The Sun.
London, England, 1866-09-29 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

TIMES.—" My poverty, but not my will consents,"
is the true expression of a feeling which too many
have experienced, and all can understand. It is a
kind of protest quite painful to think of, but we may
ks well say at once that it has not the slightest ap-
plication to the British elector who sells his vote for
money. That is the one leading conclusion, the
" fact common to all classes" which may be disco-
vered in the voluminous proceedings of the Commis-
sions now sitting. The voters of Yarmouth and
Totnes who took bribes from candidates and their
agents did certainly never take them against their
will, nor often by reason of their necessities. As
we read the evidence day after day, with its accu-
mulation of facts and scenes and characters, we
almost cease to wonder at the unexpected extent to
which bribery has been found to prevail. The bribed
electors did no violence to their own feelings or
opinions. They did not sell their convictions for
the simple reason that they had no convictions to
sell. The idea of a discrimating estimate of political
questions and a vote based upon that estimate never
entered into their heads. One manager after another
tells us that politics went for nothing in his opera-
tions. A witness asked about his politics by the
Commissioners conducting the examination could
not so much as tell the meaning of the term or un-
derstand the question put to him. For the most
part, indeed, there is no employment of political
terms at all, but only, at most, a reference to party
colours. Men describe themselves or their votes,
not as Liberal or Conservative, but as blue, red, or
yellow. To these colours there is a certain amount
of fidelity, but that is all. We do learn from the
evidence published that in four English boroughs, in
four different quarters of the kingdom, hundreds
upon hundreds of electors voted for money, but it
is utterly impossible to presume that, if the money
had been intercepted, they would have voted from
any species of political conviction. As to the can-
didates, it is fair to say that some of them come
out of the inquiry better than might have
been expected : indeed, the Commissioners them-
selves are drawing distinctions in this respect.
There was always a preliminary demand for money,
but it was asked for "legitimate' expenses, only these
expenses were put rather high. At Lancaster, we
are told, a perfectly pure election would cost £l,OOO,
—that is, we presume, £l,OOO each side, or each
candidate, the charge being increased according as
the purity became less and less perfect. At Totnes
Mr. Fender was asked for £1,400, which struck
him, he says, as rather a large sum, because, whereas
he had understood that " every borough had its
price," he fancied Totues—we suppose from the
smallness of the constituency—would be a cheaper
bargain. Being asked where bethought this money
was going to, he replied, "It seemed to me part of
the constitutionalcustorn, legalised by custom," and,
certainly, if prescriptive usage could make either
Constitution or taw, the impression was not alto-
gether a, false one.. Mr. Fender's expectations of
economy, however, were sadly disappointed, for two
elections, with " gifts for public purposes " in the
interval between them, cost him £7,461 7s. 4d,—
more than twice as much as the average yearly cost
of Yarmouth. Of course, any candidate would rather
win for nothing than win for money, but some of
them seem to have been really anxious to avoid bri-
bery, and some to have been unaware of it. What
the candidate refused to do the " party" unhesitat-
ingly did—not only in administering money, but in
finding it. Generally, however, the funds came
sooner or later out of the candidate's pocket, to his
disgust or indignation, more or less sincere ; and if
his previous ignorance did not partake of willing
connivance, it savoured very much of wilful blind-
ness. It has been suggested that we ought to attack
bribery at the fountain head ; but bribery is not
always the act of the candidate. Not only does he
not administer the bribe, but it may happen that he
does not find the means. It seems as if the money
required beyond a certain sum— or, in other
words, the money employed in corruption'— was
furnished sometimes by independent contribu-
tions, nor can we doubt, indeed, that political
associations would provide the means for poli-
tical contests, even if no "spirited" candidates were
forthcoming. Then, there is always the vaunted
remedy of the ballot. Mr. Henry Berkeley and his
friends believe that if votes were given in secret, so
that no briber could tell whether he actually re-
ceived value for his money, bribing would cease.
Who would purchase goods without any security
for their delivery? We should consider this ques-
tion unanswerable were it not for the identity of
interests between the parties concerned. 'We think
the seller would, in the majority of instances, de-
liver the goods, simply because if he did not lie
would be spoiling the market, whereas it would be
against his interest to have the market spoilt. No
doubt there would be greedy men, without even
rogues' honour, • who would cheat their customers
by taking bribes from both sides, but the greater
number might be expected to fulfil their pledges if
only to preserve their " customs." This, however,
is not the most important question suggested by the
pending revelations. We must ask again what
ordinary course of action is to be expected of such
electors as figure in the reports supposing the mar-
ket for votes to be effectually closed ? If thousands
of honest voters, impressed with sincere convictions,
had been led to barter those convictions for money
under the pressure of want, we should know what
would happen if the temptation were withdrawn.
But no such conditions exist. We cannot remem-
ber a single instance in all the multitudinous cases
produced of such feelings and conduct as we have
been supposing. To the best of our recollection,
no one voter ever came forward to say that he was
coerced by his poverty against his will. In fact, to
a very great extent there was neither poverty nor
will in the case at all. The bribed voters were not
poor ; and, even if they had not been bribed, there
was no political will or conviction which, in the ab-
sence of improper influence, could have dictated
their votes. On Thursday, at Lancaster, a tenant
farmer, paying £4OO a year rent, owned to selling
his vote for £B. This was an extreme case, but it is
perfectly clear that the receipt of bribes is not by
any means confined to the necessitous. The money
is taken in accordance with custom, because it is
" flying about ;" because one man "may as well get
it as another ;" and because, above all, it costs
nothing to take. If there were any traces, in all
these confessions, of violence felt or necessity de-
plored, we should know what to anticipate when the
tempters were banished, but there is not a vestige of
any such sentiments. The men who now sell their
votes could sell them no longer if there were nobody
to buy them, but we cannot detect a sign of any
influence or motive which would replace the desire
of gain. How such voters would vote, if they took
the trouble to vote at all, is a mystery. They might
go according to their colours, blue or red, according
as they or their fathers had been red or blues; but
if there is any other influence at work with them, we
cannot discover it from these disclosures. The evi-
dence given by election managers is either naturally
prejudiced or it comes to what we have said. Libe-
ral agents declare that a borough, if bribery could
be Etopped, would return Liberals ; Conservative
agents assert that, under the same conditions, no
Liberal would have a chance; but there are some
who confess plainly that real political principles
have no existence whatever, and that is our de-
duction from the evidence. What then, in the
absence of any such principles to take the place of
sordid motives, is to determine the suffrageki, of a
constituency ? -
ANGLO-AMERICAN TlMEs.—The New York corres-
pondents of the leading London journals give, in our
opinion, a very erroneous impression of the bitterness
expressed by the Press of the States on the political
questions now splitting the Union into factions. The
most prominent politicians of both sides certainly dis-
play great acrimony---with many brilliant exceptions.
But the Press, as a whole, discuss the questions
with much calmness and dignity. Few in this city
read through so large a number of American jour-
nals as ourselves, and we are often astonished at
the statements made on this side of the rabid bit-
terness displayed in the Union. That such a dis-
play has unfortunately been made by the Presi-
dent in his late tour we freely confess, and that
these statements have called forth as bitter de-
nunciations from his opponents is equally true.
Nothing could be easier than to disprove such ac-
cusations against the Press did our space contain
volumes instead of a few sheets, by simply extract-
ing the ortieleo on the ("nation. The sense of the

nation is excited against the President mainly on
account of his violent language, and it is not
likely that what has done him so much injury
would be beneficial in a newspaper to adopt.
As time progresses it will be clearly seen
that the nation will not tolerate people whose
tendency is to drift it into another Civil War.
The strong ascendancy of the Republican
party will be.decisive on the question. Having the
undoubted power in their hands, the inclination will
be to use it as the nation desires—that is, moderately,
and the inclination of the Democratic party will be
to accept the best terms they can get, for they will
certainly not improve their condition by an appeal
to arms. There is no statesman in America, from
the President downwards, who does not profess to
bow to the distinctly expressed wish of the nation.
This is not mere theory ; it is acted on. practically,
And these very letters contain the best evidence of
what the wish of the nation is. A short time ago
we were told that the Philadelphia Union Conven-
tion was to annihilate the opposition of Congress, and
place the whole power in the hands of the President
to carry out his policy. We are now told that
" weak-minded" people are going by thousands into
the Radical ranks, which, being interpreted, means
that the sense of the nation is against Mr. Johnson's
violence, these weak-minded people being the
backbone of the United States. This is the great
Conservative element which, when it speaks, drowns
every opposition, and before whom all must bow.
To induce this quiescent element of the nation
to move--is the difficulty. It only acts on great
emergencies, but when it does act the question is
decided. The Press has already felt the influence.
The New York Herald has at once bowed to what
it declares to be the voice of the people ; and, deter-
mined as Mr. Johnson is, there is no other course
for him but to do likewise or resign. The, real
opposition rests in the person of Mr. Johnson,
backed by the great respect entertained throughout
the Union for his office. If he moderates his tone
the effect will be instantaneous, and the people,
who believe firmly in his honesty of purpose, will
be content to forget his indiscretions. The News-
paper Press of America will suppress the tendencies
of political agitators to keep up the bitterness of
the struggle. Never before did a conquering nation
act more leniently to a beaten foe than the North
to the South, because the feeling of the people was
in favour of measures of extreme conciliation.
The journals of the far South do harm by the
bad blood they display, but much consideration
is allowed for the generated by
defeat. Their scolding would excite little attention
if not backed by the support of the President and
the Democratic party. With the old ascendancy
of the Republicans will come more moderation in
their counsels. To suppose that the New England
States—the stronghold of the party—wish for a re-
newal of the war is to suppose a monstrous absur-
dity. Every sentiment of these people is towards
peace, which they believe can be best secured by
settling on a firm basis the questions which now
excite such animosity. They hold that the Presi-
dent's policy would renew the ascendancy of the
South, undo the result of the war, and necessitate
another for the accomplishment of the ends on
which they are bent. With such views, it is ntu-
ral they should strain every nerve not to allow,the
opportunity to pass. • At the same time there, vits 0.,
great and growing party in the Union who stand
midway between the President and Congress. When'
prominent men like Henry Ward Beecher express
such views they are apt to be denounced by
the party whose ranks they appear to be leaving.
There is a well-known 'tendency to exaggera-
tion in American sentiment, which leads politicians
to speak in much stronger terms than they feel,
or are at all prepared to act. We maintain that
the true sentiment of the people is expressed,—
perhafl with a tinge of this exaggeration by the
Press—and, on the whole, these sentiments are
distinctly moderate.