The Sun.
London, England, 1859-11-15 00:00:00

•
A SCENCE MB NORWICH- TOO

Co-UNCIL.

Bribery has at length reached its acme. £3o°
for a vote—for a vote to turn the scale for Con9er-
vatism, by creating at once eight Conservative
aldermen. The scene, as sketched by our "ntecloeP°-
rary, the Now folk News, is indeed a graphic .
The Council waiting in two ranks exactly balanced
to elect their May"—one Liberal voter, a gr.
Fox, a Jew, however, is absent. "Where can he
be ? While he is absent the Tories are masters of
ll
the field; if he comes eight Liberal aldermen wi
be elected. At the last moment he comes, and tir
Conservatives in a body leave the room and their
hopeless cause. The Mayor is chosen, and the first
duty he had to perform is recorded in the following
extract :
The MAYOR elect, having taken the oaths and
been invested with the chains of office, said to
Gentlemen, before I proceed to return thanks ,e
you for the distinguished honour which you he'se
now conferred upon me, I have both to make an
announcement and to ask a question of the nless
serious character that has ever come before tint
Council. 1 extremely regret that the very firs
f
business that should come before me as INlaf_ver:a
this city is of so serious a nature. lam int'r,,,'", if
—and if it be true it ought to be known,
it be not true it ought to be contradicted 11,,ni
been informed, I say, that an offer of a most ut'e.
graceful and corrupt character has been made
a member of this Council in order to influence
tohild
with regard to his vote here to-day. I have
you this as soon as I had the opportunity, and,l,:fr r
Row to ask that member—Mr. Joel Fox
there is any foundation in the report which has '
communicated to me.
Mr. Fox—Mr. Mayor and gentlemen, I 1134
taken great pride in being able to represent'
brethren of the Jewish persuasion in this Cetill\e
and certainly lam in politics a Whig. (Cheers',lat.
would never desert my party on any pretence of
ever, but I suppose that because on the committeeeo
the corporation I have sometimes while
,e
a vote
the other side in order to help my fellow-tradenis,o
and to give them a lift -when I could, they say
thought that Joel Fox might be got over oneii-vat
or another. (Cries of " Who are they ?") shall given
give their names at present. Well, upon tTbsei
thought I would play the card to prove than;
cetioe,
had played a card at the last general e-
or
through which mfriend Mr. Wilde soinehe„rtc.
other got blamed but I think he has done his "e rd
Well, I thought that I would play them theiAine,
back again, and I do not deny that they hives
and and that I have got £3oo—and hero are the ,ere
of the notes ! (Great sensation.) (The halves „"ere
handed to the Mayor, and three hearty elice,rB„4le-
given by the populace for " Joel Fox.") u'iloe
men, all I can say is this, that I consider I ~,a
done my duty towards my party. I wanted tO find
them out. They talked about purity, and I:s,v,allted
to find out how far their purity went. they
me to vote for eight aldermen for them.
The MAYOR—Eight Tory aldermen ? That
Mr. Fox—Yes, for eight Tory aldermen. ,nt
is what they wished ; but from the commeni:chthe
of their coming after me, I resolved topn-hu,"„nce,
whole affair, and so I went to Mr. Wilde ab:bing
and from the very beginning I have done ne+ii;jeg,
without consulting him. I hope I have denen°-
wrong towards the public. (Great applause') the
A committee was appointed to investigate the
circumstances; and the result has been tha,
Town-clerk, acting under instructions, instit.
11r.
proceedings before the city magistrates, againAs svith
Albert J. Collins, a solicitor, who is ehar,,ge-,fora
unlawfully conspiring with Mr. Henry "Zrieg
and other persons to corrupt Mr. Fox, by °l„ears
him money to vote for certain aldermen. It qt.,'"
from the evidence adduced that on the Inerinbi
the 9th of November Mr. Fox was requcs'edoes
Croxford to meet him at the Hop role-gnder-
with reference to the approaching election of 3 that
men. Mr. Croxford had previously told hi;rii peo
if he would vote for Tory aldermen he sh°lllu and
£5OO, observing, " You ccme to my honse'ilfter
there it is. I will go on and do you coinif,jisff
me. Come in at the back door and I "7 by
you." Mr. Fox went to Mr. Cro-dord's he,i
~", (of
the back door, first proceeding 'to Mr.lllTreet),
the firm of Wilde and Son, 23, Parliament's:eaclr
and telling him what had taken place. 011 —fairo,
ing Mr. Croxford's Mr. Fox was invited 111315-00
and shown the halves of three £lOO and four. at
Bank of England notes. Mr. Croxford tric,os-
first to keep the whole of the notes in his On f,do
veraid
session, or to place them in some other
hands till the voting had taken place, When lieetShat
Mr. Fox should have them. He also statea .
the other halves of the notes lay at Mr. C°lllllrea
Mr. Fox, however, said, "No • you must givebors
the halves of the three hundreds, and the PliT, ob.
of the four fifties." Mr. Croxford *upon this
served that he could not give them up until he bad
gone to Mr. Collins ; and, after being absent na
the room about seven minutes, returned 3iiir•
gave the halves of the three £lOO notes to,ner
Fox, permitting him also Ito take down the,„- the
bers of the four fifties. Mr. Fox then Wcrl,t,
Council-chamber, where the election of alue'
was about to take place, and, after publielY eht
biting the half-notes voted, after all, for the eight
Liberal aldermen who were elected.
_ CrObiai,
had, in the course of the interview, said te:f you
" A list of aldermen will be handed to you; ,eeth
d`will do that, they will stick to you in the •01
ward, and if you are turned out never ' -gr•
shall be an alderman or anything you like-ee was
Fox having been examined, other eviden Celhne
DI
given to show that Mr. Croxford and Air. in the
had been in communication with each othere
course of the morning of the 9th, and also t
l acor
Collins had met a leading member of thel°cak of
servativa party the same morning at the ball r•
i•
Messrs. Harvey and Hudson. Mr. R. I ;toss,
vey, a member of this firm, was called as a witness,
but said he should decline to state what transpired
- 0.1 .1
at the bank until he had taken legal advice ul'ad'
the subject. The maistrates accorclin„ btu
in
the inquiry, admitting Mr. Collins TOO.
in two sureties of £250 each, and himself in
Mr. Croxford is stated to have left Norwich.