coals, at the cost of one of their representa-
tives, to whom they profess the most devoted adhe-
rent* in consequence. " Innumerable sums" are
given to them, " upon private application," from the
same quarter. Yet the moment the bung is knocked
in and the spiggot pulled oat, these " true blue" gen-
tlemen, forgetful of the beef and blankets, and
candles and coals, and " innumerable sums upon pri-
vate application," throw overboard their " much es-
teemed and truly charitable member " in a manner
the most contemptuous and unceremonious. Is not
this a strong proof of the utter hollowness of
" our representative system" ? Here, in Colchester,
beef and blankets kept the seat for 16 year., until
beer put them utterly to the rout. The one sys-
tem appears in almost every point of view as bad as
the other. Thinking and reflecting men are powerless
among constitavicies operated upon by such base
influences : principles are trampled in the mireb
to elecrates whose votes are thus to be ,scared.
Will not all England say that it is high time " our
representative system" should undergo improvement ?
A petition was presented against Mr. Hardeastle's
return, alleging bribery, treating, and corruption ge-
nerally. But a contest had also taken place in South
Essex, in which treating by the tories, in the shape
of refreshment tickets, was carried on openly to a
very great extent. A petition was also presented
against this return. Messrs. Tyrell and Beresford
looked particularly blue at that attack. It was clear
if the petition was presented, their seats were gene.
" How could it be compromised?" " Why, there
was Colchester ; let Mr. Hardeastle alone, and no-
thing will be said to you." With • bad gram and a
rueful countenance, Mr. Round, the banker, who
acted for the tories' was fain to accept these terms.
It wee a bitter pill fur the Colchester tories to swallow
was the withdrawal of that petition. However, they
gulped it down, and glossed over their defeats by