The Sun.
London, England, 1853-06-15 00:00:00

able state of things for this country? Could we find it in
any other country? He ventured to say that the scenes
witnessed at Blackburn only during the last election sur-
pased in atrocity all that had occurred on a similar occa-
sion throughout the American union. (Cheers.) His great
hope from the ballot was that it would change the character
of our elections--put an end to brass bands, flags, and ban-
ners—and abate the nuisance of drinking and open
houses. (Cheers.) With the vote by ballot people might
roll as quietly as they went to church on Sundays, as was,
an fact, done both in America and England in almost all
cases of voting by ballot. (Hear, hear.) These evils being
acknowledged what other remedy was there but theballot?
The right hon. gentleman should remember that he did
not speak in the name of a united Cabinet, at least one
ofthie colleagues was as hearty for the ballot as he (Mr.
Cobden) was. The Attorney-General, the Solicitor-Gene-
ral, and the Judge-Advocate were all prepared to vote for
it. (Hear, hear.) So were a majority of the ordinary
supporters of the Government ; and if the Opposition
benches had .remained as thin as they were about
tnine
o'clock, the question would very soon have been settled.
(Cheers.) Hence the question became a very serious one
for the Government to consider. It was the question
in
all others in which the electoral body took the deepesttheir
terest. (Hear, hear.) Let the Government analyse n y
own supporters, and they would find that aalmost eve
every
representative of a large and powerful constituencyvoted
in favour of the ballot. (Cheers.) if the Government
were prepared and determined to resist the ballot, what
other remedy had they for these evils? Committees'
were appointed, and commissioners sent forth into the
country, and inquiries made into that which every one
well understood ;
.but they wanted the remedy. Every.
thing would be tried except the real remedy, as in the case
of tae core-'.aw agitation. There was a remedy, which
had been recommended by the profoundest thinkers of
the age, for evils that were acknowledged to exist.'
Would they give Bentham and Grote a trial? (Cheers.)
If not, why not? (Hear, hear.) The matter had been
discussed there more than twenty years; on no ques-
tion had argument and reason been so triumphant.
At least the Government might try the experiment for the
sake of the country and for their own sakes. (Hear, hear.)
He would suggest this. The seats for a very large borough
were likely soon to be vacant by the decision of a commit•
tee of that house. (Hear, hear.) Why not propose that
the ballot should be tried in the election for that great
borough? He would not have it first tried in a small
p )eket borough with 200 or 300 electors ; that would not
be a fair experiment. (Hear.) Were they afraid of the
mischief that could be done by venturing to have a solitary
election on the principle adopted in all their clubs, in the
India-house, and in social meetings—a system of! voting
which was carried on successfully and with increased
favour in America, Belgium, Switzerland, and France ?
(Hear, hear.) Were Ministers resolved, in epite of the
world's experience, of classical authority, and of all the
recommendations of the system, not to give it a trial ?
Then what did they drive the country to? Must there be
a ballot league, as there had been an anti-corn-law league?
(Cheers.) He thought they had grown wiser. He had
been encouraged, by the success of the budget, especially
of its key-stone, the succession tax—(cheers)—to hope that
the time had come when questions like this would be
fairly decieed by argument—that at any rate, the Legi-la-
ture would consent to try an experiment, without compel-
ling the country to resort to associations and agitation.
(Hear, hear.) He would suggest another experiment.
Pass an act to make the ballot permissive. (Hear, hear.)
He had such faith in the principle that he would offer the
most handsome terms. Le them pass an act which should
enable any constituency that chose to adopt the ;ballot, to
try the experiment ; and having come to that decision,
that they should, on notifying the same to the Home Se-
cretary, elect their members by ballot during that Parlia-
ment, retaining the power to return again to open voting if
they did not like the ballot. (Hear, hear.) That met the
argument that the people did not want the ballot. Once
for all, as thee. were threatened with a Reform Bill, for a
Reform Bill without the Ballot was a threat—(hear, hear)
—he said most emphatically ho would rather have no ex-
tension of the franchise, he would rather not run the risk
of spreading the virus of this corruption, and the horrors
of this intimidation among another stratum of society ;
• he would rather they remained as they were than
subject another and a more dependent class of the
people to the same corrupting and debasing influences as
the present electoral body suffered from. (Hear, hear.)
He therefore entreated the Government, if they were not -
prepared to grant a Reform Bill with the ballot, to postpone
it, and let the country have the ballot alone. (Cheers.)
Sir R. PEEL and the Lord-Advocate rose together, but
the latter gave way in deference to what appeared to be
the wish of the house. The hon. baronet said, that last
year he gave to a similar proposal to that now made by the
hon. member (Mr. H. Berkeley) his silent, but not less
earnestly-felt, adhesion. Since the time of Mr. Grote to
the present day able and powerful arguments had been
adduced in support of the present measure. He brought to
the same view of the subject the hearty advocacy of an
honest heart, and that was sure to meet with the sympa-
ties of some of those whom he addressed. He had advo-
cated the ballot, not from a hasty conclusion, nor was he
actuated either by a love of reform or a desire of upsetting
the institutions of the country, but from considerations of
what it appeared to him, with his limited experience of
judging, was calculated to promote the liberty and inde-
pendence of the people of this country. (Cheers.) It
seemed to him that the ballot was a means of promoting
purity of principle, and freedom of election. He believed,
in his own mind, that, as the greatest possible publicity
ought always to accompany the political action of a con-
stitutional Government, so, on the other hand, the greatest
possible secrecy ought always to accompany the sovereign
expression of public opinion in the exercise of the elective
franchise. (Hear, hear, and laughter.) Therefore it was
that he thought this measure, which would tend to elevate
the public mind, and render it independent of political
animosity, and unbiassed by the heat of political passions.
ought to meet with the regard of that house. Out of doors
the balance of political opinion already indisputably in-
clined to this free and honourable system ; and as the
balance of public opinion inclined that way, he firmly
believed that, sooner or later, the sense of the majority of
that house must also equally incline to it. (Hear, hear.)
It was possible that the motion might not be adopted that
night, but its success was a mere matter of time ; and it
must be a source of considerable gratification to him and
others who had faith in their political convictions and
looke.l forward to the accomplishment of their political views
—it must, he said, be a source of considerablegratification to
them to remark on each succeeding occasion on which the
measure was submitted to the house, the rapidly diminish-
ing numbers of the majority by which it was resisted.
This was a clear proof to him, and to everybody else who
had got any sense—(laughter)--of the progress which it was
making in the public mind. The hon. member for the
West Riding had truly said that the representatives of the
great towns were all in favour of the ballot. Let hon.
members go to any of the large towns where was a great
concentration of population, like Birmingham, for instance
- -and see if that was not the fact. He would venture to
say that he only echoed the feelings of thousands out of
doors when he repeated that the public looked forward to
vote by ballot as a measure which would ultimately remove
the stumbling-block of political iniquity. He appealed to
the house if ever there was a snore fitting opportunity than
the present, or one in which there was greater probability
of success, for submitting a measure like that of vote by
ballot to the House of Commons, after the gross scenes of
bribery and intimidation which had unhappily prevailed
at the last general election. He did not mean to apologise
for anybody in that house ; that he must say that it was
most unfair and ungenerous to endeavour to throw all the
blame of those proceedings on the friends and supporters
of the Derby Administration. The real fact was that both
parties were equally to blame. Taking the first 13 seats
which were declared vacant on account of bribery and cor-
ruption, he found that six of those were occupied by what
were called Liberals, and seven by Derbyites—a tolerable
equal division he thought. Now, the ballot would strike
this evil at its root, and therefore it was that he was in-
clined to give it his support. If they asked him for a proof
of the evil which rendered the ballot necessary, he should not
take the case of poor working artisans in the dockyards, whom
the noble lord the member for London proposed tocrush, but
he would take the cases of Hull and Harwich and of Clitheroe
and Tavistock. He did not know who was proprietor of the
borough of Tavistock; but this he knew, that if the noble
lord the member for London disfranchised the dockyard
artisans and left unscathed the electors of Tavistock, he
would be guilty of conduct which ought certainly to meet
with the reprobation of that house. (Hear, hear.) But he
would go farther, and ask them to come with him to the
" Fountain," at Canterbury, and see what passed there.
He would go further, and remind them of the case of
Thomas Morris of the " Waggon and Horses," and of the
reasonable quantity of beer which he had orders to distri-
bute among the electors of Blackburn. Didn't these cases
call for political action ? (Hear, hear.) Well, the ballot
would strike these evils at the root, and therefore he for
one would give his hearty and cordial ascent to it.
But he was anxious from the position which he acci-
dentally held, that he should be perfectly understood in
regard to the support which he gave to the ballot. He did
not want to see it affect—and he did not believe that it
would affect—the legitimate influence of property. He
believed that there were many hon. gentlemen on that
(the Opposition) side of the house who were inclined to
oppose the ballot because they thought it would not only
interfere with, but absolutely annihilate, the legitimate
influence of property ; bat he was persuaded that they were
- quite mistaken on ilaat point; end he knew this, that-if
they could tiro =to him that it would have that effect, he
should beas ev areestly opposed to it as he was now vigorously
endeavouring to support it. (Hear, hear.) But he repeated
that he did tot think that it would in any way affect the
legitimate influence of property. He regretted to say there
were certain hon. members in that house, and among
others the hon. mem hers for the West Riding and Man-
chester, who frequently shrew stones at the legitimate in-
tlneec3 of property. (Mr. Cobeen—Nth) He could prove
it as regarded the son. member for the West Riding, at all
events ; for h., (Sir R. Peel) well remembered that when,
the case of Blidgnorth was under discussion in that house
a few weeks ago, that hon. member mentioned the case of
. ;4, . Mr. Whitmoraiand said here was a ease for the ballot. Now,
- ' the inflrenee of Mr. Whittle)]. e, which the hon. member
had condemned, was evidently founded upon the affections
of these among whom Ito reFe fled ; and, if Mr. Whitmore
had not exercised that influence—au influence which was
the result of that 5C1.113 of responsibility which his property
had entailed—he (Sir R. Peel) could only say he was but
little qualified for the situation he occupied. Therefore
it was that ho wished to maintain the legitimate influence
of property ; and that he did not wish to throw a stone at
its influence. He knew that the ballot must pass, for he
considered it inevitable. Its supporters might be beaten
on the present occasion ; but -next year, or in three or four
years, it must pass. (Hear, hear.) Of course, there
r_i, ighet:. as there were, after all, great political changes, be
4 :otv.al.
ieorvulsion in the country afterwards, but that
—and the Political
subside—calia and quiet would succeed
its,
Proper
one' (Hear,
influence of property once more assume
were far too sharp(Hear, hear.) The people of this country
ence which exird acute not to discern the wide differ-
they derived from eaeheltween the
permanent
advantages
the queetionable result egitimate influence of property and :
Iviallich followed the noise and tur-
bulence of the mob.
at all fear that the ballot ';vo
members, therefore, need not
destroy the legitimate in-
fluence of property. At theeledre e time, he maintained
oteltnortoife,slntog;tinlgn
that
that secrecy of voting meant
country they had had few o
pain only
etllinei,c7tsrtilla7 house
asiertion, but he begged to caPtIL
to a case which occurred in S
to another which had lately taken piaceY y, and
would show the value of the ballot in de,,iroticanY, which
And if it was of value there, it would, surely be squall
valuable in a country like this. The Government of leee--,10
Murillo was succeeded by that of General Roncali, who
soon showed that le was anxious to continue the same
lEktiolent political course as his predecessor had done. He
back to the country.
, )
But teen came the Senate. Ile
IAISIPAI -.l3V‘;ssolved the Cortes, and sont them
....-I,l7irr far all easy,
E:::-, i'..
45 .vaswhat was the result?
--:- ~..4 -
...ie.:: (elected senators at once, and
!*, -.).t..,:c;;;, There were four secretaries to
the
elected,utts hwellido,grbelytexpoerlictiis.•
4. 'l•';:;''*,,,r,, ieg considerabit authority in t • 5
I_,
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