The Sun.
London, England, 1832-12-14 00:00:00

NORTHAMPTON.

The business of this election began on Tuesday morn-
ing. The candidates at first were R. Vernon Smith, Esq.
(one of the Lords of the Treasury); George Bainbridge,
Esq., a gentleman from Hampshire ; and Charles Ross,
Esq., late Member for St. Gertnain's ; but in order to
prevent any advantage that might result to the popular
candidates from the circumstance of their possessing two
polling-pens, while the Conservatives had only one, the
friends of Mr. Ross prevailed upon the Hon. C. Fitzroy,
a brother of Lord Southampton, to be put in nomination.
All parties being provided with printed registers, the
election begin with a spirit that astonished those who
had been accustomed to the old method. By 11 o'clock
more than 1,400 voters were polled, and as the consti-
tuency is only 2,495, it is obvious the whole might have
been finished by 4 o'clock, hail they come up as at the
beginning. On Wednesday morning theme being no more
votes thatsqc.o,ualdndbechb:orluegshittousps:
Ethe,l.Returning-officer de-
clared that the election had fallen on Robert Vernon
In Smith,o Erder to account for a result so unexpected by the
Reformers, it must be remarked, that by an error of the
agent in signing the notices of objections at the time of
registration, the supporters of Smith and Bainbridge were
deprived of the means of cutting off the bad votes of their
opponents ; this alone was considered by many as quite
sufficient to turn the scale of the election in a town so
equally divided. Another entice was to be found in the
abominable time-serving disposition manifested by consi-
derable numbers of the Dissenters ; but a cause mightier
than all was to be found in the gold of the Conservatives.
It cannot be denied that the virtue of the Northamtouians
was not sufficiently strong to resist the temptation that an

abundance of sovereigns presented. It seemed to he lite-
rally true of the lower classes, that almost every one of
them bad " his price." The town never before witnessed
such a reckless profusion of money, together with such a
prostitution of every virtue that elevates man above the
brute. Voters openly boasted with the tongue that they
had sold their character, and then gloried in displaying the
price of their iniquity. In consequence of the excited
state of the town, the usual ceremony of chairing was
declined.

LEICESTER, DEC. 12.

The nomination of candidates took place on Monday,
when William Evans and Wynn Ellis, ENrs., the late
Members, and J. Boughton Leigh, Esq., of Brownsover,
Warwickshire, a Tory, were respectively proposed. The
show of hands being decidedly in favour of the former, a
poll was demanded for Mr. Leigh, which commenced this
morning at nine o'clock. The corporation party, calcu-
lating upon former success, led their supporters to antici-
pate a decided victory, but a few hours only were requi-
site to manifest the delusion under which they had la-
boured. Messrs. Evans and Ellis, whose services in the
cause of Reform will ever be remembered with gratitude
by the electors, took the lead of their opponent, and conti-
nue 4 to poll more than three to one till noon, when his
Conservative friends made a grand push and enabled him
to gain a little upon Messrs. Evans and Ellis. Notwith-
standing this strong effort, or any other effort which they
may make, however, the election of the Liberal Members
is safe.

We believe this is the first instance on record where
Whig or Liberal candidates have ever been known to take
such a decided lead of the corporation party ; for o❑ the
late occasion, it will be remembered, the Tories did not even
venture to go to a poll. The result of this election m ty,
therefore, be considered a death-blow to the corporation
influence in this town, and also speaks volumes as to the
progress of liberal opinions where voters have anything
like real freedom of election. The polling in different
booths is a decided improvement on the old system.