The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-06 00:00:00

au' I

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 6, 1851

In the House of Lords last night,
Lord MONTEAGLE moved the second reading of a Bill
which he had introduced, and which embodied the
clauses which he had proposed in the Ecclesiastical
Titles Assumption Bill at the time that measure was
under discussion.
The Bill, which was opposed by the Marquis of
LANSDOWNE and by the LORD CIIANCELLOA as totally
unnecessary, was rejected without a division.
Several Bills were forwarded a stage, and their Lord-
ships adjourned.
The morning sitting of the Commons was almost
wholly devoted to the Committee on the Pstent-law
Amendment Bill.
In the evening sitting Colonel SALWEY moved for a
Select Committee to consider the case of the Military
Knights of Windsor, but the House was counted out
before he had concluded his speech.

Many attempts have from time to time been made
to check the practice of bribery and corruption at the
election of Members for the Commons House of
Parliament, but in vain : it is an ancient custom—
albeit " more honoured in the breach than in the ob-
servance"—which many constituencies stick to with
the most resolute pertinacity. It is vain to seek "the

most sweet voices" of the electors of certain boroughs,

unless the candidate be prepared to render an equiva-
lent in the shape of hard cash. The minimum rate is

generally fixed according to the recognised local
usages, but the actual price varies according to
the emergency. A fierce contest will increase
the demand to such an extent that the ordinary

honorarium must be at least quadrupled. There will
be a rising market, while the numbers continue
pretty equally balanced, until, as the hour approaches
for closing the poll and declaring the successful can-
didate, the excitement approaches the utmost degree
of intensity, and fancy prices are offered and ac-
cepted that would startle the parties, if.even contem-
plated in more sober moments.
It is true that the more respectable inhabitants—
those whose circumstances may enable them to resist
the attractions of a 51. or 101. note, and who will

not condescend to share in the guttling and guzzling
in which the less wealthy of the free and independent
electors are prone to indulge—keep aloof from these
horrors ; but by far the greater number of these
belong to one or other of the local parties into which
the district is divided. They are blue or yellow, pink
or red, as the case may be, and must give their votes
in accordance with others of their colour. Some,
however, who desire to turn everything to advantage,
although affecting the utmost purity, and virtuously
indignant at the conduct of those who eat
or drink at the expense of the candidate or defile
their hands with the touch of the " accursed
thing" in the shape of L. s. d., are quite willing to re-
ceive an equivalent in another shape. As, for in-
stance, a comfortable situation for some deserving
member of the family unhappily unprovided for. As
the boa
_fide parties are generally pretty equally ba-
lanced, the loose fish, whether waiters on Providence,
desirous of obtaining patronage, or the more vulgar
recipients of the current coin of the realm, are enabled
to turn the election and to bring in the " Liberal"
candidates, not in the " political," but ordinary
meaning of the phrase.
The heaviest purse, therefore, too frequently gains
the victory, but there are means by which the con-
queror may be brought to account, which would be
exceedingly valuable, but that, unfortunately, the
innocent suffer as often as the guilty, and gentlemen

who would be utterly incapable of sanctioning im
proper or corrupt proceedings are dragged through
the mire and made responsible for acts of which they
were utterly ignorant, and which occasionally, we
believe, were ascribable rather to malicious enemies
than to injudicious friends.
The " possibility" above alluded to has, however,
rendered great caution necessary in dealing with the
ticklish subject. " Bribery" must be conducted on
scientific principles. The old vulgar method has long
since been ignored among the more scientific practi-
tioners. Even the purchases of " sucking pigs, tables,
gaudy-coloured handkerchiefs, or rare plants, at ex-
orbitant prices," have become too common-place, and
are only resorted to by inferior minds. A new and
more powerful method has been recently adopted, which
has the double advantage of not only affecting the vote
for the time being, but of keeping " the screw" over
the elector on all future occasions, and enabling the
candidate to take summary vengeance for any act of
insubordination. The practice was first brought to
light, we believe, in an action in which Mr. JOHN
ATTWOOD was concerned ; and we have had an addi-
tional illustration in a case just tried on the 'Western
Circuit, in which Sir SAMUEL SPRY, the defeated
candidate for Bodmin at the last general election,
was plaintiff, and a person of the name of HociiiN, a
grocer, resident in the town of Bodmin, and a regis-
tered elector of the borough, was defendant.
From the evidence it appeared that the plaintiff had
been a candidate for the representation of Bodmin at
the elections that occurred between 1832 and 1847 ;
that in 1841 defendant had voted for his two oppo-
nents, but in 1843 he bad changed his views and
exercised his suffrage in favour of the worthy
Knight. Shortly afterwards he applied to the agent
for Sir SAMUEL in order to obtain a loan ( ! ! I), and
mentioned the name of the principal for whom he had
just recorded his vote. Such a claim could not be
rejected. The money, 201., was advanced in June,
1843 and a promissory note for the amount granted
by the defendant. It also appeared in evidence that
five other voters—all honourable men—were accom-
modated about the same time, in a similar manner,
for sums varying from 201. to 251. These various notes
remained locked up in the strong box of the agent,
from 1843 until after the next election of 1847. It
does not appear that they were ever presented for
payment, that interest was demanded, or any appli-
cation made in reference thereto, during the interval.
In fact, it seemed as if they had been alike
forgotten by creditor and debtors. In 1847,
however, a new contest took place, in which the
plaintiff was defeated. We know not whether the
other five, or any and which of them, " plumped"
for their liberal and indulgent creditor. The de-
fendant, however, gave a split vote, between the
plaintiff and the party with whom the pressure of the
conflict lay, the remaining candidate being facile
princeps, and his success placed beyond the possibility
of doubt. The plaintiff, once a Radical, but subse-
quently a Conservative and Protectionist, was de-
feated ; and, much annoyed at his discomfiture; he did
' not, however, at once shake the Bodmin dust from
his feet. The chances of a petition were still to be
tried; but even that was a failure, and the election
was confirmed by the Parliamentary Committee.
Then it was that the plaintiff saw the necessity for
calling in his debts. The notes of the various bor-
rowers of 1843 were accordingly transferred from
the custody of the Parliamentary agent to that of his
private solicitors, and the action now under notice
followed.
It did not appear that the plaintiff was
a bill-broker or dealer in money, or that
his object was obtaining heavy interest on
the amount of his advances. None of the honour-
a ble fraternity would have let their securities slum-
ber for more than four years, without any allusion
being made thereto, or any application even for in-
terilit. What then waq the motive that induced the
plaintiff to render the accommodation ? Would he
have given it to any but voters ? and is it not palpa-
ble that it was granted for electioneering purposes,
and that even if legal (which we doubt) was of an
produceexceedingly unducebiin
influence
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